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As a mob of mercenaries loots the Holy See, 42 Swiss Guardsmen, all that remains of the 500 who started in the fight, fortify themselves on the steps of the Vatican, to make one desperate last stand to fulfill their holy mission and defend the Pope at all costs.

160 years ago on May 12th 1862, in the midst of the American Civil War, a small Confederate boat, captained by a mysterious man in a straw hat, runs up the white flag and surrenders to the US Navy. Is it all too good to be true or could it be some true good news?

After gaining his personal freedom, a former slave faces an even greater challenge when a powerful empire threatens to take away the freedom of his entire country if he cannot find a way to win a complicated war and the game of politics. 

After failing a very difficult exam, a young man in China falls into a fever dream. He soon realizes the meaning of his dream, that he is the younger brother of Jesus Christ, destined to create a heavenly kingdom on Earth. His gospel will soon change forever the course of Chinese history, and cause ripple effects around the world.

In 1506, a child is born pre-maturely to the Queen of Hungary. Miraculously, Louis II survives, and grows up to ascend to the throne at just 10 years old. By his teens however, the two empires on Hungary’s doorstep are looking to seize his kingdom, and it will take another miracle if the young king wants to hold onto his birthright.

In the late 1800s, a young man calling himself Lord Gordon Gordon arrives in New York City, and sets out to make his fortune. Claiming connections to wealthy Scottish railroad investors, he gets his hands on millions of dollars from a powerful American stock market speculator. But when politics come into play, things get complicated. Plus we have a new pop culture history quiz about Disney princesses!

No, not that kind of filibuster! In the mid-1800s journalist William Walker makes a habit of invading Latin American countries to try and make his fortune, a strategy known as a “filibustering”. But can this undoubtedly illegal enterprise pay off for the American adventurer?

In 1950 an obscure American Senator announces that he knows the names of 205 Soviet spies in the US State Department. Over the next five years, Senator Joe McCarthy would gain the fame he sought as he investigated “un-American activities” but at what cost?

In 89 BCE, 1-year-old Publius Ventidius Bassus is marched through the streets of Rome, a slave captured by the victorious Roman army. 31 years later, he is recruited into that same Roman army, and begins a precipitous rise to the very top of the Roman political order.

An oddball group of soldiers and rebels are assembled on a small island in the Adriatic Sea to bolster the brave Yugoslavian resistance in their fight against Axis Germany.

In 1899 France is divided by deep and bitter political fractures. At the centre of it all is an artillery officer accused of spying for the Germans, and a President accused of covering up exonerating evidence. When the President is found dead in his bed with a younger woman, the country heads to a trial that will have consequences for years to come. 

Facing death for a minor transgression, two military officers in China in 209BCE decide they have no choice but to rebel. With the help of a fishy prophecy they lead their men in a hopeless war against the powerful Qin dynasty, but their decision will have effects that echo through the generations in China.

As World War One rages, a right-wing populist politician named Noel Pemberton Billing taps into the fears of Londoners with sensationalist stories about homosexual German spies. But when a dancer sues him for libel, it results in a trial full of crazy witnesses, outlandish rumours and petty personal sniping.

In 1812, it seems that the only way to prevent a war between Britain and the United States might be to assassinate Prime Minister Spencer Perceval. But when the British leader is gunned down in the Parliament, things don’t go as you’d expect.

Pulling off a heist takes perfect planning, exact execution and a little bit of luck. 350 years ago, Thomas Blood was hoping for all three as he attempted to pull off the most daring theft imaginable in King Charles II’s England, stealing the Crown Jewels from the Tower of London! But is Thomas just a small part of a conspiracy that goes all the way to the top?

Late in World War Two, the American Navy is engaged in a game of cat and mouse with the Japanese, each trying to lure the other into a deadly trap. When an American Task Force is drawn off target, the USS Johnston must survive long enough to avoid a complete disaster for the American forces.

In 1943 a small British artillery unit faces the full brunt of Rommel’s army of German tanks. If they fail, it could spell a disaster for the British Army in North Africa. A true story of courage and heroism in the face of overwhelming odds. 

There’s celebration in the streets of England when it is announced that their enemy, General Napoleon Bonaparte, is dead. The only problem is that Napoleon is very much alive. But some people have made a fortune off the news of his death in the stock markets, and a crack team of investigators sets out to find them and prosecute them. The investigation will go to the very top and send shockwaves through the British military and political sphere.

When a sailor dies fighting the Portuguese, his wife vows revenge. Keumalahayati will not only get that revenge but her skill, courage and daring feats on the high seas will lift her country to new heights and earn her renown around the world.

In the middle of the night a mysterious hooded figure murders a  powerful Roman politician. With his death, proposed political reforms come to a halt and the Republic is thrown into turmoil.