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Ever wondered why Katherine of Aragon has a portrait with a monkey? Do you want to know how we select episodes? Curious about how astrology is done for each episode? This episode is for you!!

In our first Q&A, we answer burning listener questions, covering our research process, how we select figures to cover, and reflect on who made the most impact on us!

Come along with us as we revisit the women we've covered, the wishes we have about each of them, future plans for the podcast, and a few sneak peeks about who we'll cover in the future.

Still have an unanswered question? Feel free to send us fan mail on Buzzsprout or leave a comment on wherever you listen to your favorite podcasts.

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Known more by legend than fact, Marie Laveau has been immortalized for her Louisiana Voodoo practices. Born in New Orleans as the first free woman of color in her family, she's remembered for much more than her religious practices. By the end of her life, Marie was known as the Voodoo Queen of New Orleans and had practiced it for at least 60 years.

Marie was not only known for her Voodoo practices and ceremonies. She nursed the sick in Yellow Fever epidemics, cared for the condemned, and let Choctaw women and children sleep in her front yard. She was a true figurehead of multiracial, diverse community of New Orleans, and is still consulted for guidance today.

Come along with us as we explore Marie's place in New Orleans history, influence on Afro-Catholic practices, and her enduring legacy through history and astrology for Black History Month!

Sources

Articles:

• “The Ancestors: Marie Laveau’s Tomb” by August Darbonne, Kathryn O’Dwyer (https://tinyurl.com/yaav7s86)
• "The Birth of New Orleans' Voodoo Queen: A Long-Held Mystery Resolved" by Ina J. Fandrich (https://tinyurl.com/5n6sszf4)
• "Extreme Penalty of the Law: Death Punishment for Murder, The Executions Yesterday", New Orleans Republican, May 14, 1871 (https://tinyurl.com/4et3fz47)
• “Marie Laveau” by Carolyn Marrow Long (https://tinyurl.com/34ej4p5m)
• "Marie Laveau's husband disappeared 200 years ago, but an LSU student thinks she finally found him" by Doug MacCash (https://tinyurl.com/y5e3eun7)

Books:

• The French Quarter: an Informal History of the New Orleans by Herbert Ashbury
• The Magic of Marie Laveau: Embracing the Spiritual Legacy of the Voodoo Queen of New Orleans by Denise Alvarado
• A New Orleans voudou priestess: the legend and reality of Marie Laveau by Carolyn Morrow Long
• Witch Queens, Voodoo Spirits, & Hoodoo Saints: A Guide to Magical New Orleans by Denise Alvarado

Primary Sources:

• Le Code Noir, May 6, 1687 (https://tinyurl.com/2s468ypz)
• Louisiana's Code Noir, 1724 (https://tinyurl.com/5z28pun5)

Websites:

• Marie Laveau Home Site (https://tinyurl.com/m4ck5jj5)
• Marie Laveau's Tomb (https://tinyurl.com/524krb6s)
• Marie Laveau, Voodoo Practitioner (https://tinyurl.com/y934fm97)
• St. Louis Cemetery No. 1 (https://tinyurl.com/4nn8utak)
• Who was Marie Laveau? (https://tinyurl.com/3n73sn5p)

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Born on April 15, 1894, Bessie Smith fell in love with music at a young age. Inspired by her brother Clarence, she started off performing on 9th Street in Chattanooga, Tennessee. By 14, she was performing at Atlanta's 81 Theatre, where she met the legendary Ma Rainey.

In 1923, Bessie recorded "Down Hearted Blues." In less than 6 months, it sold 780,000 copies. This catapulted her into the national spotlight where she toured the North and South, collaborated with greats like Louis Armstrong, and became the highest paid Black entertainer of her time.

Come along with us as we explore Bessie's career, influence on blues and jazz, and her enduring legacy through history and astrology for Black History Month!

Sources

Articles:

• “Bessie Smith” by Chris Albertson, for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame (https://tinyurl.com/5ad57fps)
• "Bessie Smith: Blues Icon, Trailblazer with Village Connections" by Leeanne G-Bowley (https://tinyurl.com/472fpr6e)
• "Bessie Smith's First Recordings" by Roger Kimmel Smith (https://tinyurl.com/5n6r5e7p)
• "Bulldykers and lady lovers: the rumors about lesbian blues singers were all true" by Meagan Day (https://tinyurl.com/4byxcx83)
• “Edward Albee: Controversial Father of Vaudeville” by Anna Jennings (https://tinyurl.com/dw6byj4v)
• “Forebearers: Bessie Smith, The Empress of The Blues” by Gwen Thompkins (https://tinyurl.com/d58j32k3)
• "1923: Bessie Smith, 100 Women of the Year", TIME Magazine (https://tinyurl.com/43ywwxrk)

Books:

• Bessie by Chris Alberston, Revised and Extended Edition.

Digital Media:

• Bessie, HBO Films, 2015
• St. Louis Blues (https://tinyurl.com/545z73tr)

Websites:

• Bessie Smith (https://tinyurl.com/th3d8phr)
• Bessie Smith (https://tinyurl.com/msw69jkn)
• Bessie Smith (https://tinyurl.com/5dn9xyfs)
• GRAMMY Hall of Fame Past Recipients (https://tinyurl.com/mnrn3b45)
• The National Recording Registry 2002 (https://tinyurl.com/2my6fs2t)
• 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll (https://tinyurl.com/4vbbdazz)

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For over 1,100 years, the Pythia at the Oracle of Delphi influenced politics, wars, and laws in the Ancient Greek world. Open to questions only nine days a year, the Pythia gave guidance to people from all across Greece, Asia Minor, and beyond.

Between 535 to 615 of the oracles have survived, and over half are said to be historically correct. Pericles, Xenophon (a friend of Socrates), and Emperor Hadrian consulted the Pythia, showing how these women were the greatest authority in Ancient Greece.

Come along with us as we explore the founding of the Oracle of Delphi, famous prophecies, and the Pythia's power through history and astrology in Olivia's birthday episode!

This episode contains mentions of rape & cannibalism.

Sources

Articles:

• “Apollo and the Pythia: the Oracle of Delphi” (https://tinyurl.com/wretu7df)
• “Delphic priestesses were the world’s first political risk consultants” (https://tinyurl.com/38d6wen8)
• "The excavations at Delphi" (https://tinyurl.com/bpbxp9b3)
• “The Oracle of Delphi: The Ancient Greek Fortuneteller” (https://tinyurl.com/mfpdtbr8)
• "What Lies Beneath: The Great Excavation Sacred Delphi" (https://tinyurl.com/5ufkx99z)

Books:

• The Astrology of Fate by Liz Green
• Delphi: a history of the center of the ancient world by Michael Scott
• Delphi and the Greek Warrior by Lauren O. Thyme
• Delphi: The History of the Ancient Greek Sanctuary and Home to the World's Most Famous Oracle by Charles River Editors and Andrew Scott
• “The Delphic Oracle” in Mythology Unbound: An Online Textbook for Classical Mythology (https://tinyurl.com/45bjxh2c)
• The Oracle: Ancient Delphi and the Science Behind Its Lost Secrets by William J. Broad
• “The Twelve Labors of Heracles” in Mythology Unbound: An Online Textbook for Classical Mythology (https://tinyurl.com/m97z52yp)

Primary Sources:

• The Histories by Herodotus, Translated by Andrea L. Purvis, Edited by Robert B. Strassler
• The Obsolescence of Oracles by Plutarch, Translated by F.C. Babbitt

Website:

• Archaeological Site of Delphi (https://tinyurl.com/v22kpxfr)
• Delphi Archaeological Museum (https://tinyurl.com/2dm34js7)
• Heracles and Apollo (https://tinyurl.com/3u2v472j)
• History of Delphi (https://tinyurl.com/5ufkx99z)
• The Oracle at Delphi (https://tinyurl.com/3r5dcebd)

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Long before the annulment of their marriage, Katherine of Aragon's status as queen was actively buried by Henry VIII. Her strategy of patience against his attempts to belittle her won out; she did not bend. Katherine remained close to her friends, focused on needlework, and poured herself into her daughter Mary's education in the remaining years of her life.

After she died on January 7, 1536, she was given a princess' funeral procession — not a queen's — and buried in a modest tomb at Peterborough Cathedral. While Henry VIII tried to erase her, today we remember her as the true Queen.

Come along with us as we explore Katherine's strategic queenship, motherhood, and legacy through history and astrology in Amanda's birthday episode!

Sources

Articles:

• "Catherine of Aragon: Spain's Virgin queen?" by Giles Tremlett (https://tinyurl.com/42e9m6pe)
• "The Death of Arthur Tudor" by Claire Ridgeway (https://tinyurl.com/26my79zr)
• “Did Blood Cause Henry VIII’s Madness and Reproductive Woes?” by Jennie Cohen (https://tinyurl.com/3k5p54fb)
• "Did Catherine of Aragon and Arthur Tudor consummate their marriage?" by Claire Ridgeway (https://tinyurl.com/8eve7hm2)
• “The head that wears the crown: Henry VIII and traumatic brain injury” by Muhammad Qaiser Ikram, Fazle Hakim Sajjad, and Arash Salardini. Journal of Clinical Neuroscience, February 5, 2016. (https://tinyurl.com/3ztpnua7)
• “Katherine of Aragon: England’s First Feminist Queen?” by Daniella Novakovic (https://tinyurl.com/3z7eebyh)
• “The Pregnancies of Katherine of Aragon” by Sarah Bryson (https://tinyurl.com/fpn6mbxx)
• Tudor Life: Katherine of Aragon, September 2017 edition (https://tinyurl.com/3rmawtvt)
• “Tudor Royal Pregnancy - Catherine of Aragon” by Charlotte Daynton, July 7, 2019. (https://tinyurl.com/5n998b9v)
• “Tudor Royal Pregnancy - Elizabeth of York ” by Charlotte Daynton, June 30, 2019. (https://tinyurl.com/mr3xtekh)

Books:

• Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII's Spanish Queen by Giles Tremlett
• Catherine of Aragon: Infanta of Spain, Queen of England by Theresa Earenfight
• How to Be a Tudor by Ruth Goodman
• Katherine of Aragon, the True Queen by Alison Weir

Digital Media:

• The Six Tudor Queens — Katherine of Aragon with Elizabeth Norton, Historical Royal Palaces Podcast (https://tinyurl.com/45u349cp)

Primary Sources:

• Letter from Cardinal Wolsey to Henry VIII, July 5, 1527 (https://tinyurl.com/ycx8yd86)
• Letter from Eustace Chapuys to Charles V, January 9, 1536 (https://tinyurl.com/2nu3d686)
• Letter from Eustace Chapuys to Charles V, January 21, 1536 (https://tinyurl.com/2nu3d686)
• Letter from Katherine of Aragon to Henry VIII, January 7, 1536 (https://tinyurl.com/mvsd2wnv)

Websites:

• History of Kimbolton Castle (https://tinyurl.com/2ewk8y3u)
• Katherine of Aragon (https://tinyurl.com/yc287suz)

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Patreon: patreon.com/MakingMythPodcast
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Before Katherine of Aragon became Henry VIII's first queen, she was Catalina of Aragon, daughter of Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon. Raised in culturally diverse medieval Spain, she embodied sovereignty and wisdom in all she did. Her move to England in 1501 and marriage to Arthur Tudor set into motion the events that would make her one of England's most misunderstood queens.

Come along with us as we explore Katherine's early life, first marriage, and adjustment to English life through history and astrology in Amanda's birthday episode!

Sources

Articles:

• "Catherine of Aragon: Spain's Virgin queen?" by Giles Tremlett (https://tinyurl.com/42e9m6pe)
• "The Death of Arthur Tudor" by Claire Ridgeway (https://tinyurl.com/26my79zr)
• “Did Blood Cause Henry VIII’s Madness and Reproductive Woes?” by Jennie Cohen (https://tinyurl.com/3k5p54fb)
• "Did Catherine of Aragon and Arthur Tudor consummate their marriage?" by Claire Ridgeway (https://tinyurl.com/8eve7hm2)
• “The head that wears the crown: Henry VIII and traumatic brain injury” by Muhammad Qaiser Ikram, Fazle Hakim Sajjad, and Arash Salardini. Journal of Clinical Neuroscience, February 5, 2016. (https://tinyurl.com/3ztpnua7)
• “Katherine of Aragon: England’s First Feminist Queen?” by Daniella Novakovic (https://tinyurl.com/3z7eebyh)
• “The Pregnancies of Katherine of Aragon” by Sarah Bryson (https://tinyurl.com/fpn6mbxx)
• Tudor Life: Katherine of Aragon, September 2017 edition (https://tinyurl.com/3rmawtvt)
• “Tudor Royal Pregnancy - Catherine of Aragon” by Charlotte Daynton, July 7, 2019. (https://tinyurl.com/5n998b9v)
• “Tudor Royal Pregnancy - Elizabeth of York ” by Charlotte Daynton, June 30, 2019. (https://tinyurl.com/mr3xtekh)

Books:

• Catherine of Aragon, Henry VIII's Spanish Queen by Giles Tremlett
• Catherine of Aragon: Infanta of Spain, Queen of England by Theresa Earenfight
• How to Be a Tudor by Ruth Goodman
• Katherine of Aragon, the True Queen by Alison Weir

Digital Media:

• The Six Tudor Queens — Katherine of Aragon with Elizabeth Norton, Historical Royal Palaces Podcast (https://tinyurl.com/45u349cp)

Primary Sources:

• Letter from Cardinal Wolsey to Henry VIII, July 5, 1527 (https://tinyurl.com/ycx8yd86)
• Letter from Eustace Chapuys to Charles V, January 9, 1536 (https://tinyurl.com/2nu3d686)
• Letter from Eustace Chapuys to Charles V, January 21, 1536 (https://tinyurl.com/2nu3d686)
• Letter from Katherine of Aragon to Henry VIII, January 7, 1536 (https://tinyurl.com/mvsd2wnv)

Websites:

• History of Kimbolton Castle (https://tinyurl.com/2ewk8y3u)
• Katherine of Aragon (https://tinyurl.com/yc287suz)

Support Us!
Patreon: patreon.com/MakingMythPodcast
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It's here! Our first Listener's Choice Episode, just in time for the holidays!

Mongolian Princess Khutulun amassed 10,000 horses from wrestling matches in the Mongol Empire. A great great granddaughter of Genghis Khan, she was known for her ferocity and shrewd decisions on the battlefield. She accompanied her father in warfare, gaining the attention of contemporary explorers and chroniclers such as Marco Polo.

Come along with us as we explore Khutulun's authority and women's roles in the Mongol Empire through history and astrology.

Sources

Articles:

• “Chagatai Khanate” by Mark Cartwright, November 8, 2019 (https://www.worldhistory.org/Chagatai_Khanate/)
• “The Khananate of Chagatai” by Brian Parkinson (https://socialsci.libretexts.org/Courses/Mizzou_Academy/World_History_A_B/08%3A_Central_Asia/8.08%3A_The_Khanate_of_Chagatai)
• “Khutulun” by Tia Shah, Girl Museum, August 9, 2018 (https://www.girlmuseum.org/trailblazers-the-age-of-girls-khutulun/)
• “The Wrestler Princess” by Jack Weatherford, September 27, 2010 (https://www.laphamsquarterly.org/roundtable/wrestler-princess)

Book:

• Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World by Jack Weatherford
• The Secret History of the Mongol Queens: How the Daughters of Genghis Khan Rescued his Empire by Jack Weatherford
• Women in Mongol Iran: The Khatuns, 1206-1335 by Bruno De Nicola

Digital Media:

• “The Tragic Fate of Khutulun: the Mongol Wrestler Princess/Mongolian Princess Documentary” (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7DZ3kdOO4iU&t=331s)

Primary Sources:

• Jāmiʿ al-Tawārīkh: (Compendium of Chronicles): A History of the Mongols by Rashīd al-Dīn, translated by W.M. Thackston, second edition
• Tārīḵ-e Olǰāytū (History of Öljeitü) by al-Qashani, translated by Derya Örs
• The Travels of Marco Polo recorded by Rustichello da Pisa

Websites:

• AstroPro (https://www.astropro.com/)
• AstroSeek (https://www.astro-seek.com/)

Support Us!
Patreon: patreon.com/MakingMythPodcast
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Onna-bugeisha Tomoe Gozen is as legendary as she is mysterious. Fighting in the Genpei War from 1180 to 1185 CE, she was known for her deadly precision in battle and beauty. While Tomoe disappeared from history shortly after the end of the war, she lives on in myth and the arts.

Come along as we cover Japan's first female samurai through history and astrology.

Sources

Articles:

• "The Amazing Stories of Asahina Yoshihide: Japan’s Hercules” by Cezary Jan Strusiewicz (https://tinyurl.com/y7jwdy7p)
• "From Woman Warrior to Peripatetic Entertainer: The Multiple Histories of Tomoe" by Steven T. Brown (https://tinyurl.com/y3tkwp3r)
• “Japan’s Mugen-Noh: Let the Ghosts Speak and Dance One Last Time” by Yuri Minamide (https://tinyurl.com/jdtjrpdu)
• "The Legend of Tomoe Gozen" by Leah Silverman (https://tinyurl.com/yaxjd2pv)
• "Onna-Bugeisha, the Female Samurai Warriors of Feudal Japan" by Christin Bohnke (https://tinyurl.com/3ujxf7r4)
• "Tomoe Gozen" by Kai Fay (https://tinyurl.com/4f2bya3a)
• "Women Warriors of Early Japan" by Rochelle Nowaki (https://tinyurl.com/36vez64j)

Books:

• A Brief History of Japan by Jonathan Clements
• Heroic with Grace: Legendary Women of Japan by Chieko Irie Mulhern
• Japan before Perry: A Short History by Conrad Totman
• Samurai Women: Forgotten Heroines of Japan by Keiko Morikawa

Digital Media:

• Lady Tomoe, A History of Japan podcast (https://tinyurl.com/6u9zkff7)

Primary Sources:

• Code of the Samurai: A Modern Translation of the Bushido Shoshinshu of Taira Shigesuke by Thomas Cleary
• The Tale of the Heike translated by Royall Tyler
• Tomoe, a Noh play (https://tinyurl.com/2syh6j56)

Websites:

• The Battle of Awazugahara Historic Site Monument of Honor (https://tinyurl.com/mr2z4df8)
• "Tomoe Gozen" (https://tinyurl.com/42t65j9c)
• "Tomoe Gozen, Samurai Warrior" (https://tinyurl.com/mr36bz7d)

Support Us!
Patreon: patreon.com/MakingMythPodcast
Kofi: https://ko-fi.com/makingmythpodcast