TV Series - Historical/Period Dramas I liked
by launadie | created - 18 Dec 2020 | updated - 23 Jul 2022 | PublicTV series and mini-series set in the past
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1. The Bonfire of Destiny (2019)
TV-MA | 48 min | Drama, History
After a devastating fire in 1897 Paris, three women find their lives upended by betrayal, deception and romantic turmoil. Inspired by real events.
Stars: Audrey Fleurot, Julie De Bona, Camille Lou, Gilbert Melki
Votes: 6,209
2. The Luminaries (2020)
TV-MA | 60 min | Adventure, Drama, Mystery
Adventure mystery set in the midst of New Zealand's 1860's gold rush period. It has all the stuff that makes a good drama: murder, love and revenge, as men and women travel the world making their fortunes.
Stars: Eve Hewson, Eva Green, Himesh Patel, Marton Csokas
Votes: 4,207
3. Perry Mason (2020–2023)
TV-MA | 60 min | Crime, Drama, History
In booming 1932 Los Angeles, a down-and-out defense attorney takes on the case of a lifetime.
Stars: Matthew Rhys, Juliet Rylance, Chris Chalk, Shea Whigham
Votes: 28,800
4. Babylon Berlin (2017– )
TV-MA | 45 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Colognian commissioner Gereon Rath moves to Berlin, the epicenter of political and social changes in the Golden Twenties.
Stars: Volker Bruch, Liv Lisa Fries, Lars Eidinger, Fritzi Haberlandt
Votes: 30,010
5. Grantchester (2014–2025)
TV-14 | 45 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A Cambridgeshire clergyman finds himself investigating a series of mysterious wrongdoings in his small village of Grantchester.
Stars: Robson Green, Tessa Peake-Jones, Al Weaver, Kacey Ainsworth
Votes: 17,209
6. La Révolution (2020)
TV-14 | Action, Adventure, Drama
In a reimagined history of the French Revolution, the guillotine's future inventor uncovers a disease that drives the aristocracy to murder commoners.
Stars: Julien Frison, Marilou Aussilloux, Coline Beal, Amir El Kacem
Votes: 6,447
7. Reign (2013–2017)
TV-14 | 42 min | Drama
Mary, Queen of Scots, faces political and sexual intrigue in the treacherous world of the French court.
Stars: Adelaide Kane, Megan Follows, Celina Sinden, Torrance Coombs
Votes: 54,427
8. The Borgias (2011–2013)
TV-MA | 50 min | Crime, Drama, History
In the fifteenth century, Pope Alexander VI tries to control all power in Italy with the help of his several sons, through murder, intrigue, war, and marriage alliances.
Stars: Jeremy Irons, François Arnaud, Holliday Grainger, Peter Sullivan
Votes: 53,966
9. Ripper Street (2012–2016)
TV-MA | 59 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
The streets of Whitechapel are the haunt of Detective Inspector Edmund Reid and his team of officers, who aim to maintain law and order in a place once terrorized by Jack the Ripper.
Stars: Matthew Macfadyen, Adam Rothenberg, MyAnna Buring, Jerome Flynn
Votes: 22,519
10. Barbarians (2020–2022)
TV-MA | 569 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Torn between the mighty empire that raised him and his own tribal people, a Roman officer's conflicted allegiances lead to an epic historical clash.
Stars: Laurence Rupp, Jeanne Goursaud, David Schütter, Florian Schmidtke
Votes: 30,309
11. Vikings (2013–2020)
TV-MA | 45 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Vikings transports us to the brutal and mysterious world of Ragnar Lothbrok, a Viking warrior and farmer who yearns to explore--and raid--the distant shores across the ocean.
Stars: Katheryn Winnick, Gustaf Skarsgård, Alexander Ludwig, Georgia Hirst
Votes: 583,637
12. Britannia (2017–2021)
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Drama, Fantasy
In 43 AD, the Roman Army returns to crush the Celtic heart of Britannia.
Stars: David Morrissey, Eleanor Worthington-Cox, Mackenzie Crook, Julian Rhind-Tutt
Votes: 17,868
13. Spartacus (2010–2013)
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
The life of Spartacus, the gladiator who lead a rebellion against the Romans. From his time as an ally of the Romans, to his betrayal and becoming a gladiator, to the rebellion he leads and its ultimate outcome.
Stars: Andy Whitfield, Lucy Lawless, Manu Bennett, Daniel Feuerriegel
Votes: 257,199
14. Rome (2005–2007)
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Drama, Romance
A down-to-earth account of the lives of both illustrious and ordinary Romans set in the last days of the Roman Republic.
Stars: Kevin McKidd, Ray Stevenson, Polly Walker, Kerry Condon
Votes: 185,530
15. Downton Abbey (2010–2015)
TV-PG | 60 min | Drama, Romance
A chronicle of the lives of the British aristocratic Crawley family and their servants in the early twentieth century.
Stars: Hugh Bonneville, Phyllis Logan, Elizabeth McGovern, Brendan Coyle
Votes: 225,082
16. Penny Dreadful (2014–2016)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, Fantasy, Horror
Explorer Sir Malcolm Murray, American gunslinger Ethan Chandler, scientist Victor Frankenstein and medium Vanessa Ives unite to combat supernatural threats in Victorian London.
Stars: Josh Hartnett, Timothy Dalton, Eva Green, Reeve Carney
Votes: 131,163
17. Belgravia (2020)
TV-14 | 60 min | Drama, Romance
Follows events when the emerging nouveau riche, including the Trenchard family, rub shoulders with London's established upper classes and when secrets from the past threaten to emerge.
Stars: Philip Glenister, Tamsin Greig, Harriet Walter, Saskia Reeves
Votes: 8,884
18. Doctor Thorne (2016)
TV-G | 48 min | Drama
Penniless Mary Thorne grows up with her uncle, Doctor Thorne, and develops a friendship with the family at the nearby Greshamsbury Park estate.
Stars: Harry Richardson, Tom Hollander, Stefanie Martini, Rebecca Front
Votes: 5,241
19. Black Sails (2014–2017)
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
Follows Captain Flint and his pirates twenty years prior to Robert Louis Stevenson's classic novel "Treasure Island."
Stars: Jessica Parker Kennedy, Toby Stephens, Hannah New, Zach McGowan
Votes: 114,114
20. Marco Polo (2014–2016)
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Adventure, Drama
In a world replete with greed, betrayal, sexual intrigue and rivalry, "Marco Polo" is based on the famed explorer's adventures in Kublai Khan's court in 13th century Mongolia.
Stars: Lorenzo Richelmy, Benedict Wong, Joan Chen, Remy Hii
Votes: 78,740
21. The Frankenstein Chronicles (2015–2017)
TV-MA | 48 min | Crime, Drama, Fantasy
Inspector John Marlott investigates a series of crimes in 19th Century London, which may have been committed by a scientist intent on re-animating the dead.
Stars: Sean Bean, Richie Campbell, Tom Ward, Ryan Sampson
Votes: 12,300
22. The Alienist (2018–2020)
TV-MA | 60 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Newspaper illustrator John Moore meets with criminal psychologist (alienist) Dr. Laszlo Kreizler to investigate a serial killer in New York during the late 19th century.
Stars: Daniel Brühl, Dakota Fanning, Luke Evans, Robert Wisdom
Votes: 60,232
23. Pride and Prejudice (1995)
TV-PG | 55 min | Drama, Romance
While the arrival of wealthy gentlemen sends her marriage-minded mother into a frenzy, willful and opinionated Elizabeth Bennet matches wits with haughty Mr. Darcy.
Stars: Colin Firth, Jennifer Ehle, Susannah Harker, Julia Sawalha
Votes: 92,384
24. Sense & Sensibility (2008)
TV-14 | 58 min | Drama, Romance
The sisters Eleanor and Marianne Dashwood try to find love and security in the 1800's. These two sisters coudn't be more different. Where Eleanor is calm and always acts proper Marianne is passionate and usally forgets herself.
Stars: Dominic Cooper, Charity Wakefield, Hattie Morahan, Janet McTeer
Votes: 13,001
25. Emma (2009)
TV-PG | 62 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
Emma Woodhouse, a wealthy young woman living in the early 19th century, whose misplaced confidence in her matchmaking abilities occasions several romantic misadventures, which leads her into deeper meanings of love and life
Stars: Romola Garai, Michael Gambon, Jonny Lee Miller, Jodhi May
Votes: 18,059
26. Jane Eyre (2006)
TV-PG | 58 min | Drama, Romance
A young governess falls in love with her brooding and complex master. However, his dark past may destroy their relationship forever.
Stars: Ruth Wilson, Toby Stephens, Lorraine Ashbourne, Aidan McArdle
Votes: 22,383
27. North & South (2004)
TV-PG | 60 min | Drama, Romance
North and South is a four-part adaptation of Elizabeth Gaskell's love story of Margaret Hale, a middle-class southerner who is forced to move to the northern town of Milton.
Stars: Daniela Denby-Ashe, Richard Armitage, Tim Pigott-Smith, Sinéad Cusack
Votes: 34,990
28. Wives and Daughters (1999)
TV-PG | 75 min | Drama
The daughter of a country doctor copes with an unwanted stepmother, an impetuous stepsister, burdensome secrets, the town gossips, and the tug on her own heartstrings for a man who thinks of her only as a friend.
Stars: Francesca Annis, Justine Waddell, Bill Paterson, Keeley Hawes
Votes: 7,329
29. Dracula (2020)
TV-14 | 90 min | Action, Drama, Fantasy
In 1897 Transylvania, the blood-drinking Count draws his plans against Victorian London.
Stars: Claes Bang, Dolly Wells, Morfydd Clark, Lydia West
Votes: 52,629
30. Dracula (2013–2014)
TV-14 | 417 min | Drama, Horror, Romance
Dracula travels to London, with dark plans for revenge against those who ruined his life centuries earlier. However, his plan is complicated when he falls in love with a woman who seems to be a reincarnation of his dead wife.
Stars: Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Jessica De Gouw, Thomas Kretschmann, Victoria Smurfit
Votes: 30,153
31. Outlander (2014– )
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
Claire Beauchamp Randall, a nurse in World War II, mysteriously goes back in time to Scotland in 1743. There, she meets a dashing Highland warrior and gets drawn into an epic rebellion.
Stars: Caitríona Balfe, Sam Heughan, Sophie Skelton, Richard Rankin
Votes: 179,243
32. Victoria (2016–2019)
TV-PG | 60 min | Biography, Drama, History
The early life of Queen Victoria, from her ascension to the throne at the tender age of 18 to her courtship and marriage to Prince Albert.
Stars: Jenna Coleman, Adrian Schiller, Tommy Knight, Jordan Waller
Votes: 30,917
33. And Then There Were None (2015)
TV-14 | 57 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Ten strangers are invited to an island by a mysterious host, and start to get killed one by one. Could one of them be the killer?
Stars: Maeve Dermody, Charles Dance, Toby Stephens, Burn Gorman
Votes: 43,897
34. Peaky Blinders (2013–2022)
TV-MA | 60 min | Crime, Drama
A gangster family epic set in 1900s England, centering on a gang who sew razor blades in the peaks of their caps, and their fierce boss Tommy Shelby.
Stars: Cillian Murphy, Paul Anderson, Sophie Rundle, Helen McCrory
Votes: 650,853
35. The Terror (2018–2025)
TV-14 | 60 min | Adventure, Drama, Horror
Supernatural, semihistorical, horror anthology series, where each season is inspired by a different infamous or mysterious real life historical tragedy.
Stars: Jared Harris, Derek Mio, Tobias Menzies, Kiki Sukezane
Votes: 51,443
36. The Tudors (2007–2010)
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama, History, Romance
A dramatic series about the reign and marriages of King Henry VIII.
Stars: Jonathan Rhys Meyers, Henry Cavill, Anthony Brophy, James Frain
Votes: 81,267
37. The Hollow Crown (2012–2016)
TV-14 | 150 min | Drama, History, War
A mini-series of adaptations of Shakespeare's history plays: Richard II, Henry IV: Parts 1 and 2, and Henry V.
Stars: Anton Lesser, Simon Russell Beale, Tom Georgeson, John Mackay
Votes: 7,319
38. Poldark (2015–2019)
TV-14 | 60 min | Drama, Romance
Ross Poldark returns home after the American Revolutionary War and rebuilds his life with a new business venture, making new enemies and finding a new love where he least expects it.
Stars: Aidan Turner, Eleanor Tomlinson, Jack Farthing, Beatie Edney
Votes: 36,140
39. The Crimson Petal and the White (2011)
TV-MA | 69 min | Drama, Romance
Set in 1870s London, a young prostitute finds potential power and status after becoming the mistress of a powerful patriarch.
Stars: Romola Garai, Chris O'Dowd, Amanda Hale, Shirley Henderson
Votes: 3,612
40. Spartacus: Gods of the Arena (2011)
TV-MA | 55 min | Action, Adventure, Biography
In the time before the arrival of Spartacus, the House of Batiatus faces many challenges from competitors, and within its own household.
Stars: John Hannah, Manu Bennett, Peter Mensah, Dustin Clare
Votes: 145,516
41. Da Vinci's Demons (2013–2015)
TV-MA | 60 min | Adventure, Biography, Drama
Follows Leonardo Da Vinci during his early days in Florence, as a young artist, inventor and dreamer, trying to change the future.
Stars: Tom Riley, Gregg Chilingirian, Eros Vlahos, Laura Haddock
Votes: 79,218
42. Medici (2016–2019)
TV-14 | 1,314 min | Biography, Drama, History
A political family drama set in Florence in the early fifteenth century. Cosimo de Medici finds himself at the helm of his banking dynasty when his father, Giovanni, dies suddenly.
Stars: Daniel Sharman, Alessandra Mastronardi, Synnove Karlsen, Sebastian De Souza
Votes: 22,331
43. The Last Kingdom (2015–2023)
TV-MA | 60 min | Action, Drama, History
As Alfred the Great defends his kingdom from Norse invaders, Uhtred--born a Saxon but raised by Vikings--seeks to claim his ancestral birthright.
Stars: Alexander Dreymon, Eliza Butterworth, Arnas Fedaravicius, Mark Rowley
Votes: 165,927
44. Versailles (2015–2018)
TV-MA | 60 min | Biography, Drama, History
In 1667, 28-year-old all-powerful king of France, Louis XIV, decides to build the greatest palace in the world - Versailles. But drained budget, affairs and political intrigues complicate things.
Stars: George Blagden, Alexander Vlahos, Tygh Runyan, Stuart Bowman
Votes: 18,726
45. Alias Grace (2017)
TV-MA | 45 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Grace, an Irish immigrant in 19th-century Canada, is convicted of the murder of her employer. However, things take a different turn when a psychiatrist arrives to analyze her mental state.
Stars: Sarah Gadon, Edward Holcroft, Rebecca Liddiard, Zachary Levi
Votes: 37,864
46. The Nevers (2021–2023)
TV-MA | 58 min | Action, Drama, Fantasy
An epic tale following a gang of Victorian women who find themselves with unusual abilities, relentless enemies, and a mission that might change the world.
Stars: Laura Donnelly, Ann Skelly, Olivia Williams, James Norton
Votes: 27,754
47. Miss Scarlet & the Duke (2020– )
TV-14 | 60 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
When Eliza Scarlet's father dies, he leaves her penniless, but she resolves to continue his detective agency. To operate in a male-dominated world, though, she needs a partner - step forward a detective known as the Duke.
Stars: Kate Phillips, Stuart Martin, Cathy Belton, Simon Ludders
Votes: 11,022
48. Around the World in 80 Days (2021– )
PG | 60 min | Adventure, Comedy, History
Gentleman adventurer Phileas Fogg sets out on a quest to travel around the world and back home in a period of 80 days.
Stars: David Tennant, Ibrahim Koma, Leonie Benesch, Jason Watkins
Votes: 12,156
49. The Essex Serpent (2022)
TV-14 | 48 min | Drama, Fantasy, Mystery
Follows London widow Cora Seaborne who moves to Essex to investigate reports of a mythical serpent. She forms a bond of science and skepticism with the pastor, but when tragedy strikes, locals accuse her of attracting the creature.
Stars: Claire Danes, Tom Hiddleston, Frank Dillane, Clémence Poésy
Votes: 7,433
50. The Gilded Age (2022– )
TV-MA | 60 min | Drama
The series follows the conflicts surrounding the new money Russell family and their old money neighbors, the van Rhijn family, in 1880s New York City high society.
Stars: Carrie Coon, Morgan Spector, Louisa Jacobson, Denée Benton
Votes: 38,267
51. Paris Police 1900 (2021)
55 min | Crime, Drama, History
Paris, France, 1899. The corpse of an unknown woman is found in the river Seine. The investigation will push a young ambitious inspector to discover a heavy state secret.
Stars: Jérémie Laheurte, Evelyne Brochu, Thibaut Evrard, Marc Barbé
Votes: 1,440
52. Hell on Wheels (2011–2016)
TV-14 | 42 min | Drama, Western
The Civil War is past, but former Confederate soldier Cullen Bohannon can't put it behind him. Fresh are the memories of the death of his wife, killed at the hands of Union soldiers, an act that sets him on a course of revenge.
Stars: Anson Mount, Colm Meaney, Robin McLeavy, Phil Burke
Votes: 55,797
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