History

Course summary

History has rightly been described as an ‘argument without end'. It offers no fixed answers but some insight into what it is to be a human being and real training in logical thought, data-handling and the attractive expression of ideas. It is also great fun. Paper 1: Germany and West Germany, 1918–89 This option comprises a study in breadth, in which students will learn about key political changes experienced in a unified Germany and then in West Germany after the Second World War, and the impact of these changes on German economic, social and cultural developments. The course will include the creation and collapse of the Weimar Republic, 1918–33; the Nazi dictatorship, 1933–45; the return to democratic government, and the creation of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG), 1945–89. This option also contains an in-depth study: how far Hitler’s foreign policy was responsible for the Second World War. Paper 2: The Rise and Fall of Fascism in Italy, c. 1911–46 This option comprises a study in depth of the turbulent years in Italy that saw the collapse of the liberal state, the creation of a fascist dictatorship under Mussolini and a return to democracy in the aftermath of the Second World War. Year Two Paper 3: Poverty, Public Health and the State in Britain, c1780–1939 Disease, epidemics, overcrowding and poverty were just some of the problems that people faced in industrial Britain. In this paper we will explore how the British government gradually, but not always successfully, took on more responsibility for people’s health and welfare within the context of the Industrial Revolution. We will look at key social issues that affected the health and wellbeing of peoples’ living and working lives and how successful the political changes were that tried to deal with them. The scale of the problem highlights a question that is important both in the past and today: Where does responsibility lie for health and welfare – with the individual or with society? Paper 4: Coursework The coursework module focuses on how events in the past have been interpreted by different historians. It develops the skills of analysis and evaluation, based on a question or problem surrounding a key historical event or period. It is an independently researched assignment, with the focus being on understanding the nature and purpose of the work of the historians. This module develops independent research skills that are essential at post-16 level and beyond, and can be transferred to other subjects being studied as well.