History

Course summary

Unit 1 – England 1558-1603: mid-Tudor crises and Elizabethan England Henry VIII’s three children all ruled after him, in challenging circumstances. We explore how Edward, as a young boy, and Mary, as England’s first ruling queen, attempted to assert their authority and see through ambitious programmes of religious change, while fending off foreign threats and dealing with social and economic problems in England. Is it fair to characterise their reigns as a period of crisis? Elizabeth I has enjoyed a much better reputation, as ‘Gloriana’ and ‘Good Queen Bess’ to her sister’s ‘Bloody Mary’. We study how far she was able to stabilise religious tensions, and to assert her authority despite her gender, the lack of an heir, pressure to marry, plots against her life involving her cousin Mary, Queen of Scots, and the threat of Spanish invasion. Was she as successful as her well-known portraits imply, or was her position constantly insecure? Unit 2 Russia, 1894-1941 Continuing the theme of power struggles, and how rulers lose their legitimacy and their hold on power, we explore the period of the Russian Revolution and its tumultuous aftermath, culminating in the Stalinist dictatorship. Was Tsar Nicholas II’s bloody end brought about more by his personal failings, loathing and distrust of his wife, or a failure of leadership in the First World War? Russia experienced not one but two revolutions in 1917. Was it Lenin’s appealing promises or his ruthless planning which led to the seizure of power by the minority Bolshevik faction? Were his promises ever put into practice? Stalin outdid several more famous rivals to take power after Lenin’s untimely death, but under his leadership, the Russian people learned to speak in whispers – why were they so afraid? This provides a fascinating comparison to life in Nazi Germany. Unit 3 – The Origins and Growth of the British Empire 1558-1783 How and why did the British Empire grow to become world-wide and world-dominating, laying the foundations for the 20th century and the world we live in today? We study the impact of the empire on Britain, from its political and naval power and its victory or defeat in war, to culture, science and the arts. Equally, we study what the impact was on the peoples of North America, India, and Africa. How much resistance did the British face, and what role did the slave trade and slavery play in the growth of British power? This course sets the British Empire in context, and includes the history of non-British, non-European peoples whose voices and experiences have often been marginalised. Unit 4 – Historical Enquiry (coursework) Your historical enquiry is an opportunity to choose a particular topic of interest to you, and explore it in detail. This involves independent research leading to an essay of up to 4,000 words.