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15 credits, Semester one
Module leader 2024-25: Michael Bennett
Module summary
Module summary
This unit will introduce students to the study of English politics and society between 1640 and 1660. Students will use primary and secondary sources in seminars to analyse both contemporary writings and historiographical debates on the causes and significance of the civil war, defined broadly to include not just formal political debate but also popular movements (including witch hunts, clubman associations and forms of economic and social protest) and other forms of intellectual creativity (astrology and natural science for example). The aim is to understand both the conflict, and the social and cultural values through which it was experienced and resolutions were sought.
Learning outcomes
Learning outcomes
By the end of the module, you will be able to:
A more detailed understanding of recent developments in the study of England between 1640 and 1651
A knowledge of selected bodies of evidence relevant to the study of these issues, and of the problems of their interpretation
An ability to engage critically and independently in current historiographical debates on these issues
A capacity for informed and critical comparative analysis
An ability to evaluate critically approaches to these issues that use a range of different methodological approaches
An ability to examine the interaction of a range of political, cultural and social factors in an informed and integrated way
An ability to elaborate and defend an intellectual position and to present scholarly arguments and historiographical debates both orally and in writing
Assessment methods
Assessment methods
Assessment type - % of final mark
3,000 word essay - 100%
You will complete a 3,000 word essay on a topic related to one of the module's key themes. You will define your own essay topic in discussion with your tutor.
Additional learning and teaching information
Additional learning and teaching information
Teaching and indicative seminar plan:
The module will be taught in five, two-hour classes. You will also have individual tutorial contact with the module tutor in order to discuss your assessment for this module.
Selected reading:
The reading for this module is based around the module group’s interests. If you would like to do some general reading before the module starts the following books will be useful.
Michael Braddick, God’s Fury, England’s Fire: A new history of the English civil wars (2008)
Michael Braddick (ed), The Oxford Handbook, The Oxford Handbook of the English Revolution (2015)
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