History

In this course, Professor Adrian Smith (University of Southampton) thinks about British history in the first half of the twentieth century through six key elections—1906, 1923, 1931, 1945, 1950 and 1951. As we look at each election, we explore the...

In this course, Dr Anna Ross (University of Oxford) explores the unification of Germany, starting with the proclamation of the German Empire on the 18th January 1871, and moving back in time to consider how the Germans had reached this...

In this course, we explore the reigns of three kings of England, and one queen: Charles II, James II, and William and Mary. Beginning with the Restoration of Charles II in 1660, we begin by exploring in some detail Charles’...

In this course, Dr Benjamin Smith (University of Warwick) gives an account of the drug trade in Mexico from the pre-colonial period to the present day. After a brief history of the South American continent, including an account of the...

In this course, Dr Rob Johnson (University of Oxford) looks at the First World War from the point of view of the military strategies of each side. The course begins by considering the preparations for war, particularly those of Germany,...

In this course, Professor Tim Lockley (University of Warwick) looks at the institution of slavery in the United States, thinking in particular about the period between the Revolutionary War (1775-83) and the American Civil War (1861-65). In...

In this course, Dr Hannah Malone (University of Cambridge) explores the rise of Italian Fascism, focusing in particular on five key questions: (1) How did the experience of the First World War contribute to the rise of Fascism? (2) Was...

In this course, Dr Marcella Sutcliffe (University of Cambridge) explores Italy's unification movement, starting with Napoleon’s invasion of Italy in the late 1790s, and ending with the unification of Italy in 1861. As we move through the course,...

In this course, Dr Simon Potter (University of Bristol) explores the final decades of the British Empire, from the end of the Second World War in 1945 to Britain’s withdrawal of troops “East of Suez”, announced by Harold Wilson in...

In this course, Dr Sarah Richardson (University of Warwick) explores British politics between the start of the French Revolution in 1789 to the Great Reform Act of 1832. As we move through the course, we think about seven key historical...

In this course, Professor Neville Morley (University of Bristol) explores Thucydides’ History of the Peloponnesian War, focusing on the key episodes in the text and thinking in particular about some of the historiographical issues that modern...

This course provides key historical context for John Milton's 'Paradise Lost', looking in particular at the figure of Oliver Cromwell. The course is divided into eight parts. The first looks at Cromwell's invasion of Ireland (1649-53), before...