History and War Studies with Foundation Year

This module examines the foundations of modern British society through a focus on the broad period of industrial development and social change c1700-c1819 (the year the Monarchy was presented with an heir apparent). Especial emphasis will be given to the impact of industrialisation, British imperialism and urbanisation on the world of work, politics, culture and the household.

The module introduces you to the study and practice of history (and if you are studying for a degree in a cognate field, the practice of academic work). Different approaches to the subject, historiographical and methodological issues will be studied in order to familiarise you with the pathway learning outcomes, derived from the QAA History benchmarking statement, which will underpin your studies. A key focus of the module will be the development of subject and key skills that will enable you to cope with more advanced work in the subject.

This module introduces students to key issues and debates concerning the origins, nature, and conduct of war. The contributions of political philosophers such as Machiavelli, Hobbes and Kant are discussed, as is the concept of 'Just War', which is applied to recent conflicts. Other contemporary issues in how war is waged such as the growing use of private security companies and humanitarian intervention in conflict environments are also covered. This module provides an ideal opportunity to develop your thinking about the causes, conduct, and nature of war.

The module provides the foundation for the War Studies programme by examining key issues such as strategic thought, definitions of war, and trends and themes in global conflict in the modern era. Particular attention is given to the rise of western styles of warfare and its interaction with differing cultural approaches to war. The importance of analytical skills and the type and nature of source material is also strongly emphasised.

This module surveys the history of Europe and the Americas between 1789 and 1914 by exploring major areas of intersection and interdependence in the historical development of both continents. It examines similarities in the use of forced labour, the complex web of economic relations between the continents, and illuminates the flow of population and ideas across the Atlantic. In addition the module also considers the consequences that nation-building and imperialism in Europe and the Americas had for ethnic minorities and indigenous peoples.

The Holocaust stands as a watershed event for western civilization, calling into question the moral and ethical foundations of the West. This module sets the historical exploration of the events of the Holocaust within the wider context of political, religious and legal issues.

This module examines a core, controversial element of modern British national identity: the Empire at its height in especially the Victorian era. It will examine the so-called 'Pax' from the Battle of Waterloo and Peace of Paris in 1815 to the peak of British interventionism under Palmerston, the subsequent period of 'Splendid Isolation', and the outbreak of the First World War in 1914. Conflicts such as the Crimean War (1853-6) will be discussed in the context of the pursuit of a 'Balance of Power' and the breakdown of the 'Concert of Europe', as well as colonial struggles worldwide including the Indian 'Mutiny' of 1857-8, the 'Opium' Wars against China (1839-42 and 1856-60), the Ashanti Wars (1823-31, 1863-4 and 1873-4), the Anglo-Zulu War of 1879, and the Boer Wars of 1880-1 and 1899-1902. Further study will also be made of the complicated nature of peace and 'gunboat diplomacy' in this period, from various Anglo-American crises including the American Civil War (1861-5), periodic 'invasion scares' of France, and the 'Great Game' with Imperial Russia over Central Asia and beyond.

This module will provide an analysis of the Second World War in Europe between 1939 and 1945. Emphasis is placed on: causes of  war; military and strategic conduct; politics and diplomacy; impact of war on societies; and appraisal of the eventual outcome.  

The module aims to provide students with an understanding of significant themes in the history of the working class in British society from the late-Victorian period to the politics of Thatcherism in the 1980s. The module explores the rise of the trade unions and the labour party, migration, the changing nature of work and everyday life, popular culture, and depictions of the working class in film and television.

The United States is a nation of huge diversity, and is home to a vast array of different minority groups. These groups comprise of established and recent migrants from all corners of the globe, bringing with them a range of identities, as well as the original inhabitants of the continent, and those descended from enslaved peoples transported there against their will. This module will explore a range of different minority groups and trace their varying fortunes across the tumultuous twentieth century, helping build students’ understanding of change over time. In its coverage of different minority groups within the United States, consideration will be given to a variety of important and recurring themes, including, but not limited to: race and ethnicity, gender and sexuality, and religion. Students will be required to show they have conducted independent research, using both primary and secondary materials - on more than one of the groups that is covered during the course - through the different forms of assessment.

The course wil offer students an opportunity to engage with a range of debates surrounding political violence in a variety of manifestations. The course themes include conventional and civil warfare, colonial violence and the violence of decolonisation, counterinsurgencies, torture and domestic repression, demonstrations and riots, and terrorism.

This module examines the Great War from the variety of vantage points offered by the different sub-disciplines of historical research. It includes traditional military history, but also embraces social, gender and cultural historical approaches to explore its causes and prosecution, its social consequences, and the manner in which it has been commemorated. Students taking the module will develop an understanding of these central components to the history of the war, and of the experience of soldiers and civilians in these years, along with an awareness of the many histories of the war that can be written, and the different aims and methodologies that inform historical work in this field.

This module explores the impact of the Cold War on US foreign and domestic policy between 1945 and 1974. The module traces the course of US foreign policy from the end of Franklin D. Roosevelt's administration, through periods of crisis and detente, to the end of the Nixon administration in 1974. At the same time, the module explores the evolving ramifications of the Cold War upon domestic politics and society across these decades.

This module provides opportunities for community-based learning through voluntary community engagement. This activity enables students to understand the relevance of their studies within a community context, combining practical experience with academic studies. In addition, it is an opportunity to develop a critical understanding of the Third Sector, and the notion of citizenship. Both subject specific and transferable skills will be developed and utilised throughout this module, thus developing graduate employment attributes.

This module is intended to develop an understanding of selected aspects of international politics. It begins by looking at key schools of thought and evolving debates in international relations theory in order to introduce students to some of the key concepts regarding which factors shape how international politics and relations are conducted. The module also considers some of the key structural factors at play in international relations. To this end the role of the international and transnational organisations is examined, and debates regarding their purpose and effectiveness are considered. The module also looks at the concepts of regionalism and globalisation, and explores how states respond to these ideas in terms of policy formation.

This module will focus on the place of social and collective action in British history, ranging from anti-slavery campaigning to the anti-racist and liberation movements of the late twentieth century, and from mutual support networks to survive the exteme poverty of the pre-welfare state era to humanitarian efforts to relieve suffering around the world.

The module aims to provide a comprehensive critique of pre-industrial and early-industrial material culture using a range of primary sources and artefacts to examine the extent to which a 'consumer revolution' in culture and society occurred during the period. It examines the acquisition of new items such as tea, coffee, chocolate, gin and household decencies and the agencies and spaces through which these were obtained and displayed. The module is concerned with the theoretical underpinnings to consumption stressing the importance of gender and contemporary attitudes to changing modes of acquisition and use. The focus is based primarily upon the lower and middling sorts of England and Wales, although comparisons with elite culture and Anglo-American and continental European modes of consumption are stressed.

The module aims to analyse the development of maritime power from the emergence of the all big gun battleship as a statement of national power through to the rise of the aircraft carrier and submarine as the principal weapons of seaborne power projection.  The module will focus on the influence of strategists and theorists such as Mahan, Corbett, Dönitz, Genda and Towers and will identify trends and developments in the field of maritime warfare during the period of the two world wars and beyond.  It will also place the role and nature of maritime power in the context of international rivalry and great power status.

Drawing upon an extensive English-language scholarship, and through analysis of translated contemporary sources, students are invited to explore German history in what was a period of profound social and political change, but one also marked by important continuities. The topics to be addressed include: The economic growth that transformed the new state from 1871 and the high levels of geographical mobility this generated, including the mass emigration of Germans overseas. The manner in which ethnicity, gender and social class shaped the life course of German subjects throughout the period 1871-1945. The emergence of the labour movement, and the mass political participation characteristic of the peace-time Wilhelmine era (1890-1914) and of the Weimar Republic (1919-1933). Society in WW1 and the revolution that accompanied defeat in 1918. The political, social and economic developments in Weimar Germany which led to the rise of the NSDAP. The combination of coercion and consent which helped the Nazis secure and retain control and the possibilities that existed for opposing the regime. The continuities between colonialism and Nazi practices of warfare and occupation in WW2. The Nazi persecution of social outsiders and racial enemies, including the development of policy towards German and European Jews, the ideology which drove this, and the process of cumulative radicalization that led to their mass murder.

The Independent Study in History enables the student to explore a relevant historical topic or theme in depth which has either generated particular academic and intellectual interest, or has not been covered extensively in the academic programme. Students will register two proposed topics, the most viable of which will form an agreed title. In consultation with the Independent Study co-ordinator, students are then allocated to an appropriate academic supervisor. The final assignment comprises an extended written piece of work based on independently-accessed primary and secondary source material.

This module will be about the anarchy, cruelty and overwhelming confusion of modern warfare. In particular the module will analyse: what happens when morality vanishes from the battlefield; and why torture is endemic in modern warfare; how human rights, in times of war, lose its meaning as a set of principles; whether official propaganda and enemy demonization make barbaric behaviour easier; and how can we develop cultures opposed to torture that damage the legitimacy of our societies? Through a number of carefully selected case studies that vary in terms of their themes and approaches, the module aims to provide the ground for students to strengthen their skills in critical analysis, discussion and debate. This module will be about the anarchy, cruelty and overwhelming confusion of modern warfare. In particular the module will analyse: what happens when morality vanishes from the battlefield; and why torture is endemic in modern warfare; how human rights, in times of war, lose its meaning as a set of principles; whether official propaganda and enemy demonization make barbaric behaviour easier; and how can we develop cultures opposed to torture that damage the legitimacy of our societies? Through a number of carefully selected case studies that vary in terms of their themes and approaches, the module aims to provide the ground for students to strengthen their skills in critical analysis, discussion and debate. This module will be about the anarchy, cruelty and overwhelming confusion of modern warfare. In particular the module will analyse: what happens when morality vanishes from the battlefield; and why torture is endemic in modern warfare; how human rights, in times of war, lose its meaning as a set of principles; whether official propaganda and enemy demonization make barbaric behaviour easier; and how can we develop cultures opposed to torture that damage the legitimacy of our societies? Through a number of carefully selected case studies that vary in terms of their themes and approaches, the module aims to provide the ground for students to strengthen their skills in critical analysis, discussion and debate.

This module examines the causes, course and consequences of the American Civil War. It will explore the nature of the war's military aspects, its political and diplomatic ramifications, the war's wide-ranging impact upon American society and particularly the effects of war upon the position of African Americans. A key element of the module will be to consider not only the war itself but contemporaneous ideas of its significance and how perceptions have changed in the century and a half since the end of the war.

The Project allows the student to explore in depth a relevant topic, theme or debate in War Studies which has generated particular academic and intellectual interest, and which is not covered in appropriate detail in a conventional course of lectures and seminars.

This module examines youth culture and popular music in twentieth century Britain. Sessions explore the emergence of youth as a social problem and the relationship between youth, music, gender, race and social class. Case studies include Teddy Boys, Mods, Rockers, Punk and Northern Soul. Special consideration is given to the representation of youth in post-war British cinema.