History MA by distance learning

You will study two core modules which are specific to the pathway you are studying, two modules which are core to all pathways and two optional modules before completing your dissertation.

You will study two core modules which are specific to the pathway you are studying:

• Mass Society and Modernity 1914-1945
  The module examines various aspects of the first half of the twentieth century, focussing particularly—but not only—on Europe and America. It examines the rise of mass society and modernity as social and cultural phenomena; the rise of mass politics in Europe, America, and beyond; the phenomenon of mass statelessness; the main strands of authoritarian ideology and liberal democracy; mass mobilisation in war and politics; economic and military conflict; and the growing ascendancy of the United States.
  Assessment: 4,000-word essay
• Globalisation since 1945
  The module examines various aspects of global history in the second half of the 20th century. It takes its cue from a growing but often problematic literature which sees 'globalisation' as a key feature of global history over the last half century. It will begin by examining the key institutions of a 'new world order' built after the Second World War; in particular, those connected to the United Nations and Bretton Woods. It will then explore the interplay of key actors: inter-governmental organisations; nation states (especially, the USA, the USSR and the non-aligned); multinational corporations and non-governmental organisations.
  Assessment: 4,000-word essay

• Global Histories: Comparisons and Connections
  This module is an introductory survey of global history. It will draw on considerable chronological depth and regional breadth in order to present you with a truly global perspective. Content will range from the decline and fall of ancient empires, such as Rome and China, through new medieval empires in Afro-Eurasia, early modern voyages of exploration to the age of revolutions which gave birth to new nations in the midst of global political ruptures.
  Assessment: 4,000-word essay
• The Making of the World: Themes in Global History
  

  This module is conceived around some of the major processes that shaped history and the key concepts that historians use to make sense of the past. Using case studies of considerable regional breadth and chronological depth, you will familiarise yourself with the building blocks of past and present societies. These key processes and themes include: the importance of the environment in human history; issues of space, geography and the formation of border regions; time and temporality; religion and notions of value; and historically and culturally diverse constructions of subjectivity and social order including gender, sexuality, class, race, and ethnicity. The module ends with an in-depth look at a key text bringing many of these themes together, Amitav Ghosh’s In an Antique Land.
  Assessment: 4,000-word essay

• Approaches to Medieval Studies
  Medieval Studies is a field to which many different disciplines contribute. The aim of this module is to expose you to approaches to the medieval past from a range of disciplines (such as archaeology, history, language and literature, art history, etc.), in order to enable you to discuss and compare various approaches, and critically assess their utility for your own research. Seminars will also deal with a selection of contemporary critical and cultural theories and associated modes of analysis.
• Understanding Medieval Documents
  This module will introduce you to the study of medieval documents in their original, unedited forms. The first five weeks of the module will cover some of the basic formulae found in administrative documents, and the second half of the module will focus on the basics of palaeography (common abbreviations; different hands). By the end of the module you should be able to identify and translate some of the basic formulae found in charters and administrative documents.

• New Directions in Modern British History
  This module will expose you to some of the key debates and moments in Modern British Studies and its associated historiography. There are difficulties in identifying organising narratives for understanding modern Britain. How do we write history that remains intellectually inclusive, avoids privileging historic and contemporary historiographical concerns and creates conversations that cut across regional, temporal and disciplinary boundaries? This module will introduce you to historical works that have stimulated new visions the past and its role in public life. If British society and culture has changed, so has the way that historians have approached and conceptualised it. While the module focuses on a series of key interventions, we will situate these in the context of broader debates about Modern Britain.
  Assessment: 4,000-word essay
• Sites and Sources in Modern British Studies
  This module goes beyond thinking about Britain in terms of the great and the good and introduces you to rich and diverse sources through which historians have tried to understand the contours of everyday life in the past. The module will enable you to capture the pluralistic and inchoate messiness of ordinary life and historical change. A seaside postcard can be just as useful to a historian as a work of art. It is a module that will give you grounding in the interpretation of different sources and the problems and possibilities these present in studying the past.
  Assessment: 4,000-word essay

You will also take two core modules in research and dissertation preparation:

This module introduces you to approaches, theories and concepts that have shaped historical practice since the Second World War. These include developments such as the Annales School, historians’ response to Marxism and to anthropological theory, the linguistic turn, gender and critical social theory. The focus is on the application of ideas to historical practice, investigating how medievalists, early-modernists and modernists have adapted these approaches to their particular field of study.
Assessment: 4,000-word essay

This module covers what the dissertation project will entail. You will be expected to produce a short dissertation proposal for submission and you will be allocated a tutor who will supervise your dissertation preparation work.
Assessment: 4,000-word essay

Your remaining two modules are optional.

Medieval Studies students can take either of the two Global History modules (Global Histories: Comparisons and Connections; The Making of the World: Themes in Global History) or the bespoke Medieval Warfare module:

• Medieval Warfare
  This module will introduce you to medieval military tactics, technologies and theories of warfare in the period c.400-c.1500. You will explore case studies and primary source material (in translation) from across the medieval world, from Tang China to al-Andalus, and from theories of the Just War to the development of fortifications and siege engines. Seminar topics may include: Barbarians and Romans; Slaves on Horses (the rise of the Caliphate); Gunpowder, Treason and Plots (Tang China); Carolingian warfare from Charles Martel to Charles the Fat; Alfred the Great; the Norman Conquest; the Crusades; From Genghis Khan to the Golden Horde; the Hundred Years’ War.

Students may choose from any of the other core pathway modules. Other modules may be available in any given year.

In addition to your taught modules, you will conduct a piece of independent research with the support of a supervisor, culminating in a 15,000-word dissertation.

Please note that the optional module information listed on the website for this programme is intended to be indicative, and the availability of optional modules may vary from year to year. Where a module is no longer available we will let you know as soon as we can and help you to make other choices.