BA (Hons) Politics and History with Foundation Year

The twentieth century witnessed momentous shifts. As empires collapsed and new countries were born, technology, economic change and new societal norms radically altered the way people lived their lives. In this module, we will explore some of this social, economic, political and cultural change by looking at a diverse selection of historical episodes from around the world. In doing so, we will ask questions about the ways the changes of the last century shaped the world in which we live today.

Through the use of case-studies, this module will examine the debates surrounding issues in contemporary British politics. The module will consider both the themes of the need for constitutional or electoral change to reform the British political system and the debates informing the wider arena of cultural politics and social protest. This will emphasize to students that politics has both constitutional and institutional dimensions and `wider' social and cultural dimensions.

This module shows students how to make sense of the past through archival and oral sources. It provides an opportunity for students to gain an appreciation of the way historical evidence is drawn from the contested space of the archive and the multiple historical perspectives that exist in memory. It will explore relationships between past and present, memory and history, popular and scholarly discourses, and individual and group identities. Students will be introduced to local archives, oral history collections and how to conduct their own oral history interviews. In doing so, they explore how the use of archival collections and oral history can help to challenge gender, class and racial stereotypes and promote cross-cultural and cross-generational understanding.

This module will review the importance of advocacy in challenging disadvantage and in raising awareness of issues that impact on the health, wellbeing and efficacy of citizens locally, nationally and/ or globally. It will also focus on skills for the workplace, including working in a team and research skills. It will examine the importance of knowledge to a functioning society, including active citizen engagement, and how to access reliable information to support the campaign. It will examine the skills needed to work productively in a team and how to put them into practice. The module will review successful awareness raising campaigns, leading to the development and implementation of a campaign or event.

This module surveys the history of Europe and the Americas between 1776 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 sheds light upon the flow of people 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 aim of this module is to introduce you to the main issues in international relations (IR) at the current time and to provide an intellectual framework to enable you to better understand our contemporary world and analyse and interpret international developments. The first part of the module deals with the scope and main concepts and theories of IR, the second part with the main actors in international relations and the third part looks at some of the main issues on the contemporary global agenda. This module is designed for ‘beginners’ and no prior study of IR is needed.

One of the most valuable staples of the historian's toolkit is the case study - specific examples of people, places or events. Case studies are used by historians both to explore those specific episodes in-depth and to act as windows onto wider historical contexts and shed light on longer-term currents of change and continuity. This module will operate as a series of mini-modules, each one focused on a different historical case study. Individually, they will give you a crash course in what happened, what historical sources might be used to research it and how its significance has been understood or debated by historians. Combined, they will provide you with a diverse series of entry points into the wider histories of different times and places.

Research underpins all academic study. Most scholarly monographs and journal articles present new research that has been undertaken and understanding that research helps with understanding the reading. Equally, research is not only something you will read about but something you will undertake for yourself before the end of your course. To do so, it is important that you are aware of the different options available to you as you embark upon your own research. To that end, this module will introduce you to a variety of approaches to research in your subject area and to how you might develop ideas for your own research projects.

This module explores the history of America and the Cold War between 1947 and 1991. The module traces the course of conflict from the Truman Administration, through periods of crisis and detente, to its end during the George H.W. Bush administration in 1991. At the same time, the module explores the evolving ramifications of the Cold War upon domestic politics and society across these decades.

This module explores the history of feminism by examining some of the ways women have organised to challenge their subordination in national, imperial and international contexts. Students will study movements to promote different and evolving visions of women’s rights in the realms of politics, work, education, and the family. The module will also analyse women’s involvement in wider movements for social, economic and political change such as abolitionism, anti-colonialism, workers’ rights, and disarmament. Through a series of case studies, students will encounter women activists from Britain and their counterparts in Europe, Asia, Africa and the Americas to analyse narratives of internal tension and set-back alongside more positive histories of solidarity and historic achievement.

This module will explore the role of community engagement in the delivery of public and third sector services. It will look at how policy initiatives such as ‘co-production’ and ‘partnership working’ have impacted on both the commissioning and delivery of welfare services in the UK, and how some of these initiatives have been driven by policy failures. It will also investigate the role of social movements, such as Black Lives Matter and Reclaim the Streets, on our society.  It will critically examine how enhancing the voice of service users, parent carers and community activists in decision-making can not only enhance the services being delivered and but can bring about social change.

This course explores the upheavals of modern history through the eyes of some of those who were most profoundly affected: Itinerants, migrants and refugees. With a focus on the available primary sources, we will examine the different ways that historians have attempted to reconstruct the perspective and agency of the men, women and children in question, and also consider the manner in which governments have sought to control this movement of people. The course takes as its two main themes the geographical mobility that came in the wake of nineteenth century industrialisation and the displacement of populations that resulted from war and persecution in the twentieth century.

The course will 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 provides opportunities for community-based learning through voluntary community engagement. This activity will enable you to understand the relevance of your 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.

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, race and racism, the lives of women, the changing nature of work and everyday life, popular culture, and depictions of the working class in film, television and music.

This module is intended to develop and refine your 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 explore in depth 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.

The final decades of British rule in India were tumultuous times. From the iconic civil disobedience campaigns of Mahatma Gandhi to violent revolutionary activity, the imperial state was rocked by protest. At the same time the international legitimacy of colonial rule was dissolving in the wake of the Bolshevik revolution, the rise of the United States of America and the turmoil of the two World Wars. This module examines the ‘local’ and ‘global’ dimensions of decolonisation in South Asia, exploring the history of anti-colonial activism alongside the experiences of ordinary people who lived through the end of empire. In doing so, students will learn about the importance of gender, caste, class and religion in anti-colonial politics.

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.

Changing the world, or trying to, has a long history. This module will focus on British campaigning and social action since the the anti-slavery movement of the late-eighteenth century. Students will explore how those campaigners faced similar challenges and adopted similar tactics to those seeking to expand democracy, to provide aid to those in war zones, to end poverty, racism and starvation at home and around the world. Equally, students will be introduced to ongoing debates about the contradictions and complexities of attempts to do good. In addition to learning about the history of humanitarian efforts to relieve suffering and improve society, locally and globally, students will take a deep dive into their own small-scale research project on a single case study from the modern British history of humanitarianism and protest.

The module provides you with the opportunity to explore a historical topic or a topic related to the use of the past independently and in depth. It is normally taken during the final semester of study, thereby allowing you to draw on the skills developed and honed throughout your earlier studies. The choice of research topic should be guided by your interest as well as the feasibility of undertaking the project given the availability of relevant primary and secondary sources and the expertise of potential supervisors. The findings of your Independent Study are usually presented in the form of a written dissertation. However, in the spirit of inclusivity and creativity, alternatives are possible with the approval of the supervisor and the module leader. In seeking approval, you will need to demonstrate that it would still be possible to meet the module’s Learning Outcomes. Approval for any alternative should be secured before work on the Independent Study begins. The discussion of feasible topics, possible supervisors and modes of presentation will normally have started at Level 5 in the ‘Research in Action’ module.

This module explores the nature of modern, post-colonial India through an analysis of its politics, economics, religion, caste-system and culture. Modern India is the second most populous country in the world and the world’s largest democracy, yet it is a complex and diverse country – linguistically, religiously, and ethnically – which, since achieving independence, has sought both to unify itself internally, and, as a unified nation-state, to assert its place both regionally and globally. This module examines the achievements, problems and potential of this important country.

This module will critically analyse the political, social, economic and diplomatic changes to the United States of America and the place of the US in world affairs over the late-nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

This module explores the evolution of foundational concepts in political theory. It devotes two weeks to analyse each concept from two perspectives. First, we will trace the concept's origins and how its meaning has changed over time. Second, we will analyse how marginalized groups have challenged and reshaped dominant notions of key concepts and how these ideas have evolved through political activism and contestation. By studying seminal concepts through both lenses - their historical development as well as debate and reinterpretation over time - this module provides insight into the fluidity of political thought. Students gain a nuanced understanding of key ideas driving politics and governance while recognizing these concepts are continuously reworked and redefined in new socio-political contexts.

    Migration is a fundamental feature of the contemporary world.  Its social and economic effects are self evident; its political ramifications frequent.  This course will provide an overview of key concepts and issues in the study of migration.  The organisation will be split into two interrelated sections.  The first will consider the key motivations why people move from one country to another.  Here the course will look at definitions, push and pull factors in migrant flows and migration in history.  Second, it will look at immigration and British society.  This will section will pay particular attention to immigration to the UK since 1945: Irish and New Commonwealth immigration, Immigration Control and contemporary asylum and Eastern European immigration.

The module draws upon successive generations of English-language scholarship and a wealth of contemporary sources in translation to explore the genesis, development and murderous outcome of policy towards the Jews and others targeted by the Nazi regime. It first examines the Nazi persecution of German Jews and other racial and social enemies in Germany in the inter-war years, then charts the transition to systematic mass murder across occupied Europe during World War Two. Throughout the module students will study the motives and actions of the perpetrators of these crimes, and attempt through extensive engagement with the source record to piece together the experience of the many who suffered at their hands.

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 the history of youth culture and popular music in twentieth century Britain. The focus will be both chronological and thematic. Sessions will explore the emergence of youth as a social problem, examine the relationship between youth culture and popular music, analyse the relationship between history, sound and place. It also explores the ways in which youth cultures and popular music have reflected, challenged, and informed shifting notions of class, race, gender, sexuality, and regional/national identities. Throughout the module students will engage with a range of written sources along with recorded music, performance, and cinematic representations of youth culture.