Overview

The BA (Hons) History explores the people, events, ideas, institutions, and societies that have shaped the past. Students examine historical change from different perspectives while developing the skills needed to interpret evidence, assess competing explanations, and build well-supported arguments about the past.

What You'll Learn

• Major themes, events, and developments across different historical periods

• Political, social, economic, and cultural change

• The experiences and perspectives of different communities and societies

• Historical sources, including written, visual, and material evidence

• Methods for interpreting and evaluating primary and secondary sources

• Historiographical debates and differing approaches to the past

• Research techniques for investigating historical questions

• Relationships between historical events and their wider contexts

• Critical approaches to continuity, change, causation, and consequence

Learning Outcomes

By the end of the course, students will be able to demonstrate broad and detailed knowledge of selected historical periods, themes, and developments. They will be able to locate events and ideas within appropriate historical contexts and assess how political, social, economic, and cultural factors interact. Students will develop the ability to analyse historical sources critically, identify differing interpretations, and evaluate the evidence used to support them. They will be able to conduct independent historical research, formulate clear questions, and construct coherent arguments based on appropriate evidence. The course will also strengthen their ability to communicate complex historical ideas effectively while recognising the uncertainty, diversity, and contested nature of interpretations of the past.