2024/25 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

HIST3001 Conquest, Convivencia and Conflict: Christian and Muslim Spain, 711-1212

40 creditsClass Size: 16

Module manager: Dr Jonathan Jarrett
Email: J.Jarrett@leeds.ac.uk

Taught: Semesters 1 & 2 (Sep to Jun) View Timetable

Year running 2024/25

This module is not approved as a discovery module

Module summary

In 711 the last king of Visigothic Spain, Roderick, was defeated in battle by an invading army of Muslims arrived from Africa. The rule they established would last until 1492, when Granada was finally recaptured, but historians now see the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa, in 1212, as the point after which a return of Christian dominance was assured. In between these dates much of the Iberian peninsula became a Muslim country, for a while with its own caliph. Unlike more recent instances, the Caliphate of Córdoba is famous for its tolerance of non-Muslims, but there is as much cliché here as in Charlton Heston’s portrayal of El Cid, supposed champion of a supposed 'Reconquista'. Using a variety of sources, with all texts in English translation, this module looks beneath the clichés to explore questions of conversion, acculturation and, most of all, opposition, from the Christian polities of the north that escaped Muslim rule and eventually replaced it.

Objectives

To give students a working acquaintance with the history of the Iberian Peninsula from the arrival of its Muslim conquerors until their irreversible defeat at the Battle of las Navas de Tolosa and the latest understanding of them as processes and social developments as well as political history; to provide the ability to give a critique of modern uses of the period to either demonise or idealise medieval Islam and its impact in Europe; to refine and expand students' skills and experience with the critical study of primary sources; and to build on and refine students' skills in debating issues, constructing and presenting arguments in both written and oral form.

Learning outcomes
By the end of this module students should be able to:
1. demonstrate that they can express opinion and develop and present an argument in both oral and written expression;
2. identify and discuss a wide range of primary sources and problems associated with them;
3. analyse the debates and methods of historians working on medieval Iberia, understanding how their arguments are constructed based on the primary sources they use and their theoretical and ideological frameworks;
4. evaluate the processes and social dynamics active in the rise and fall of Muslim versus Christian power and religion in the Iberian Peninsula.

Syllabus

The module will be taught in twenty-two two hour seminars, which will be usually be tripartite, consisting of a student presentation on the week’s topic, open discussion, and group-work close-reading a designated primary source extract in translation. This format will be varied on occasions as necessary.
Topics that may be covered include the arrival of Islam in the Iberian Peninsula, the rise of Christian resistance in the north of the Peninsula and the intervention of other Christian powers therein, divisions within the Muslim polity, the creation of a new caliphate and its subsequent collapse, the economy of the period and area, the Muslim-Christian frontier and its inhabitants, Convivencia and the three cultures of the Peninsula, and the role of women in the societies on either side of the frontier, as well as some skills training to prepare students for assessments.

Teaching methods

Delivery type	Number	Length hours	Student hours
Workshop	4	1.00	4.00
Seminar	22	2.00	44.00
Private study hours			352.00
Total Contact hours			48.00
Total hours (100hr per 10 credits)			400.00

Private study

Reading to prepare for seminars (120 hours), further self-directed reading (66 hours), preparing and researching assignment 1 (essay) including formative elements (80 hours), preparing and researching assignment 2 (OTA) including formative elements (80 hours), reflection on feedback (6 hours).

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

There will be two formative source criticism (gobbet exercises) set, one in Semester 1 and one in Semester 2, to allow students who have not before encountered such assessments to build up competence and confidence in them for the OTA. These will done on-class and marked by the tutor according to the mark scheme to be used in the OTA. The module will also involve student presentations on a weekly basis, on which oral feedback will be given in class, to secure students’ knowledge and ensure a critical use of materials from those presentations going forward.

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Essay	4000 words	50.00
Total percentage (Assessment Coursework)		50.00

Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated

Exams

Exam type	Exam duration	% of formal assessment
Online Time-Limited assessment	48 hr 00 mins	50.00
Total percentage (Assessment Exams)		50.00

Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated

Reading list

The reading list is available from the Library website

Last updated: 18/10/2024

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