2022/23 Undergraduate Module Catalogue

HIST3687 The Later Elizabethan Age: Politics and Empire

40 creditsClass Size: 16

Module manager: Professor Stephen Alford
Email: s.alford@leeds.ac.uk

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

Year running 2022/23

Module replaces

HIST3686

This module is not approved as a discovery module

Module summary

Taking as its point of departure the execution of Mary, Queen of Scots in 1587 and its point of termination the death of Queen Elizabeth I in 1603, this special subject will investigate in close detail the last 'long' decade of Elizabeth's reign -- one of the least-researched aspects of the Tudor century.Our interest will be in two areas especially. The first is politics, and the challenge for the queen and her government of negotiating the war conditions of the 1590s, political faction at court and the anxieties of a still undecided royal succession. The second is Elizabethan England's expanding horizons in these years in terms of colonization and trade in America and South-East Asia. These two things - a polity under severe strain and yet also emerging global ambition - are interconnected, and it is the purpose of this special subject to explore why. At the core of this special subject, in terms of sources and approaches, will be three case studies of three individuals: Sir Robert Cecil, the queen's principal secretary; the cosmographer and theorist of colonization, Richard Hakluyt; and Queen Elizabeth I herself.

Objectives

The objective for this module is to give students:

- a deep and informed understanding of the later period of Queen Elizabeth I's reign, 1588-1603;
- a deep understanding of the different kinds of sources historians use to investigate Tudor politics and colonization;
- a sophisticated and critical knowledge of the secondary literature on Elizabethan history;
- the skills to read and interpret both written and non-written primary sources;
- the skills to be able to express ideas and arguments effectively and persuasively in essays, primary source exercises, discussions and presentations.

Learning outcomes
On completion of this module, students will be able to:

- demonstrate an understanding of the key approaches to later Elizabethan history;
- demonstrate a knowledge of the different kinds of sources historians use to investigate Tudor politics and colonization;
- demonstrate a mastery of the appropriate scholarly literature;
- demonstrate their ability to read and interpret sources;
- demonstrate their ability to express ideas and arguments effectively and persuasively in essays, primary source exercises, discussions and presentations.

Syllabus

Semester one: topics and sources

1. The early Elizabethan polity
2. Approaching Elizabeth I
3. One heart, one way: the Cecils
4. Richard Hakluyt's world
5. Late but in earnest: Sir Robert Cecil
6. Politics at court: 1590-1603
7. England at war, 1588-1601
8. Royal succession, 1588-1603
9. Hakluyt's Principal Navigations (1598-1600)
10. The East India Trade
11. America

Semester two: five case studies
12 and 13: The letters of Lord Burghley and Sir Robert Cecil, 1591-98
14 and 15: The Cadiz (1596) expedition in Principal Navigations
16 and 17: 1601: the year of crisis
18 and 19: The formation of the East India Company, 1595-1602
20 and 21: Elizabethan America, 1582-1603
22. Student presentations / revision

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

Opportunities for Formative Feedback

Verbal feedback will be given in tutorials and seminars and in written form, according to School of History templates and according to the appropriate marking schemes, for the historiographical review, the essay, and oral presentations.

Methods of assessment

Coursework

Assessment type	Notes	% of formal assessment
Essay	4,000 word essay due by 12 noon Monday of Exam Week 2, semester 1	40.00
Presentation	Presentation on a primary source, to take place in the final teaching week of semester 2	10.00
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: 29/04/2022 15:25:08

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