- Department: History
- Module co-ordinator: Prof. Stuart Carroll
- Credit value: 40 credits
- Credit level: H
- Academic year of delivery: 2022-23
- See module specification for other years: 2021-22
The violent passions aroused by religious schism and the deadly intrigues of court politics have long made the French Wars of Religion one of the more colourful and fascinating periods for historical study. In recent years historians have begun to recognise the civil wars which tore France asunder in the second-half of the sixteenth century as one of the major turning points of European history. With over one million adherents Calvinism had more widespread support than anywhere else in Europe; its attraction to the social elite was a major challenge to the monarchy, which attempted reconciliation through the hitherto unheard of policy of religious toleration. The failure of moderation and the terrible religious violence which culminated in the Massacre of Saint-Bartholomew is a phenomenon which has echoes of today’s ethnic and religious conflicts. Religion also introduced a new ideological element into politics and traditional faction politics was confused by the formation of religious parties. The justification of resistance to the monarchy developed by Protestants and elaborated by radical Catholics had a profound impact on the French polity and the development of European political thought. Montaigne, the greatest thinker of his age, was the product of this turmoil, and his Essays will show us how religious conflict and political disintegration transformed the concept of society and the self in Europe, and how this new thinking contributed paradoxically both to the moral basis of Bourbon Absolutism and to new views of humanity and individuality, in which lie the seeds of European liberalism.
Occurrence | Teaching period |
---|---|
A | Autumn Term 2022-23 to Spring Term 2022-23 |
The aims of this module are:
Students who complete this module successfully will:
Teaching Programme:
Students will attend a 1-hour briefing in week 1 of the autumn term. Students prepare for and participate in fifteen three-hour seminars. These take place in weeks 2-5 and 7-9 of the autumn term and weeks 2-5 and 7-10 of the spring term. Both the autumn and spring terms include a reading week for final year students and so there will be no teaching in week 6. There will also be a two hour revision session in the summer term. One-to-one meetings will also be held to discuss the assessed essay.
The course will be structured around the reading and discussion of primary texts translated into English in the context of recent research.
Seminar topics are subject to variation, but are likely to include the following:
Task | Length | % of module mark |
---|---|---|
Essay/coursework 4,000 word essay |
N/A | 50 |
Online Exam - 24 hrs (Centrally scheduled) Open Exam - The French Wars of Religion |
8 hours | 50 |
None
For formative assessment, students will be given the opportunity to do two practice gobbets and then are required to write a 2,000-word procedural essay relating to the themes and issues of the module in either the autumn or spring term.
For summative assessment, students complete a 4,000-word essay which utilises an analysis of primary source materials to explore a theme or topic relating to the module, due in week 5 of the summer term.
They then take a 24-hour online examination for summative assessment in the summer term assessment period comprising: one essay question relating to themes and issues, but showing an awareness of the pertinent sources that underpin these AND one ‘gobbet’ question (where students attempt two gobbets from a slate of eight).
The essay and exam are weighted equally at 50% each.
Task | Length | % of module mark |
---|---|---|
Essay/coursework 4,000 word essay |
N/A | 50 |
Online Exam - 24 hrs (Centrally scheduled) Open Exam - The French Wars of Religion |
8 hours | 50 |
Following their formative assessment task, students will typically receive written feedback that will include comments and a mark within 10 working days of submission.
Work will be returned to students in their discussion groups and may be supplemented by the tutor giving some oral feedback to the whole group. All students are encouraged, if they wish, to discuss the feedback on their procedural work with their tutor (or module convenor) during student hours. For more information, see the Statement on Feedback.
For the summative assessment task, students will receive their provisional mark and written feedback within 20 working days of the submission deadline. The tutor will then be available during student hours for follow-up guidance if required. For more information, see the Statement of Assessment.
For term time reading, please refer to the module VLE site. Before the course starts, we encourage you to look at the following items of preliminary reading:
Davis, Natalie Z. Society and Culture in Early Modern France: eight essays. Cambridge, Polity P. 1987.
Holt, Mack P. The French Wars of Religion, 1562-1629. 2nd ed., Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005.
Carroll, Stuart. Blood and Violence in Early Modern France. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press, 2006.