Undergraduate Course: British Politics in the Shadow of War, 1939 to 1945 (HIST10351)
Course Outline
| School | School of History, Classics and Archaeology |
College | College of Humanities and Social Science |
| Credit level (Normal year taken) | SCQF Level 10 (Year 4 Undergraduate) |
Availability | Not available to visiting students |
| SCQF Credits | 40 |
ECTS Credits | 20 |
| Summary | This course will represent a detailed investigation of government, leadership and party politics in Britain during the era of the Second World War. It is a research-led course flowing from the tutor¿s own ongoing work to remap public life in this iconic period. The study of coalition politics is also timely given that Britain currently has its first coalition since the Churchill ministry of 1940-45.
Students will range broadly across the politics of this period: the premiership of Neville Chamberlain, his policy of ¿appeasement¿, and the role of party politics in foreign policy during the late 1930s; the rise of Winston Churchill and the creation of a cross-party coalition in May 1940; Churchill¿s efforts to establish and project his authority in an environment of military reversals; the success of the Labour party in carving out a powerful role in government, and the work of its leading figures ¿ Clement Attlee, Ernest Bevin, and Herbert Morrison; the new ideas and doctrines that shaped public life during the war ¿ from social democracy to Keynesianism to the language of engineering; the work of technocrats and ¿non-politicians¿; the struggles to defend and ultimately maintain the coalition; debates over the future of the country; and the 1945 general election. Importantly, students will be able to make considerable use of primary sources (including the complete War Cabinet papers available on the website of the National Archives) in informing their study of the period. |
| Course description |
Not entered
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Entry Requirements (not applicable to Visiting Students)
| Pre-requisites |
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Co-requisites | |
| Prohibited Combinations | |
Other requirements | None |
Course Delivery Information
| Not being delivered |
Learning Outcomes
By the end of the course, it is intended that students will be able to:
Produce sound analytical essays in the subject area.
Complete examinations in the subject area to an acceptable standard.
Show, by way of essay and examination, an ability to scrutinise politics, government, and political ideas and analyse them in a scholarly manner.
Demonstrate, by way of essay and examination, a sound understanding of key issues in scholarly debate.
Demonstrate, by way of essay, examination and class debates, an ability to read critically and examine both primary and secondary sources to a satisfactory standard.
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Additional Information
| Graduate Attributes and Skills |
Independent gathering of evidence; critical consideration of learning materials; sustained oral argument and debate; management of timetable and workload; and the production of work to deadlines. |
| Keywords | British Politics |
Contacts
| Course organiser | Dr Robert Crowcroft
Tel: (0131 6)50 3764
Email: R.G.Crowcroft@ed.ac.uk |
Course secretary | Mrs Caroline Cullen
Tel: (0131 6)50 3781
Email: caroline.cullen@ed.ac.uk |
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