HIS 599/HIS 799  ROYAL BRITAIN:
THE MONARCHY FROM ALFRED THE GREAT TO ELIZABETH II

"This royal throne of kings, this scepter'd isle" - William Shakespeare, Richard II

Instructor:  Amy Thompson McCandless, Professor of History, College of Charleston, Charleston,  SC 29424; TEL: 843-953-8025; FAX: 843-953-6349; E-MAIL: mccandlessa@cofc.edu

British Coordinator:  David Waller, Senior Lecturer, American Studies, University of Northampton, Northampton, UK  NN2-7AL; TEL: +44  (0)1604 735500, ext. 2096; FAX:  +44 (0)870  122-5730; E-MAIL: david.waller@northampton.ac.uk

Purpose of the Course:  By listening to lectures by British experts on the monarchy, by studying historical, artistic, and literary portraits of the kings and queens, by visiting palaces, castles, educational institutions, and churches associated with royal rule, and by highlighting the evolution of the English constitution over the millennia, this course will focus on the ways in which British monarchs have shaped political, social, economic, religious, and intellectual developments in Great Britain from the Anglo-Saxons to the present.

The mission of the British Studies Program offered by The University of Southern Mississippi and its consortium partners is to provide students and faculty with the opportunity to live and learn in London, a British center of life, culture, and commerce, and to study social, economic, political, and artistic institutions throughout the United Kingdom.

Readings:  David Williamson, The National Portrait Gallery History of The Kings and Queens of England (London: National Portrait Gallery, 1998);  Kenneth O. Morgan, ed.,The Oxford History of Britain, rev. ed. (Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 1999);  primary documents from Internet Medieval Sourcebook, https://www.fordham.edu/halsall/sbook1n.html;  primary documents from Sources of British History https://britannia.com/history/docs/; handouts as provided.

British Monarchs:
List of English/British Rulers
List of Scots Rulers
Chronology of Royal London

Course Requirements:
        Attendance and Class Participation (20 percent)
The lectures, field trips, and discussions planned for the course are intellectually challenging and culturally enriching, and, to quote Queen Victoria, "we will not be amused" if you miss them .  Students are required to attend lectures, to participate in class fieldtrips, and to contribute to course discussions.  Five points will be subtracted from the final grade for each absence (royal policy no longer allows for offenders to be hung, drawn, and quartered).
        Journal  (30 percent)
Every participant will be expected to keep a journal which will include lecture summaries, response papers related to course visits, and synopses and analyses of primary documents (see journal worksheet for details on format and content).  Journals will be due on 30 August and returned to students in September. Send the journal by email attachment to mccandlessa@cofc.edu or by post to Dr. A. McCandless, Department of History, College of Charleston, Charleston, SC 29424.
        Paper  (25 percent)
Students will be required to write a 20-25 page analytical paper on some aspect of the British monarchy (see paper worksheet for details on format and content).  Papers will be due to the instructor by 23 September 2005.
        Final Exam  (25 percent)
A comprehensive final exam will be given on Saturday, 6 August. Questions will focus on course themes and will be taken from the lectures, readings, discussions, and site visitations.
        Grading
The following grading scale will be used:  A = 90-100, B = 80-89, C = 70-79, D = 60-69, F = 0-59.

Daily Syllabus Summer 2006:
6 July (R) Depart U.S.
7 July (F) Arrive London;opening night party 6:30 p.m.
8 July (S) Royal Britain: course introduction 9:00 a.m.; orientation 11:15 - 12:15 p.m.
Readings:  Williamson, 7-14; Morgan, v-x
9 July (X) Free (optional Walking Tour of Elizabethan and Jacobean Southwark), 2 p.m.
10 July (M) Governing Britain, Who's Who in Royal Britain, 10:00 a.m.; Monarchs and Megaliths: picnic lunch (bring sandwich); Origins of Royal Britain Lecture; British Museum 1:00 p.m.
Readings:  Morgan, 1-34; Journal Topics
Boudicca's Rebellion < https://www.britannia.com/history/docs/tacitus.html >
See https://www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/world/britain/britain.html and
https://www.thebritishmuseum.ac.uk/compass
11 July (T) The Roman Conquest, 9:30 a.m., London Museum and Roman walls; British Library 2 p.m.
Roman Britain Lecture; See https://www.museumoflondon.org.uk/. Also see https://www.bl.uk/
Readings:  Morgan, 34-59; Journal Topics
12 July (W) Travel to Winchester 9:00 a.m. for 9:30 am train; Alfred the Great and the Birth of the English Monarchy; visit Cathedral, Great Hall, and statue of Alfred the Great
Winchester highlights; Anglo-Saxon Lecture
Readings:  Williamson, 16-33; Morgan, 60-119; Journal Topics
Medieval Sourcebook: The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle on Alfred the Great
< https://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/angsax-chron1.html >
13 July (R) The Age of Chivalry:  visit Tower of London 9:30 a.m. and Westminster Abbey 3:00 p.m.
Feudalism and the Monarchy Lecture; Tower of London highlights; Westminster highlights
Williamson, 34-63; Morgan, 120-191; Journal Topics
"The Nature of Courts and the Law Before 1176"<https://vi.uh.edu/pages/bob/elhone/comcrts.html>
Magna Carta 1215 < https://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/mcarta.html >
14 July (F) Travel to Canterbury 9:00 a.m. train; The Murder of the Archbishop: Henry II and Thomas Beckett; guided tour of Cathedral; visit Castle ruins
Canterbury highlights; King, Lords, and Commons Lecture
See https://www.digiserve.com/peter/cc.htm
Readings:  Morgan, 141-146; Journal Topics
Gervase of Canterbury, d. 1205: Thomas Becket's Death, from History of the Archbishops of Canterbury
< https://www.fordham.edu/halsall/source/1205gervase2.html >
15 July (S) Free
16 July (X) Free
17 July (M) The Northern Kingdom; leave 7:45 a.m. for 9:00 train to Edinburgh from Kings Cross; tour Holyrood Palace; optional: evening ghost tour
Readings:  Williamson, 64- 81; Morgan 192-256
18 July (T) Bruce, Braveheart, and Bannockburn: Royal Scotland; 9:30 a.m. bus from Pollock Halls, University of Edinburgh, to the Royal Mile; tour Edinburgh Castle; visit Jenny Geddes' (the woman who began the Civil War :) memorial in St. Giles Cathedral; 2 p.m. lecturer: Dr. James Fraser
Edinburgh highlights
See https://www.geo.ed.ac.uk/home/tour/castle.html
https://www.aboutscotland.com/edin/royal.html
Readings: Morgan, 257-326;  Journal Topics
19 July (W) The Scottish Wars of Independence; Leave Edinburgh at 8:30 a.m. for Stirling; tour town and Castle; drive to Bannockburn Heritage Centre; drive to Linlithgow and tour Linlithgow Palace.
Journal Topics
20 July (R) Kingdom of the Scots; 9:30 a.m. bus from Pollock Halls to the Museum of Scotland; afternoon free; optional:  hike up Arthur's Seat; Journal Topics
See https://www.nms.ac.uk/
21 July (F) Leave Edinburgh on 12 noon train for London.
22 July (S) Free
23 July (X)  Free
24 July (M) Henry VIII, Hampton Court, and the English Reformation and Renaissance; visit Hampton Court; leave at 9:30 a.m. for 9:58 train
See https://www.hrp.org.uk/webcode/timeline.asp?ID=9; Journal Topics
English Renaissance Architecture
< https://www.tulane.edu/lester/text/Renaissance/English.Renaissance/English.Renaissance.html >
Readings: Paul Hentzner: A Description of Elizabeth I & her Court at Greenwich, from Journey into England
< https://www.britannia.com/history/docs/hentzner.html >
25 July (T) The Iconography of Monarchy: lecture 9:30 a.m.  Iconography Lecture; visit National Portrait Gallery; Journal Topics
26 July (W) Travel to Oxford 8:15 a.m. for 9:21 train from Paddington; Royalist Oxford; tour of university and city, lecturer: Sue Donnelly, University of Northampton; Lecture Outline
Readings:  Williamson, 111-129; Morgan, 327- 398; Journal Topics
Oxfordshire County Council, Story of Oxford; https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/objects/downloads/christchurch_history.pdf
27 July (R) Glorious Revolution Lecture 9:30 - 11:30 a.m.; afternoon free
Readings:  Morgan, 399-469; Bill of Rights  < https://www.britannia.com/history/docs/rights.html >
28 July (F) Mini-break
29 July (S) Mini-break
30 July (X) Mini-break
31 July (M) Mini-break
1 August (T) Queen Victoria and the British Empire; visit the Victoria and Albert Musuem 9:30 a.m.; afterwards walk to Albert Memorial; afternoon free
Journal Topics; Readings:  Morgan, 518-581, Williamson, 130-157; Profile of Queen Victoria
2 August (W) The Transformation of the Monarchy, visit Windsor Castle 9:00 am for 9:30 train from Waterloo
Journal Topics; See https://www.angelfire.com/in/uktravelinfo/windsor.html
3 August (R) Crowned Heads in a Republican Age, walk to Houses of Parliament for tour 10:00 a.m.; lecturer: David Waller, University of Northampton 2:00 p.m.; See Queen's Speech
Readings: Williamson, 158-169; Morgan, 582-674;  Journal Topics
The Official Web Site of the British Monarchy
4 August (F) Review Session for Final Exam
5 August (S) Final examination 9:00 a.m.
6 August (X) Depart for U.S.
 

RETURN TO MCCANDLESS HOME PAGE
RETURN TO COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON BRITISH STUDIES
RETURN TO ROYAL BRITAIN COURSE DESCRIPTION

If a student has a disability that qualifies under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and requires accommodations, he/she should contact the Office for Disability Accommodations (ODA) for information on appropriate policies and procedures. Disabilities covered by ADA may include learning, psychiatric, physical disabilities, or chronic health disorders. Students can contact ODA if they are not certain whether a medical condition/disability qualifies. Mailing address: 118 College Drive #8586, Hattiesburg, MS 39406-001; Telephone: (601) 266-5024; TTY: (601) 266-6827; Fax: (601) 266-6035.