HS1016: Warfare in Early Modern Europe, c 1500-1715

Module code: HS1016

Module provider: History; School of Humanities

Credits: 20

Level: Level 1 (Certificate)

When you'll be taught: Semester 2

Module convenor: Professor Jo£l F£lix, email: j.m.felix@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2024/5

Available to visiting students: No

Talis reading list: Yes

Last updated: 21 May 2024

Overview

Module aims and purpose

Since the 1960s, the so-called New Military History has insisted that warfare should not only be only concerned with ‘badges, battles and buttons’ but placed in the wider social, economic and political contexts.

The aims of the module are to:

• Introduce students to war and warfare in early modern Europe
• Introduce students to the causes and consequences of war
• Encourage students to reflect critically upon the historical basis of contemporary ideas about war

The purpose of this module is to introduce students to the advances of the New Military History and explore the ways in which warfare impacted on early modern society.

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. Understand how ideas and events are shaped by their historical contexts
2. Be aware of differing historiographical interpretations
3. Organise material and articulate arguments effectively in writing
4. Demonstrate familiarity with bibliographical conventions and mastery of library skills

Module content

While the technical aspects of warfare are not neglected, the module will look at broader themes, including the causes of war, the impact of warfare on civilians, the systems of recruitment, the experience of life in armies for the rank-and-file soldier, the importance of logistics for the conduct of war, and the role of warfare in the development of the state. The module concentrates upon the experience of warfare in Western Europe; and although the main focus is upon armies, navies too come in for scrutiny.

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

Teaching is by eleven weekly two-hour seminars.

Fortnightly workshop sessions will give practical advice on working towards the assessment and practice time for skills related to the module.

Study hours

At least 27 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 40% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: https://www.reading.ac.uk/cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

Staff will devise formative assessment appropriate to the module content.

Reassessment

Additional costs