Course Syllabus

HIST B 309, section 27118 / HIST H 509, section 26988                                                                  Dr. Thomas A. Mason

History of Britain to 1688                                                                                                   Classroom: Cavanaugh Hall 217

Syllabus of Course                                                                                                                        E-mail: masonta@iupui.edu

Fall semester 2015                                                                                                                       Office: Cavanaugh Hall 313-E

Mondays and Wednesdays, 1:30–2:45 PM                                                    Office Hours: Wednesdays, 3:00–4:00 PM

Texts (which all students are required to purchase):

Hollister, C. Warren, Robert C. Stacey, and Robin Chapman Stacey, The Making of England to 1399. 8th edition. New York: Cengage Learning, 2001. Earlier editions are also acceptable.

Smith, Lacey Baldwin. This Realm of England, 1399–1688. 8th edition. New York: Cengage Learning, 2001.

                Earlier editions are also acceptable.

Bede. Ecclesiastical History of the English People. Translated by Leo Sherley-Price, revised by R. E. Latham; new introduction and notes by D. H. Farmer. New York: Penguin Books, 1990. Also available as an e-book (Kindle, Nook, and iTunes).

Fortescue, Sir John. On the Laws and Governance of England. Edited by Shelley Lockwood. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1997. (Note that for the analytical essay due on November 23, you have the option of reading and reviewing this book or analyzing a work of art that you see at the Indianapolis Museum of Art. If you choose that latter option, you are not required to purchase the book.)

Course Description: This course is designed to instill an awareness of the development of modern British society, economy, politics, and culture, including industrialization, imperialism, and the emergence of ideologies such as liberalism and socialism.

Learning Objectives: The course implements and supports the IUPUI Principles of Undergraduate Learning (http://academicaffairs.iupui.edu/PlansInitiatives/Plans/Principles-of-Undergraduate-Learning): core communication (moderate emphasis) and quantitative (minor emphasis) skills; critical thinking; integration and appreciation of knowledge; intellectual depth, breadth, and adaptiveness; understanding society and culture (major emphasis); and values and ethics.

Course requirements: You will write a descriptive essay (500–700 words) on Bede; an analytical essay (750–1,000 words) on either Fortescue or a work of art that you see at the Indianapolis Museum of Art; and a research paper (2,500–3,500 words) on a topic to be mutually agreed upon by you and me. I post instruction sheets on Canvas, under the link to “Assignments,” for these essays, which are due on the dates listed below.

Examinations: There will be a mid-semester examination and a final examination (both will be composed of essay and matching). These will cover the contents of the textbooks, lectures, and books assigned for review. For the examinations, I provide bluebooks and post review sheets on Canvas, under the link to “Resources,” folder “Review Sheets.”

Please note:

• You are welcome to take examinations early (give me advance notice so I can have the examination made up early).
• You are welcome to turn in book reviews / essays early and to transmit them electronically through the “Assignments” link on Canvas before the due date.
• On the due date, book reviews / essays must be turned in in class, in person, and in hard copy / printout. Book reviews / essays, transmitted electronically through the “Assignments” link on Canvas on the due date, when the student is absent from class, will be considered late.
• No more than one late assignment (book review / essay) or makeup quiz / examination will be allowed to any student.
• After the due date, you may transmit a book review / essay electronically through the “Assignments” link on Canvas for full credit but subject to the abovementioned limit of one late assignment (book review / essay) or makeup quiz / examination per student.
• I encourage communication. When communicating with me, please use the regular university e-mail (masonta@iupui.edu), which is also linked to Canvas messages. Do not send messages through Oncourse, which I have not activated. Since Oncourse messages are not linked to the university e-mail, I will not receive them.

Weighting of course requirements for grade: book reviews (15% x 2 = 30%); research paper 20%; examinations (25% x 2 = 50%).

Administrative Withdrawal: A basic requirement of this course is that you will participate in class and conscientiously complete writing and reading assignments. Keep in touch with me if you are unable to attend class or complete an assignment on time. I will take the roll of attendance, and if you miss more than half our class meetings within the first four weeks of the semester without contacting me, I will administratively withdraw you from this course. Our class meets twice per week; thus if you miss more than four classes in the first four weeks, you may be withdrawn. Administrative withdrawal may have academic, financial, and financial aid implications. Administrative withdrawal will take place after the full refund period, and if you are administratively withdrawn from the course you will not be eligible for a tuition refund. If you have questions about the administrative withdrawal policy at any point during the semester, please contact me.

FLAGS System (Fostering Learning, Achievement, and Graduation Success): I will be using IU’s FLAGS System to provide real-time feedback on your performance in this course. Periodically throughout the semester I will be entering data on factors such as your class attendance, participation, and success with coursework, among other things. This information will provide feedback on how you are faring in the course and offer you suggestions on how you might be able to improve your performance. You will be able to access this information in the student center: OneStart > Student Services page > Student Center > My Academics and Grades > My Grades.

Students needing accommodations because of a disability will need to register with Adaptive Educational Services (AES) and complete the appropriate forms issued by AES before accommodations will be given. The AES office is located in Taylor Hall, UC 100. You can also reach the office by calling 274-3241. Visit http://aes.iupui.edu for more information.

Academic Integrity: You warrant and represent that in-class examinations, and essays and book reviews prepared outside of class, are your own work. You warrant and represent that any words not within quotation marks are your own. Any variation from this standard becomes a false representation, which is an offense under the university-wide Code of Student Rights, Responsibilities, and Conduct at Indiana University (www.iu.edu/~code/code/index.shtml). Cheating and plagiarism will not be tolerated in this class, and I will explain the correct way to acknowledge the words and ideas of others. If you have any questions on this or any other subjects, please ask!

HIST B 309, section 27118 / HIST H 509, section 26988: History of Britain to 1688          Dr. Thomas A. Mason

Schedule of Assignments:

Date                                          Lecture topics (approximate)                                     Hollister-Stacey-Stacey Chapter

August    24   Monday             1  Introduction. Geography is Destiny

                  26   Wednesday      2  The Roman and Anglo-Saxon Invasions                                                                                     1

                  31   Monday            3  Early Anglo-Saxon Britain; The World of Bede                                                                        2

September 2   Wednesday      4  Late Anglo-Saxon Britain                                                                                                               3

                    7   Monday                 Labor Day. No class. Please celebrate responsibly!

                    9   Wednesday      5  The Norman Conquest                                                                                                                     4

                  14   Monday            6  The Norman Yoke                                                                                                                             5

                  16   Wednesday      7  The Early Plantagenets, the Crusades, and the Magna Carta                                            6

                  21   Monday            8  Feudalism, Manorialism, and Chivalry                                                                                    7

                  23   Wednesday          Descriptive Essay (review of Bede) due

                                                          Selection of topic for research paper due

                                                          Class discussion of Bede and research topics

                  28   Monday            9  The Development of Parliament                                                                                                  8

                  30   Wednesday   10  Edward I Campaigns in Syria, Wales, and Scotland                                                              9

                                                    11 The Unedifying Reign of Edward II                                                                                            10

October     5   Monday                 Meet at IUPUI University Library, 755 West Michigan Street

                                                          in Room 2120, the Learning Lab

                                                          (in the reference room area, opposite the circulation desk, on the second floor of the library).

                                                          Kristi L. Palmer, Director, Center for Digital Scholarship, will provide an orientation to the library.

                    7   Wednesday    12  The Hundred Years’ War                                                                                                              11

                                                          Outline / précis (one page) and working bibliography (one page)

                                                          of research paper due. Class discussion of research topics.

                  12   Monday          13  Plague, Proto-Reformation, and the Great Rebellion of the English Peasants              12

                                                                                                                                                                                             Smith chapter

                  14   Wednesday    14  Succession Crises and the End of the Hundred Years’ War                                                   1

                  19   Monday                 Fall Break. No class. Please celebrate responsibly!

                  21   Wednesday    15  Overmighty Subjects Run Amok, Part 1: Bastard Feudalism                                             2

                  26   Monday                 Mid-semester Examination

                                                          (covers all of Hollister-Stacey-Stacey, and Smith chapters 1–2).

                  28   Wednesday    16  Overmighty Subjects Run Amok, Part 2: The Wars of the Roses; The World of Sir John Fortescue                    3

November 2   Monday          17  Early Tudor Economy and Society                                                                                              4

                    4   Wednesday    18  The Newcomer: Henry VII                                                                                                             5

                    9   Monday          19  The Succession Crises of Henry VIII: Real or Perceived?                                                       6

                  11   Wednesday   20  The Reformations: Acts of State or Grassroots Movements?                                                7

                                                          Happy Veterans’ Day!                                                                                                                       

                   14   Saturday            2:00 PM: Visit to the Indianapolis Museum of Art, 4000 Michigan Road.

                                                          Optional if you intend to read and review Fortescue for the Analytical Essay due on

                                                          November 23; required if you intend to analyze a work of art for that assignment or if

                                                          you choose an art historical topic for your research paper due on December 2.

                                                          Meet inside the main entrance.

                  16   Monday          21  The Protestant and Catholic Reformations in Britain                                                           8

                  18   Wednesday   22  The Elizabethan Settlement                                                                                                          9

                  23   Monday          23  “When Britain Really Ruled the Waves, . . . In Good Queen Bess’s Glorious Days”     10

                                                          (W. S. Gilbert, Iolanthe [1882])

                                                          Analytical Essay (review of Fortescue or analysis of a work of art) due

                                                          Class discussion of Fortescue and works of art

                  25   Wednesday          Thanksgiving Recess. No class. Happy Thanksgiving!

                  30   Monday          24  Upsetting the Consensus: James VI and I                                                                                11

December 2   Wednesday   25  Upsetting the Consensus: Charles I                                                                                           12

                                                          Research paper due; Presentations on Research Papers

                    7   Monday          26  Britain’s Unhappy Experience as a Republic: The Commonwealth and the Protectorate 13

                    9   Wednesday   27  “I have no wish to go on my travels again”: The Restoration of Charles II                   14

                  14   Monday          28  The Revolution of 1688: Glorious for Whom?                                                                        15

                   16   Wednesday       Final Examination, 1:00–3:00 PM (covers Smith chapters 3–15).

Please note the day and time (set by the University Registrar) of the exam:

half an hour earlier than our usual meeting time.

Location is our usual room, Cavanaugh Hall 217.

Remember: “We contend, however, that war is nothing more than a continuation of politics with the mixing in of other means.”

                          —Carl von Clausewitz, On War (1832)

                          “‘Who controls the past,’ ran the Party slogan, ‘controls the future; who controls the present controls the past.’”

                          —George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four (1949)

                          “The past is a foreign country: they do things differently there.”

                          —L. P. Hartley, The Go-Between (1953)

                          “Study history. Study history. In history are all the secrets of statecraft.”

                          —Winston Churchill, The Age of Revolution (1957)