A survey of the government, social organization, cultural and religious experience of the English people. Particular stress is laid on land settlement, the unification of the realm, the emergence of state institutions such as Parliament and changes in economic organization (manors, towns and commerce). The approach will be comparative within a context of contemporary European developments. The course offers students who wish to work on their writing skills with assistance an opportunity to do so, especially in the second paper.

REQUIRED READINGS (available from the Campus Store and Triangle):

C.W. Hollister, The Making of England
J. Campbell (ed.), The Anglo-Saxons
M.T. Clanchy, England and its Rulers, 1066-1272
M. Keen , English Society in the Later Middle Ages
D. Baker, The Early Middle Ages, 871-1216 & The Later Middle Ages, 1216-1485 [Sourcebooks]
* C. Taylor, Village and Farmstead (Extracts) [Campus Store Course Packet]

Optional Readings:

W.G. Hoskins , The Making of the English Landscape

URIS RESERVE: To pursue points made in the lectures or assigned readings, consult first the following books on the period. There may be in addition some xerox copies of other relevant materials. Please ask.

DA130. B16 BAKER, D. ENGLAND IN THE EARLY MIDDLE AGES
DA152. C18 1982 + CAMPBELL, J. (ed.) THE ANGLO-SAXONS
DA175. B16 BAKER, D. ENGLAND IN THE LATER MIDDLE AGES
DA175. C58 CLANCHY, M.T. ENGLAND & ITS RULERS, 1066-1272
DA175. H75 HOLMES, GA. THE LATER MIDDLE AGES
DA630. H82 M2 + HOSKINS, W.G. THE MAKING OF THE ENGLISH LANDSCAPE
GF551. T23 + TAYLOR, C. VILLAGE AND FARMSTEAD
NK3049. B3 S82 STENTON, F.M. THE BAYEUX TAPESTRY
NK3049. B3 W74 ++ WILSON, D. THE BAYEUX TAPESTRY
DA 175 .O981 1997 + SAUL, N. (ed.) OXFORD ILLUSTRATED HISTORY OF MED. ENGLAND

KEEN ENGLISH SOCIETY IN THE LATER MIDDLE AGES
HINTON ARCHAEOLOGY, ECONOMY & SOCIETY

DOBSON, R.B. (ed.) THE PEASANTS REVOLT OF 1381 is on Permanent Reserve in OLIN 305

COURSE REQUIREMENTS:

1. Short Answer Quiz. To be handed out in class on Thursday October 2 and returned after the weekend by noon on Monday Oct 6. It will consist mostly of short questions, to test the assimilation of lectures and readings (including sourcebooks) for the Anglo-Saxon period including Week I classes on Geography. [15% of final grade]

2. Paper I (about 5 pp.) on the Bayeux Tapestry will be due, Wednesday, October 15. You can enjoy the
The Bayeux Tapestry on the Web by clicking on the link here. You should set yourself a question on the BT, and clear it with me. It (or something like it) must appear at the top of your paper. You can, if you prefer, start from this generic question:
-- What does the Bayeux Tapestry tell us about the Norman Conquest and its impact? [10% of final grade]

3. Paper II (about 15 pp.) will be on one of a small number of pre-announced questions. Two separate drafts are expected. A first draft will be due on Monday, November 3. I shall then grade and comment on each of the papers and return them to you, without telling you the provisional grade. We shall then hold a discussion class for each question group. These will not simply review the issues raised by the specific questions; they will also canvas some of the ways to improve skills in writing papers. I may also hold extra office hours early in this period, if there is any demand. The Final Version of the paper is due by the Thanksgiving Break or at the latest noon on Monday, December 1. [40% of final grade]

CLICK HERE for the four questions from which you choose one only. Clicking on the link now will take you back not only to the questions, but now that the First Draft is in and read, to our suggestions for Further Reading on your chosen question.

I have some Suggestions about Writing History Papers like this one and also on the reading, research and Source Criticism which precede writing the papers. START HERE with my general tips, and then come and see me (or Jen) for further assistance more specific to your own personal needs.

4. Final Exam during the exam period. This will include a minimum number of identifications, questions on 2 documents from the Baker sourcebooks, and 2 short essays. [30% of final grade]

5. Attendance at all classes and participation in all discussions. Office Hours, too, are a full part of the course; you are expected to use them to clarify difficulties, pursue interesting side-issues and, simply, to let me get to know you. We may hold additional and optional Discussion Sections if there is a demand for them. (The likely times and places are on Wednesdays at 11:15 in MG 366 and/or 12:20 in UH 690.)

6. CoNotes: This CIT software that makes possible a virtual Discussion Section attached to the class Web Page. Students in a previous class of mine have found it stimulating and fun. There will be full details on how to Register and participate in the Web version of this Prospectus. These are "full" by CIT standards which are not necessarily as helpful as mine! Please let me help if and when you need it. It is important to me that all students get comfortable and going in this forum as soon as possible. I shall probably also use Co-Notes to make class announcements, of. source readings (Baker), assignments, up-coming writing sessions, due-dates, videos, or exams; possibly even for spot offers of extra credit. But Co-Notes is for you to take over and use to the gain of all. Being open 24 hours a day (unless Falcon goes down!), it is available for late-night thoughts on the course, including perhaps speculation on the relationship between Hollister and his cats. You can reach Co-Notes to find out all about it through a link On-Line Discussion Software (CoNotes)

WEEKLY READINGS: Lectures will aim to complement rather than repeat the information and arguments in the readings. So you absolutely must complete readings early in the week to which they refer. I have deliberately kept the readings relatively brief, so you can read them with the attention that is essential to proper understanding. The success of the course, for everyone, turns on this. Please help make it work. While it does, I promise there will be no snap quizzes, but I reserve the right to set these if I feel that we are not on top of the materials.

Aim to read at least the first text (usually Hollister) for the Tuesday class. By Thursday you must have read any other readings including selections from the Baker sourcebooks. Bring these books to the Thursday class so we can read them aloud in class. You should also bring into each Thursday class some written question on any aspect of the readings. This can be something you simply do not understand and want explained, or it can be some clever point such as where different readings disagree or where you doubt a view expressed by Hollister or whoever.

Source readings from the Baker Sourcebooks are a required addition to the readings noted below. I shall announce selections for discussion the preceding week. But you should aim to work right through both books over the semester at your own pace ready for the Final. We can discuss any problems in Office Hours or through Co-Notes.

It is, of course, quite impossible to conflate the information and arguments of your various readings into any single "correct" view of the period . Your job is to construct a view for yourself with all help from me (including Office Hours) and from the rest of the class. You should in the first instance use Co-Notes for your queries and expressions of view. The procedure for writing and improving Paper II (3. above) is designed to suggest some of the strategies that work best. But the key is always concentration and careful reading, and quite possibly re-reading too. The best approach is to look out for differences of opinion between different readings or between them and the lectures. If you bring nice clashes of opinion to the notice of the Class, you will receive bonus credit towards the Final Grade. An excellent occasion for this is during the discussion sessions towards the end of the classes.

Week 0 R Aug 28 INTRODUCTION - Geography: Men Women and the Land
Week I TR Sept 2, 4 The Anglo-Saxon Settlements

C. Taylor, Village & Farmstead, Pp. 12-15, 83-150 (in Campus Store packet 1).
Campbell, The Anglo-Saxons, picture essays 7, 8, 10, 12, 15 = pp. 102-3, 120-1, 152-3, 162-3, 174-5
Opt: W.G. Hoskins, The Making of the English Landscape

You will probably need to familiarise yourself with the simple facts of physical geography with the help of a Map. Warning: this one takes an age to load! Click here for a menu of maps (quicker loading, I hope!) which I shall add to as I am able.

Hollister, cap. 1
Campbell, caps. 1-2, picture essays 1, 3 = pp. 24-5, 48-9
Opt: Hinton, caps. I-II.

One aspect of the period of the Anglo-Saxon Invasions and Settlements that always attracts attention is the career of King Arthur. In the form that most of us hear the story, it belongs to the fiction writers of the twelfth century and later. But there is probably some kind of fact somewhere behind the myths, and no lack of people who think they know what that is. (When talking to these people keep your hand on your wallet.) I bet there are many Web sites devoted to Arthur. You may like to check out one Solution to the Arthur Problem that has come to my notice!

Week II TR Sept 9, 11 Conversion & Unification

Hollister, cap. 2
Campbell, caps. 3-5, picture essays 2, 4, 5, 6, 11 = pp. 32-3, 62-3, 74-5, 80-1, 158-9
Opt: Hinton, Cap. III

Week III TR Sept 16, 18 The Late Anglo-Saxon "State" ?

Hollister, cap. 3
Campbell, caps., 6-8, picture essays nos. 9, 13-17 = pp. 130-1, 166-7, 170-1, 174-5, 198-9, 204-5
Hinton, caps. IV-V.

Week IV TR Sept 23, 25 The Norman Conquest

Hollister, cap. 4
Clanchy, caps. 2-3
The Bayeux Tapestry
Campbell, cap. 9, picture essays 18-19 = pp. 226-7, 234-5
Opt: Hinton, cap,. VI.

Week V TR Sept 30, Oct 2 Anglo-Norman England

Hollister, cap. 5
Clanchy, caps. 3-4

Week VI TR Oct 7, 9 Angevins to Magna Carta

Hollister, cap. 6
Clanchy, caps. 5-6 and pp. 181-199

Week VII R Oct 16 Society in the High Middle Ages
Week VIII TR Oct 21, 23

Hollister, cap. 7
Clanchy, cap. 7
Opt: Hinton, cap. VII.

Week IX TR Oct 28, 30 Henry III (1216-72)

Hollister, cap. 8
Clanchy, caps. 9-11 and pp. 199 sq.

You will certainly find it helpful to supplement the readings after this point from Chris Given-Wilson, "Late Medieval England, 1215-1485", which is Chap. 4 of The Oxford Illustrated History of Medieval England, ed. Nigel Saul (1996), pp. 102- 36. This gives brief accounts of the political history. The book with its excellent illustrations and good text is on reserve at Uris. May I remind you also to take a look at my Suggestions about Writing History Papers?

Week X TR Nov 4, 6 Edward I and his Son, 1272-1327

Hollister, caps. 9-10
Additional readings from Baker or TBA

Week XI TR Nov 11, 13 Edward III & the Hundred Years War

Hollister, cap. 11 and pp. 300 sq.
Keen, caps. 6, 8

Week XII TR Nov 18, 20 Black Death & Peasants' Revolt: 14th Century Society

Hollister, cap. 12
Keen, caps. 2-3
Opt: Hinton, cap. VIII.

Week XIII T Nov 25 The Fifteenth Century: Nadir and Revival?

Keen, caps. 4-5, 7
Opt: Hinton, cap. IX.

Week XIV TR Dec 2, 4 England in the Middle Ages: Review

Keen, caps. 9-11 and perhaps 12
Readings to be arranged [Baker Sourcebooks]