London History Modules
Learning about London’s past: courses and workshops in London history
The London History section of the Certificate of Higher Education in History is delivered under the auspices of the Raphael Samuel History Centre and in collaboration with the University of East London.
Students who have started the Certificates of Higher Education in Discovering London or Understanding London may take any of the following modules to complete their studies. Students may also take London history modules as part of the BSc Social Science.
For more information click on the course title, or click here to enrol for any of the modules listed. For details on how to accrue credits towards your certificate of HE and to see the full range of modules on offer go to this Birkbeck History page.
Digital Storytelling: Making Online London History
This exciting new module explores the relationship between memory, history and place in London's landscapes. We will examine how places and their people are interpreted or commemorated, and you will learn the research and practical skills necessary to produce your own place-focused public history web page,
digital story or walking trail.
Roman and Saxon London
We will consider the history and archaeology of London, including the political background in Britain and beyond, and London’s changing role and importance. We will place the Roman, Saxon and Viking incomers in context – where did they come from and why? We will examine what is known about the buildings, form and rationale of the successive towns of Londinium, Lundenwic and Lundenburh.
Anglo-Norman London
This module considers the history of London from AD 1000 until about AD 1200, in the context of the wider history of England. We will draw upon written sources, archaeological evidence and art to understand the development of London, and will examine what life was like for Londoners in the Anglo-Norman period.
Everyday Life in Medieval London 1000-1500
What did London look like between 1000 and 1500? Where and how did Londoners live? What did they eat and drink? How did they enjoy themselves and where did they go shopping? What illnesses did they suffer from and how were they treated? How did they deal with sanitation? This fascinating module of everyday life explores these and other questions.
Interpreting the Tower
Birkbeck and the Tower of London have teamed up to explore the methods and techniques used to convey 900 years of history. Guided by historians and the Tower's own education team, you will discover some of the secrets of this iconic World Heritage site and explore the divergent ways in which it has been interpreted. Through tours, lectures, seminars, audio-visual events and project-based work, you will make your own assessment of the Tower, the ways in which it is presented and its continuing significance. Expect to have your own ideas about history and its presentation challenged.
Exploring London’s Past: Archives, Architecture and Oral History
This module, based at the newly refurbished library of the Bishopsgate Institute, is designed to give a broad introduction to the sources for London’s history. Through walks, visits to archives and using cartographic, visual and oral history sources, you will gain an understanding of the different ways in which the history of the metropolis has been understood and represented.
’Flower of Cities All’: Tudor and Stuart London
The City, seat of the royal stronghold, was courted by Tudor sovereigns and ignored by the Stuarts to their peril. London suffered cataclysmic events – the Reformation, Civil War, plague and fire – with physical, social and political effects upon its fabric and the inhabitants’ lives. Through maps, copies of contemporary documents and walks we will see how these events helped to shape the history of the metropolis.
London 1600-2000: People and Power in the Making of a Global City
For centuries, London has acted as a nodal point in the process of global integration and the movement of goods and people. This innovative new module explores the place of London in the history of globalisation. This survey of London’s history since 1600 examines how institutions and individuals based in London have been crucial in the creation and unmaking of a worldwide empire and how, in turn, the physical fabric, demographic make-up, economy and culture of London have been shaped by this experience. The module is being offered alongside a first-year BA module. Certificate of Higher Education students will attend lectures with undergraduates but will be able to attend separate seminars and, where appropriate, site visits.
The Beggars’ Opera to the Olympic Games: Culture, Sport and Leisure in London, 1714-2012
This new module explores the variety of ways in which Londoners have been enlightened and entertained over the past three centuries, through an examination of elite, popular and cross-cultural activities and institutions, including the theatre, music hall, cinema and television. We will also look at the emergence of museums, art galleries, and the provision of music and public access to science. The history of public houses, displays, exhibitions and the sports and pastimes of the capital also feature.
London at War: Film, Fiction and Archives
Bombs, the Blitz and the black market are some of the images of London during the Second World War. This module examines a variety of representations of wartime London in the film and literature of the time. It is based at the London Metropolitan Archives, and we will draw on its rich variety of records and archival sources. Topics will include how Londoners coped with the war, and the impact of the physical and psychological damage. We will also consider the extent to which London underwent economic and social transformation in the aftermath of war.
London from the East: A Social History of the East End
We will examine the development of London's East End since the sixteenth century. Over the centuries, the East End changed from open fields and scattered villages to densely settled terraces and housing estates. We will look at the East End's rich traditions: as a centre of crafts and industry; as the point of reception for immigrants from many lands; and as the home of radical political and social movements. Site visits are included.
Cross-Listed Modules
Divercity: London’s Unique Population
London is one of the most diverse cities in the world. London's population differs from that of most of Britain in terms of its ethnic diversity, gender balance and age structure. This module introduces you to information about who lives in London, and how and where they live. It considers how this diversity influences policy, the local economy, environment and cultural life.
London: Nature and Culture
With the growth of the metropolis to a city of beyond eight million and with future plans to extend the urban area into the Thames Gateway, London is poised to enter a new phase in its development. This module explores the shaping of the human and natural environment of the contemporary metropolis, looking at challenges and dilemmas posed by urban expansion in the past, present and future. We will explore many diverse aspects of London, including its geology and natural history, parks, open spaces and nature conservation, population and government, economy and the role of the city, planning and housing.
Discovering London’s Squares
Explore London squares and their urban, social and cultural functions, their historical background and their contemporary transformations. We will use a variety of approaches to explore these distinctive features of our city, including architectural, social and cultural history. The module includes visits to Birkbeck's local Bloomsbury square.
London: Approaches and Perspectives 1
This module provides an introduction to interdisciplinary study in the arts and humanities. It examines diverse representations and theorisations of London, exploring the ways in which the city and its people shape and are shaped by the environment across time. Topics covered range from Jack the Ripper and nineteenth-century studies of the urban poor to the novels of Iain Sinclair and twenty-first-century postcards of tourist London.
London: Approaches and Perspectives 2
This module follows thematically from London: Approaches and Perspectives 1, but can be taken separately. It develops skills of analysis in literary and visual culture in historical and contemporary contexts, including discussions of literary texts (e.g. Woolf’s Mrs Dalloway, Allen Fisher’s poetry) alongside representations of London within visual culture (from Turner’s paintings to Blitz photography and the televisation of Tipping the Velvet).
Spaces of Protest
London has a vibrant tradition as a site for political protests and as a proving ground for radical social and political movements. This module explores the topography of radicalism in London, looking at the different contexts in which dissent has been expressed in the capital, from the time of the Peasants' Revolt to the present day.