Year 11 Preparation for A Level Programme

History The History course will introduce students to some background of our two Year 12 courses: the Tudors 1485-1603, and USA 1945-80. The course will provide important context and introduce students to the more independent nature of studying History at A Level through critical engagement with the work of primary sources and historians.

Tudor History: there will be six lessons spread across four weeks Enquiry 1: Changing Narratives: How should we represent some of the key figures of this period?

These first sessions will introduce students to different interpretations and representations of the Tudor period and the period of the Wars of the Roses. This will be used as a starting point to consider why representations have changed.

Wars of the Roses: savage battles and shameless treasons? – Students will examine changing representations of the Wars of the Roses through examples including Shakespeare, the recent novel and TV drama, the White Queen, and by Victorian historians and contemporary historians. How and why have these representations changed?

Mary I: Hysterical, fanatical and stubborn? – Students will consider how interpretations of Mary have changed as historians have moved away from gendered stereotypes. Different interpretations will be tested against primary evidence.

Elizabeth I: the body of a weak and feeble woman? – Students will examine how Elizabeth sought to represent herself through portraits and quotations from speeches. Did Elizabeth successfully overcome gendered stereotypes of the Tudor period?

Enquiry 2: Hidden histories: How can we uncover some of the hidden histories of the Tudor period?

These two sessions will introduce students to some lesser-known aspects of Tudor history.

Black Tudors? – This session will explore Black lives in Tudor England and is based on recent work by the historian Miranda Kauffman.

Beginnings of Empire? – This session will explore one of the darker themes of Tudor history through an examination of emerging justifications of colonialism in Ireland and the Americas.

Project Outcome: You will have the choice of which aspect of the Tudor enquiries to focus upon in order to write a short reflective piece on why the portrayal of Tudor history has been so controversial.

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