Module manager: Dr Sara Barker
Email: s.k.barker@leeds.ac.uk
Taught: Semester 2 (Jan to Jun) View Timetable
Year running 2025/26
This module is approved as a discovery module
The two centuries between the accession of Francis I in 1515 and the death of Louis XIV in 1715 saw great upheaval in France. The emergence of Protestant belief exposed tensions within the Catholic Church and within both the nobility and urban society, leading to violence, civil war, a change of ruling dynasty and, temporarily, uneasy religious co-existence. Although the seventeenth century is typically associated with the reign of Louis XIV, and his quest for la gloire (glory), the age of reason saw people asking new questions about the society they lived in and their role in it. France also expanded overseas, establishing colonies and taking part in the international trade in enslaved people. Over the course of this module, you will investigate how French people dealt with social, cultural, political and religious change, and how this impacted on the development of one of the most important, and controversial, states in early modern Europe. Please note this is an optional module and runs subject to enrolments. If a low number of students choose this module, then the module may not run and you may be asked to choose another module.
The objective of this module is to explore the history of France between 1515 and 1715, taking a hybrid chronological and thematic approach. Using the monarchs of the early modern period (François Ier, Henri II, François II, Charles IX, Henri III, Henri IV, Louis XIII and Louis XIV) as an entry point, we consider how France changed in this period and how challenges around power, social structure, race, the economy, religion and cultural change were identified and handled.
Lectures introduce key topics in a broadly chronological order, building up your understanding of the complex social, cultural and political world of early modern France. Seminars focus on particular sub-themes within the larger topic, using primary and secondary sources to develop analysis. There is a particular focus on how scholarship has developed over time, including the integration of broader categories of analysis, such as gender, race and space, and a strong emphasis on the variety of primary source material available, including both textual and non-textual sources, including paintings, printed images, objects and buildings.
On successful completion of the module you will have demonstrated the following learning outcomes relevant to the subject:
1. Critically assess the nature of religious, political, social and cultural change in France in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.
2. Evaluate contemporary reactions to these changes.
3. Evaluate key historiographical and methodological developments in relation to the history of early modern France.
4. Critically analyse a range of primary sources relating to these issues.
Skills Learning Outcomes
On successful completion of the module you will have demonstrated the following skills learning outcomes:
5. Identify, locate and analyse relevant primary and secondary material.
6. Evaluate carefully and critically the approaches that historians and scholars working in other disciplines have taken when exploring this period.
7. Communicate findings in an appropriate written form.
Details of the syllabus will be provided on the Minerva organisation (or equivalent) for the module.
| Delivery type | Number | Length hours | Student hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Supervision | 2 | 0.2 | 0.4 |
| Lecture | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Seminar | 10 | 1 | 10 |
| Independent online learning hours | 2 | ||
| Private study hours | 177.6 | ||
| Total Contact hours | 20.4 | ||
| Total hours (100hr per 10 credits) | 200 | ||
You will be asked to submit an article review early in the semester, to get feedback on your analytical and communications skills. You will also be invited to individual pre-submission meetings for both the literature review and the primary source essay.
| Assessment type | Notes | % of formal assessment |
|---|---|---|
| Coursework | Literature review | 50 |
| Coursework | Primary Source essay | 50 |
| Total percentage (Assessment Coursework) | 100 | |
Normally resits will be assessed by the same methodology as the first attempt, unless otherwise stated
The reading list is available from the Library website
Last updated: 29/04/2025
Errors, omissions, failed links etc should be notified to the Catalogue Team