Unit name | Calvinism and Europe (Level H Special Subject) |
---|---|
Unit code | HIST37002 |
Credit points | 20 |
Level of study | H/6 |
Teaching block(s) |
Teaching Block 2 (weeks 13 - 24) |
Unit director | Dr. Austin |
Open unit status | Not open |
Pre-requisites |
None |
Co-requisites |
None |
School/department | Department of History (Historical Studies) |
Faculty | Faculty of Arts |
Calvinism was the most dynamic form of Reformation Protestantism, taking root in, among other places, France, Scotland, the Netherlands, Hungary, Poland and Lithuania. This special subject investigates the reasons for Calvinism's rise to pre-eminence, the manner in which this was achieved, its subsequent impact, and its longer term historical significance. While theological issues will not be ignored, greater attention will be given to the impact those ideas had on politics, culture and society, and the ways in which such factors in turn shaped the reception of these ideas. The close interconnections between religious and political history in the early modern period (as exemplified in the French Wars of Religion and the Dutch Revolt), will be stressed throughout this unit; moreover, themes such as the role of ideology, the nature and use of propaganda, and state formation and development, will allow students to draw comparisons with other periods of history.
By the end of the unit students should have:
1 x 3500 word essay (50%) and 1 x 2 hour exam (50%)
Philip Benedict, Christ’s Churches Purely Reformed. A Social History of Calvinism (2004)
Patrick Collinson, The Reformation (2003)
Bruce Gordon, Calvin (2011)
Graeme Murdock, Beyond Calvin: The Intellectual, Political and Cultural World of Europe’s Reformed Churches, c.1540-1620 (2004)
Andrew Pettegree, A. C. Duke and Gillian Lewis (Eds), Calvinism in Europe, 1540-1620 (1996) [not to be confused with the set of documents by the same editors]
Menna Prestwich (Ed.), International Calvinism, 1541-1715 (1985)