Yankees in London: History of the United States through the Eyes of Americans in London

Overview

Academic Lead: Dr Hannah-Rose Murray

Syllabus: SUM503G_Yankees_in_London:_History_of_the_United_States_through_the_Eyes_of_Americans_who_Lived_Worked_and_Partied_in_London [PDF 227KB]

What does American history look like from 'across the pond'? How can we re-evaluate key events in US history – the American Revolution, the struggle over slavery, the emergence of the US as a global superpower, the Civil Rights and ‘black power’ movements – by seeing them through the eyes of history-making Americans who lived, studied, worked, and partied in London? This module introduces students to a magnificent kaleidoscope of Americans in London, including revolutionaries (Benjamin Franklin, Abigail Adams), radical abolitionists (Frederick Douglass, Sarah Parker Remond, Elizabeth Cady Stanton), businessmen (George Peabody, J.P. Morgan), and artists (Ira Aldridge, Henry James, Paul Robeson). They will learn to work with a variety of original sources – textual, visual, and material – and make routine use of our London setting to visit museums and historical sites - ‘the rooms where it happened'!

Course content is subject to change.

Course aims

This course aims to:

• provide students with knowledge of American history from a broad Atlantic perspective from the colonial period to the recent past.
• provide students with an understanding of how major events in American history were viewed, influenced, and shaped from afar, and particularly from London, discrediting accounts of the US as insular or isolationist.
• introduce students to a wide range of historical methods that challenge conventional nationalist approaches to history, including global and transnational history to biography, micro history, urban history, and social history.
• teach students to work with a variety of primary sources, textual, visual, and material, providing them with a broad approach to historical research and writing
• enhance students analytical skills and their ability to reflect about history and develop their own historical insights with clarity and authority.

Teaching and learning

You will be taught through a combination of lectures, seminars, film screenings and field trips. 

Learning outcomes

• Students will learn about key events in American history from a unique perspective from the American Revolution, the abolitionist campaign, Civil War and Reconstruction, the Gilded Age, the World Wars, the Age of Prosperity, and the New Conservatism
• Students will learn about elite actors in politics, diplomacy, and business, as well as grassroots activists, artists, and reformers, who were shaped in profound ways by their experience in London and the UK and leveraged transnational connections to advance their respective agendas
• Students will learn about London as a pivotal place for the trajectory of American history

You will be able to:

• Learn about new approaches to history that transcend national boundaries (transnational, global, micro, urban, social)
• Learn to work with primary sources of different types, including making use of specifically London-based material history and the built environment
• Develop critical reading skills, as well as writing and analytical skills
• Awareness of a long history of transnational flows of people, goods, knowledge, and ideas.
• A view of history from above and from below, with an emphasis on debates that shaped race and gender inequalities
• Writing and speaking with clarity and authority via written work and class discussions

Fees

Additional costs

All reading material will be provided online, so it is not necessary to purchase any books.

For course and housing fees visit our finance webpage

Entry requirements

We welcome Summer School students from around the world. We accept a range of qualifications

How to apply

Have a question? Get in touch - one of the team will be happy to help!

Applications close 24 May 2024