Module:

Latest Module Specifications

Current Academic Year 2025 - 2026

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Module Title
Module Code	(ITS: HY325)
Faculty		School
NFQ level		Credit Rating

Description

This module provides students with an overview of the main patterns of European history in the second half of the nineteenth and the first half of the twentieth centuries with a focus on the interaction between the economic, social, political and cultural factors. The module covers a broad range of topics from political, social, intellectual and cultural history and will introduce the students to a variety of historiographical approaches to these themes. Importantly, Europe is understood in the broad sense of the word and includes all major European Empires and nation-states after the end of the First World War.

Learning Outcomes

1. Identify main factors of social and political change in Modern Europe
2. Identify key events and personalities in Europe in the period 1848-1945
3. Understand some of the important ideas that shaped the history of the period, such as nationalism, liberalism, democracy, socialism, communism and fascism.
4. Gain understanding of the relationship between political, social and cultural factors in European history
5. Recognise different historiographical approaches to European history and be able to use them appropriately own research
6. Demonstrate critical and independent thinking, perception and historical judgement.
7. Express in written form independent opinion on themes covered in the module using examples from European history to support their point of view

*Type*	*Hours*	*Description*
Workload	Full time hours per semester
Lecture	22	Lecture or equivalent video/audio recording
Independent Study	103	Independent work and assignments
Total Workload: 125

Type	Description	% of total	Assessment Date
Assessment Breakdown
Assignment	n/a	40%	n/a
Formal Examination	n/a	60%	End-of-Semester

Reassessment Requirement Type
Resit arrangements are explained by the following categories; RC1: A resit is available for both^* components of the module. RC2: No resit is available for a 100% coursework module. RC3: No resit is available for the coursework component where there is a coursework and summative examination element. ^* ‘Both’ is used in the context of the module having a coursework/summative examination split; where the module is 100% coursework, there will also be a resit of the assessment

Pre-requisite	None
Co-requisite	None
Compatibles	None
Incompatibles	None

All module information is indicative and subject to change. For further information,students are advised to refer to the University's Marks and Standards and Programme Specific Regulations at: http://www.dcu.ie/registry/examinations/index.shtml

Indicative Content and Learning Activities

European Empires
1848 Revolution & the unification of Germany and Italy

Socio-economic changes
industrialization and urbanization

Emancipation and social movements
working class and the empowerment of women

Discoveries
Technology and scientific discoveries

Imperialism
European Imperialism & international politics

WWI
Causes, experiences, outcomes

Russian Revolutions
Russian Revolutions and change in the Soviet Union

Democracy in interwar Europe
challenges and answers

Change
Social, economic and cultural change in the 1920-30s

WWII
WWII in Europe

Indicative Reading List

Books:

John M. Merriman: 0, Course textbook: A history of modern Europe. Volume 2, From the French Revolution to the present (latest edition),
Holly Case: 0, The age of questions, or, a first attempt to aggregate history of the eastern, social, woman, American, Jewish, Polish, bullion, tuberculosis and many other questions over the nineteenth century,
Richard .J. Evans: 0, The Pursuit of Power: Europe 1815-1914,
Eric Hobsbawm: 0, The Age of Empire, 1875-1914,
Ian Kershaw: 0, To hell and back: Europe, 1914-1949,
Richard Crampton: 0, Eastern Europe in the twentieth century and after,
Felix Gilbert: 0, The End of the European Era: 1890 to the Present,
Martin Gilbert: 0, A History of the Twentieth Century, Vol I: 1900-1933,
Robert Gildea: 0, Barricades and Borders: Europe 1800-1914 (Short Oxford History of the Modern World, 1987),
Eric Hobsbawm: 0, Age of Extremes. The Short Twentieth Century, 1914-1992,
Julian Jackson: 0, Europe, 1900-1945,
James Joll: 0, Europe Since 1870 (1973, 1980),
Paul Kennedy: 0, The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers,
W.R. Keylor: 0, The Twentieth-Century World,
M. Kolinsky: 0, Continuity and Change in European Society: France, Germany and Italy Since 1870,
Stephen J. Lee: 0, Europe, 1890-1945,
George Lichtheim: 0, Europe in the Twentieth Century,
Mark Mazower: 0, Dark Continent. Europe’s Twentieth Century,
Agatha Ramm: 0, Europe in the Nineteenth Century,
J.M. Roberts: 0, Europe 1880-1945,
Graham Ross: 0, The Great Powers and the Decline of the European States System,
Norman Stone: 0, Europe Transformed, 1878-1919,
Richard Vinen: 0, A History in Fragments. Europe in the Twentieth Century,

Articles:
None

Other Resources

Loop site: Lecture notes, slides, video recording, assigned readings and other resources.,