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Latest Module Specifications

Current Academic Year 2025 - 2026

Module Title People and Politics: Case Studies in Modern Europe
Module Code HIS1075
Faculty History & Geography School Humanities & Social Sciences
NFQ level 8 Credit Rating 7.5
Description

This module examines the role of international criminal law as a mediator between people and politics in Modern Europe. Historians such as Zara Steiner and Ian Kershaw have described this period as one of hopes and their collapse, with book titles like ‘The Lights that Failed’ and ‘To Hell and Back’. The history of mass atrocities and international criminal law can be told in a similar way. Modern Europe was marked both by industrial warfare, war crimes, ethnic cleansing, and genocide, and by the emergence of rules and institutions aimed at reducing suffering and holding perpetrators to account. The module approaches this history through an investigation of the legal categories of crimes against humanity, war crimes, genocide, and war of aggression. It traces their intellectual origins, beginning with Eastern European lawyers in the 19th century, examines major instances of mass violence such as the Armenian genocide, the Holocaust, and the conflicts in Yugoslavia and Rwanda, and considers how these categories have shaped the relationship between peoples and politics in Modern Europe.

Learning Outcomes



WorkloadFull time hours per semester
TypeHoursDescription
Lecture11No Description
Seminars22No Description
Independent Study154No Description
Total Workload: 187
Section Breakdown
CRN12132Part of TermSemester 1
Coursework0%Examination Weight0%
Grade Scale40PASSPass Both ElementsY
Resit CategoryRC1Best MarkN
Module Co-ordinatorRoman BirkeModule Teacher
Assessment Breakdown
TypeDescription% of totalAssessment Date
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

Indicative Reading List

Books:
None

Articles:
None
Other Resources

None

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