2024-2025 / HIST0039-1

Modern history

Duration

45h Th

Number of credits

 Bachelor in ancient and modern languages and literatures5 crédits 
 Bachelor in ancient languages and literatures : classics5 crédits 
 Bachelor in modern languages and literatures : German, Dutch and English5 crédits 
 Bachelor in history of art and archaeology : general5 crédits 
 Bachelor in history5 crédits 
 Bachelor in modern languages and literatures : general5 crédits 
 Bachelor in history of art and archaeology : musicology5 crédits 
 Bachelor in ancient languages and literatures : Oriental studies (Registrations are closed)5 crédits 
 Bachelor in philosophy5 crédits 
 Bachelor in French and Romance languages and literatures : general5 crédits 

Lecturer

Annick Delfosse

Language(s) of instruction

French language

Organisation and examination

Teaching in the first semester, review in January

Schedule

Schedule online

Units courses prerequisite and corequisite

Prerequisite or corequisite units are presented within each program

Learning unit contents

This course presents a synthesis of Early Modern History (15th-18th Century), mainly in Europe, taking into account its political, cultural, social, religious and economic dimensions. It will give the opportunity to understand the main stakes of the modernity from the Italian Renaissance to the European Enlightenment.


The goal of the first year of Bachelor in History is to gain useful basic knowledge for your future training. Therefore, this course is foremost a structuring course, intended to fix and to capitalize the knowledge. Its other goal is to introduce you to the understanding of historical phenomena (explanation, links, classification...). For these two reasons, the course is also open to the other students of the Faculty: everybody will find here the opportunity to organize and complete his/her knowledge about the early modern period and to improve his/her approach of history.

Learning outcomes of the learning unit

With this course, you will gain knowledge with :

  • characteristic doctrines and concepts of the Early Modern period (Humanism, Renaissance, Enlightenment, tyrannicide, despotism, mercantilism...)
  • definite chronology and geography of the Early Modern period
  • European - and sometimes worldwide - approach of the Early Modern period.
At the end, you will get a general mastery of the Early Modern History, necessary precondition to continue your history training. You will be able to define precisely the main intellectual, cultural, religious, social, economical and political movements of this period. You will be able to place on a European map the main states and cities of this period. You will be able to explain the causes and consequences of the main events of this period. You will be able to link these events between each other and to underline the main stakes of Modernity.

Prerequisite knowledge and skills

No prerequisites are required. However, a good command of the French language is essential. It is therefore strongly advised that students who are unsure of their language skills contact the teaching assistant of the programme  who will help them to overcome any weaknesses. E-mail and telephone number below.

Planned learning activities and teaching methods

This course is a lecture-based course, aimed at a large audience and requiring relatively little active involvement from students. My goal is to provide you with access to a treasure trove of factual and conceptual knowledge that you have not yet mastered. You still have much to learn before moving on to practical applications. Nevertheless, several learning activities that involve students more actively are planned:

  • Online and in-class quizzes for practice.
  • Homework assignment leading to the creation of a timeline, followed by a correction session in class.
  • Two activities for analyzing historical sources.
These activities are optional; however, it has been shown that they have a significant impact on success. A complementary online course (eCampus, see link below in the "Online Notes" section) is associated with the lecture. This online course is an essential component of my teaching. It is crucial to refer to it regularly. Any questions or comments during the course, as well as on the online course forum, are welcome. Furthermore, I encourage you to remain active in your learning outside of class. For example, you can listen to podcasts of lectures given by prominent contemporary historians included in the online course or read various historical works suggested throughout the year.

Mode of delivery (face to face, distance learning, hybrid learning)

Face-to-face course


Additional information:

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Course materials and recommended or required readings

Useful reading

You can help yourself to a better understanding of the subject thanks to Jérôme Hélie, Petit Atlas historique des Temps modernes, Armand Colin (latest edition available). Despite its title, this book is not strictly speaking a historical atlas but a manual, enriched with maps and tables. It offers a clear and precise synthesis of modern history. Its structure, its accessible vocabulary and its many visual elements should enable you to organise your notes and check your understanding of the course.

For all those who wish to acquire a classic historical atlas, I recommend (without imposing it) the Atlas d'Histoire of Hayt, Brussels, De Boeck, latest edition available. 


These textbooks and atlases are available in bookshops in the city centre. You can also borrow them from the Historical Sciences Library. 

 

Exam(s) in session

Any session

- In-person

written exam ( multiple-choice questionnaire, open-ended questions )

Continuous assessment


Further information:

Continuous Assessment

Online MCQ are offered throughout the year, with no access conditions. You can practice whenever you want, independently. Furthermore, during the semester, I will organize two assessments consisting of MQC :

  • The first one - formative - will focus on Chapter I: the grade obtained will not be included in the final grade.
  • The second one - certifying - will cover Chapters I and II: the grade obtained will count for 5% of the final grade (January). This assessment is also not exempting. In case of failure in the January session, these points will not be included in the June and September grades.
Mock Exam

A mock exam will be organized at the end of the semester, under the same conditions as the certifying exam: no notes or textbooks, individually, in silence, etc. This mock exam will help you familiarize yourself with the exam format (use of forms, presence of supervisors, etc.) and the type of questions asked.Attendance at the mock exam is strongly encouraged.

January Session

Written* exam covering the course material. Knowledge (chronology, geography, events...) and understanding (causes, consequences, stakes...) will be assessed equally.The exam will be divided into two parts: the first part will test your knowledge through a series of quizzes, while the second will consist of an open question. The quiz will be graded according to the "for guessing" scale. This scale awards one point for each correct answer but also deducts a portion of a point for incorrect answers, encouraging you to be cautious and not to guess when you do not know the answer.This exam is exempting. First-year students who fail have the right to retake it in the May-June session. All others must wait for the August-September session.

May-June Session

Written* exam covering the same material as in January and organized under the same conditions (quizzes + open question).This session is only accessible to first-year Bachelor students (Block 1).

August-September Session

Written* exam covering the same material as in January and organized under the same conditions (quizzes + open question) for all students who failed in January or in May/June.

* For non-French-speaking Erasmus students, the written exam could be, at their request and by mutual agreement, converted into an oral exam.

Work placement(s)

Organisational remarks and main changes to the course

Courses

The course is only organised in the first quarter. It will be held every Thursday from 9 to 12 a.m. in the Salle Grand Physique (Aile des Jésuites, niv. +1).


ATTENTION: the first course will take place on Thursday 19 September 2024

 

Mail

I would like all questions about the course to be asked via the online course forum. I will answer them not on a daily basis, but at least once a week. For any other question, I would like students to write to me via their "ULiège" address and not another one. I also expect students to comply with the basic rules of politeness. Any mail that does not meet these criteria will be left without further action.

 

General remark

This course is given and assessed in the very short space (1 quadrimester). However, the subject matter is massive. In addition, for most of you, the exam will be one of your first university exams. It will therefore be necessary to start studying early! Don't wait until the Christmas holidays to get started: fixing such a large amount of new knowledge takes time! The sooner you start, the more likely you are to master this material in the long term.


 

Contacts

Tenured lecturer :

Annick Delfosse,

Département des Sciences historiques

Quai Roosevelt, 1b - Bât. A4, 1/06.

Tél : 04/3665455

adelfosse@uliege.be


Teaching assistant

Cécile Gorré

cgorre@uliege.be




Secretary :

Corinne Bolsée,

Département des Sciences historiques,

secrétariat

Quai Roosevelt, 1b - Bât. A4, niveau 0

Tél : +32 4 366 5875

Association of one or more MOOCs

Items online

eCampus (online course)
This online course is an important complement to my lecture course. You will find all the slideshows shown in the course, the weekly recordings of the lectures (podcasts) and a detailed table of contents. A toolbox will give you access to a glossary, a collection of maps and timelines. You will also be able to practice your knowledge with practice tests. A forum will allow you to discuss the material with each other and with me. Any question or remark on the forum is welcome.  Finally, to go further, you will find a series of podcasts or videos of lectures or interviews given by contemporary historians as well as some articles that might interest you.