The University of Texas at Tyler

The University of Texas at TylerSummer Semester II, 2009HIST 5356 Seventeenth Century EuropeProfessor Edward Tabri903/566-7322 or etabri@uttyler.eduOffice Hours: M-H, 3:30-4:30

Course Overview and Student Learning Outcomes:This course is an examination of the contemporary secondary literature on European history during the seventeenth century. Our focus this semester will be on statesmen and statecraft but we will also consider related topics such as the Thirty Years War, the Great Rebellion in England and the golden age of the Dutch Republic. Students should come away from the course with a refined understanding of these topics, their importance and the controversies evident in current scholarship about them. A general background knowledge of the period is assumed. For review of the chronology and main issues, you may wish to consult a good undergraduate textbook, such as that by D.H. Pennington In addition to introducing some of the current scholarly work on this topic, the course is also intended to sharpen your reading, analytical and writing skills.

Course Requirements and Grading Policy:Your grade will be based on your written reviews of each of the books we are reading, along with oral presentations of selected articles. Papers should analyze the authors thesis, sources and evidence, methodology and perspective. They should be roughly 4-6 pages in length. Late papers will not be accepted. Attendance and participation are mandatory.

Four written book reviews = 80% of course gradeFour oral presentations of articles = 20% of course grade

The articles are from JSTOR and the lists of choices will be distributed separately. Each student will choose one article from each of four lists relating to supplemental topics.Final Withdrawal Date: Friday, July 31

Required Books:Lockyer, James VI and IKnecht, RichelieuGoubert, Louis XIV and Twenty Million FrenchmenCracraft, The Revolution of Peter the Great

Calendar of Meetings and Assignments:Monday, July 13: IntroductionThursday, July 16: Discussion of H. R. Trevor-Roper, The General Crisis of theSeventeenth Century, Past and Present 16 (1959), 31-64. Monday, July 20: Discussion of Lockyer: Book Review Due

Thursday, July 23: Presentations of articles on the English Civil War/Cromwell

Monday, July 27: Discussion of Knecht; Book Review Due

Thursday, July 30: Presentations of articles on the Thirty Years War

Monday, August 3: Discussion of Goubert: Book Review Due

Thursday, August 6: Presentations of articles on the Dutch Republic

Monday, August 10: Discussion of Cracraft; Book Review Due

Thursday, August 13: Presentations of articles on Peter the Great