History and Politics BA

The History and Politics course aims to bring together complementary but separate disciplines to form a coherent and stimulating programme. The degree not only enables students to set contemporary political problems in their historical perspective, but also equips them to approach the study of the past with the conceptual rigour derived from political science. The special feature of the Oxford course is the chance to choose subjects very broadly across the two disciplines, so that it is possible to combine medieval historical options with the analysis of contemporary political systems. The expertise of a number of Oxford s political theorists and historians in the history of political thought, the thematic approach taken to the teaching of general history in the first year, and the emphasis placed on interdisciplinarity in a number of both politics and history papers strengthen the intellectual rigour of this course.