Empires, Nations, and the Making of Modern Citizenship (012IR)

30 credits, Level 6

Autumn teaching

The emergence of nation-states is often associated with the processes that bring into being the modern world. They are also seen as displacing a system of empires associated with earlier historical periods. However, such an understanding fails to account for European colonial expansion overseas which occurs at the same time as the emergence of nation-states.

This module questions the distinction between nation-states and empires and explores the differences between types of empire.

It draws on historical examples including the Chinese, Ottoman, and Mughal empires as a contrast with European overseas empire.

Contact hours and workload

This module is approximately 300 hours of work. This breaks down into about 30 hours of contact time and about 270 hours of independent study. The University may make minor variations to the contact hours for operational reasons, including timetabling requirements.

We regularly review our modules to incorporate student feedback, staff expertise, as well as the latest research and teaching methodology. We’re planning to run these modules in the academic year 2025/26. However, there may be changes to these modules in response to feedback, staff availability, student demand or updates to our curriculum.

We’ll make sure to let you know of any material changes to modules at the earliest opportunity.

Courses

This module is offered on the following courses:

• Geography and International Relations BA
• History and International Relations BA
• International Relations BA
• International Relations and Anthropology BA
• International Relations and Development BA
• International Relations and Sociology BA
• International Relations with a Language BA
• Law with International Relations LLB
• Politics and International Relations BA