HS3TUD: The Tudors, 1485-1603

Module code: HS3TUD

Module provider: History; School of Humanities

Credits: 20

Level: 6

When you’ll be taught: Semester 2

Module convenor: Professor Rebecca Rist , email: r.a.c.rist@reading.ac.uk

Pre-requisite module(s):

Co-requisite module(s):

Pre-requisite or Co-requisite module(s):

Module(s) excluded:

Placement information: NA

Academic year: 2025/6

Available to visiting students: Yes

Talis reading list: No

Last updated: 3 April 2025

Overview

Module aims and purpose

Part 3 Options involve the study of specific periods, subjects or types of History. This option aims to give students an understanding of Tudors kings and queens through an examination of their political and religious policies in the context of late medieval and early modern society.  

The module will:

• Survey the rise and consolidation of the Tudor dynasty;
• Reflect on the political and religious policies of Tudor kings and queens;  
• Facilitate an understanding of the late medieval and early modern world.

The purpose of the module is to develop a sophisticated understanding of the relationship of religion and politics in the late medieval and early modern period, and an appreciation of the historiographical debates surrounding the Tudor dynasty. 

Module learning outcomes

By the end of the module, it is expected that students will be able to:

1. identify and explain the main issues and events studied;
2. have a detailed knowledge of the events through extensive reading in specialised literature;
3. appraise critically the primary sources and historical interpretations of the subject;
4. organize material and articulate arguments effectively in writing, both under timed conditions and in an assessed essay.
5. have developed their oral communication skills.

Module content

This module examines the rise of the Tudor dynasty, its power in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, and the lives of the Tudor monarchs: Henry VII, Henry VIII, Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I. Different political and religious aspects of their reigns will be explored: the usurpation of Henry VII, who spent most of his reign preventing rival claimants to his throne and consolidating his powerbase, the six wives of Henry VIII and the break with Rome, the imposition of Protestantism under the boy king Edward VI, the accession of Mary I, whose reign saw the restoration of Catholicism, and the lengthy and momentous reign of ‘the Virgin Queen’ Elizabeth I. Seminars will examine the end of the Wars of the Roses, the Reformation, the establishment of the Church of England, and the persecution of Catholics and Protestants. Students will be able to access a wide range of primary sources and a large historiography of secondary material. The course will also examine the concepts of monarchy and statecraft in relation to religious policies, and the construction of heresy and orthodoxy.

Structure

Teaching and learning methods

Teaching will be by a variety of methods which may include:

• Lectures;
• Seminars, which Seminars rely on structured group discussion and may also include seminar papers by students, discussion of evidence, team-based exercises, and debates;
• Online exercises, including quizzes and worksheets;
• Discussion boards; and
• Independent study.  

Study hours

At least 33 hours of scheduled teaching and learning activities will be delivered in person, with the remaining hours for scheduled and self-scheduled teaching and learning activities delivered either in person or online. You will receive further details about how these hours will be delivered before the start of the module.

Please note the independent study hours above are notional numbers of hours; each student will approach studying in different ways. We would advise you to reflect on your learning and the number of hours you are allocating to these tasks.

Semester 1 The hours in this column may include hours during the Christmas holiday period.

Semester 2 The hours in this column may include hours during the Easter holiday period.

Summer The hours in this column will take place during the summer holidays and may be at the start and/or end of the module.

Assessment

Requirements for a pass

Students need to achieve an overall module mark of 40% to pass this module.

Summative assessment

Penalties for late submission of summative assessment

The Support Centres will apply the following penalties for work submitted late:

Assessments with numerical marks

• where the piece of work is submitted after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): 10% of the total marks available for that piece of work will be deducted from the mark for each working day (or part thereof) following the deadline up to a total of three working days;
• the mark awarded due to the imposition of the penalty shall not fall below the threshold pass mark, namely 40% in the case of modules at Levels 4-6 (i.e. undergraduate modules for Parts 1-3) and 50% in the case of Level 7 modules offered as part of an Integrated Masters or taught postgraduate degree programme;
• where the piece of work is awarded a mark below the threshold pass mark prior to any penalty being imposed, and is submitted up to three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline), no penalty shall be imposed;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension to the deadline): a mark of zero will be recorded.

Assessments marked Pass/Fail

• where the piece of work is submitted within three working days of the deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): no penalty will be applied;
• where the piece of work is submitted more than three working days after the original deadline (or any formally agreed extension of the deadline): a grade of Fail will be awarded.

The University policy statement on penalties for late submission can be found at: /cqsd/-/media/project/functions/cqsd/documents/qap/penaltiesforlatesubmission.pdf

You are strongly advised to ensure that coursework is submitted by the relevant deadline. You should note that it is advisable to submit work in an unfinished state rather than to fail to submit any work.

Formative assessment

Formative assessment is any task or activity which creates feedback (or feedforward) for you about your learning, but which does not contribute towards your overall module mark.

1,000 words or 2 pages of A4 maximum to include, at the module convenor’s discretion, an essay plan, bibliography, book review or other preparatory work towards the summative essay.   

Reassessment

Additional costs