British & Irish History
Courses Online & In London
Study the history, culture and politics of the British isles through the centuries and up to the present day.
Courses available both in-person and online
We offer a range of courses allowing you to choose between online and in-person learning. All our courses are live, interactive, and taught by expert tutors. No matter how you prefer to learn, you’ll receive the same great City Lit experience. See our guide to online learning for more information about accessing our live online courses.
- Daemonologie: Witch trials, witch hunting and the Scottish Reformation.Course start date: Sat 11 Feb 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterNearly 4,000 individuals were accused of witchcraft in Scotland in the Early Modern period - approximately three times the total number of prosecutions that took place in England. Join us to explore the religious, cultural and political factors that informed attitudes to witches, witch-hunting and witch trials in Scotland.Full fee £59.00 Senior fee £47.00 Concession £38.00 - 17th century England, revolution and restoration: the Stuart Restoration
Course start date: Wed 22 Feb 2023Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterWe will explore society, religion and culture during the Stuart Restoration, with reference to the reigns of the ‘Merry
Monarch’ Charles II (1660 – 1685) and James II (1685 – 1688).
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £139.00 Concession £70.00 - Elizabeth I: marriage, warfare and foreign policyCourse start date: Thu 23 Feb 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterThe Virgin Queen, Gloriana and Good Queen Bess are just a few of the names given to Elizabeth I, who remains one of the most iconic monarchs in British history.Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £111.00 Concession £70.00 - Wolf Hall and beyond: Fact and fictionCourse start date: Sat 4 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Vanessa KingWhether you enjoyed reading the novels or simply want to blag your way through life without reading them, this day school is for you.Full fee £49.00 Senior fee £39.00 Concession £32.00 - England, Scotland and the Irish Plantation SystemCourse start date: Sat 4 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterAlthough the kings of England had claimed overlordship of Ireland since the late 1100s, it was during the Reformation era that that the system of ‘planting’ English and Scottish settlers began to take place. How did these settlements come about, what impact did they have on the social, political and cultural landscapes of Ireland?Full fee £59.00 Senior fee £47.00 Concession £38.00 - Britain: The rise of the Institution : the workhouse, the prison and the asylumCourse start date: Mon 6 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterJoin us for a four-week course in which we will explore the history of three key institutions – the workhouse, the asylum and the prison. Why did institutions become so systematic in the 1800s and what was life like for people who lived and worked in them?
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £89.00 Senior fee £89.00 Concession £45.00 - The life and times of Edward VIICourse start date: Sat 11 Mar 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: William SterlingEdward VII was heir for nearly 60 years and often in conflict with his parents. He had a popular wife and charmed all those he met. When he succeeded he surprised many with his successful reign.Full fee £59.00 Senior fee £47.00 Concession £38.00 - Mary, William and Anne: the later Stuart DynastyCourse start date: Wed 26 Apr 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterFollowing the deposal of their father James II & VII, Mary ruled jointly with her husband William from 1689-1694, after which she was succeeded first by William, and then her younger sister Anne from 1702-1714. Join us to explore the lives, intrigues, politics, religion and society of these later Stuart monarchs – what challenges did these monarchs face and how enduring were their legacies? To what extent did Mary and Anne see one another as rivals?
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £139.00 Concession £70.00 - Life in Elizabethan EnglandCourse start date: Thu 27 Apr 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterThe Elizabethan era is long remembered as a ‘Golden Age’ of literature, theatre, learning and exploration, but what was daily life like for the poor, the artisan classes and the middle-classes during Elizabeth’s reign?Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £111.00 Concession £70.00 - 'A plague on both thy houses': the Wars of the RosesCourse start date: Mon 8 May 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Vanessa KingAfter Larry Olivier’s / Kenneth Branagh’s victory at Agincourt, it was downhill for England until the advent of the Tudors! We explode that Shakespearian myth.
There is no class on 3/7/23 however a guided walk with be organised for 1/7/23. Further information will be provided by the tutor.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £219.00 Senior fee £175.00 Concession £110.00 - Victorian WomenCourse start date: Mon 15 May 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterMeek, willing, subservient – this is the traditional stereotype most often associated with women in the Victorian era. How did Victorian women really live, work and love and what were the social challenges that they faced?
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £139.00 Concession £70.00 - Oliver Cromwell and IrelandCourse start date: Sat 10 Jun 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterThis is a one day workshop focussing on Irish politics during the English Civil War, Oliver Cromwell’s controversial military campaigns, and Ireland during the Protectorate.Full fee £49.00 Senior fee £39.00 Concession £32.00 - 'Your neighbour has flown': The Cambridge Spy RingCourse start date: Sat 1 Jul 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterOn this weekend workshop we will explore the significance of the Cambridge Spy Ring for British Cold War history. What prompted men like Kim Philby, Guy Burgess, Donald MacLean and the Queen’s art historian Anthony Blunt to betray their country’s secrets to the USSR and what were the repercussions for Britain and the British intelligence services?Full fee £59.00 Senior fee £47.00 Concession £38.00 - 17th century England, revolution and restoration: Oliver Cromwell and the ProtectorateCourse start date: Wed 11 Jan 2023
Location on this date: Online
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterHow can we best understand the significance of Oliver Cromwell for English history? We will explore Cromwell’s rise to power, and his brief rule as the so-called ‘Good Constable’ of the Commonwealth during the 1653-1658 Protectorate.
This course will be delivered online. See the ‘What is the course about?’ section in course details for more information.Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £139.00 Concession £70.00 - Bloody Mary: the life and times of Mary TudorCourse start date: Thu 12 Jan 2023
Location on this date: Keeley Street
Tutors: Ellen CarpenterHow did Mary I of England negotiate her position as an English Catholic monarch in the Reformation era, and what is her social and political significance for English history?Full fee £139.00 Senior fee £111.00 Concession £70.00
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