FSEM 188   Living and Dying in Early Modern Britain

Faculty Profile for Professor T. Tomlinson

Big personalities and names dominate popular consciousness of early modern Great Britain: Henry VIII; Mary, Queen of Scots; Elizabeth; Oliver Cromwell. We can acknowledge the importance of such figures, however, without crowding out other, less prominent stories that are crucial for understanding this tumultuous period in British History. Britain underwent major political and religious changes between the late fifteenth and early eighteenth centuries, from the English and Scottish Reformations to the formation of the British state in 1707 from what had been the independent kingdoms of England and Scotland. Yet, these were far more than just high political developments. They had significant, and often hugely disruptive and traumatic effects on people’s lives and communities, and on how people saw themselves in the world. Nonetheless, life went on, in ways that can seem both alien and surprisingly familiar—and students use the myriad historical sources for this period, including diaries, newspapers, government records, and visual art, to do the imaginative and analytic work to understand how regular people experienced everyday life and major historical developments. In doing so, students also gain insight into the deep historical roots of modern social and political issues such as Brexit and the status of Northern Ireland. Students who successfully complete this seminar will earn credit for HIST 241 and satisfy one half of the social relations, institutions, and agents area of inquiry requirement.

Tristan Tomlinson is senior lecturer in University Studies and History. He specializes in the histories of early modern Britain and its empire, and is particularly interested in issues of health, population, and interconnections throughout the British Atlantic World.