UMass Boston

Course Overview

Description

A survey of European history from antiquity to 1600, laying particular stress on politics, culture and religion. Major topics include Greco-Roman culture; the early development of Christianity and its impact on the ancient world; the evolution of new political and religious forms in the Middle Ages; the impact of the Renaissance and of European colonization in Africa, Asia, and the Americas; and the Protestant Reformation and Catholic responses to it. Europeans prior to 1600 established values and belief systems that they subsequently sought to impose through conquest, imperialism, missionary efforts, and trade. Thus, the ideas of this period have had an outsized impact on the United States and the world in the 21st century. The course includes critical examination of important primary sources.