Londinium to the Blitz: London through its Museums

London is one of Europe's greatest cities, with a fascinating history stretching back over two thousand years. Originally built by the Romans, it has endured a long history of war and civil war, fire, famine and plague. It has survived aerial bombardment and terrorism, yet remains a fascinating mosaic of distinct villages, which has given shelter to successive generations of those fleeing persecution and poverty in other lands. It is home to the British monarchy and British parliament, and is the cockpit of British life and culture. This class aims to offer an introduction to a new history of London and to the specialism of "public history", based in part on recent archaeological research and visits to London museums. The class thus aims to provide students with the knowledge and skills to evaluate how and how well the history of London is presented to audiences of non-historians.