Consuming History by 
Research Methods for History by
The first guide to the sources, techniques and concepts needed for effective historical research. While historians have become increasingly sensitive to social and cultural theory since the 1980s, the actual methods by which research is carried out in History have been largely taken forgranted. Research Methods for History encourages those researching the past to think creatively about the wide range of methods currently in use, to understand how these methods are used and what historical insights they can provide.The book covers sources and methods that are well-established in History, such as archival research, together with those that are less widely known. The themes of the different chapters have been selected to reflect recent trends in the subject. Even with more established methods, however, the aimis to present new insights and perspectives and to open researchers' minds to new methodological possibilities.
History in Practice by
Exploring the breadth and complexities of history as a field of study, History in Practice demystifies what historians actually do and the tasks they take on. This study, written by one of the most acute practitioners in the field, examines not only the academic discipline but also engages with the use of historical ideas in the wider world.The new edition features:- A new chapter on history in the digital age, covering the use of information technology in historical practice- Extended coverage of the relationships between history and other disciplines- Fresh material on current trends in the practice of history- Over 35 new illustrations spread throughout the book drawn from around the worldThis book is essential reading for all students seeking an understanding of history as a discipline.
The Pursuit of History: Aims, Methods and New Directions in the Study of History by History in Practice by 
What is History Now? by
Inspired by the influential text WHAT IS HISTORY? authored by Helen Carr's great-grandfather, E.H. Carr, and published on the 60th anniversary of that book, this is a groundbreaking new collection addressing the burning issue of how we interpret history today. What stories are told, and by whom, who should be celebrated, and what rewritten, are questions that have been asked recently not just within the history world, but by all of us. Featuring a diverse mix of writers, both bestselling names and emerging voices, this is the history book we need NOW. WHAT IS HISTORY, NOW? covers topics such as the history of racism and anti-racism, queer history, the history of faith, the history of disability, environmental history, escaping imperial nostalgia, hearing women's voices and 'rewriting' the past. The list of contributors includes: Justin Bengry, Leila K Blackbird, Emily Brand, Gus Casely-Hayford, Sarah Churchwell, Caroline Dodds Pennock, Peter Frankopan, Bettany Hughes, Dan Hicks, Onyeka Nubia, Islam Issa, Maya Jasanoff, Rana Mitter, Charlotte Riley, Miri Rubin, Simon Schama, Alex von Tunzelmann and Jaipreet Virdi
The Houses of History by The Pursuit of History by 
The Public History Reader by 
Theatres of Memory by 
The Palgrave Handbook of Contemporary Heritage Research by 
New Museology by Consuming History by 
History, A Very Short Introduction by 
History Beyond the Text by
Sources are the bedrock of history. But over the past few years the question of 'what is a historical source' has become an increasingly prominent concern. This text opens up the discussion on sources to those beyond the 'traditional' ones.
Eighteenth-Century Letters and British Culture by
This important new book explores epistolary forms and practices in relation to important areas of British culture. Familiar ideas about epistolary fiction and personal correspondence, and public and private, are re-examined in the light of alternative paradigms, showing how the letter is a genre at the centre of Eighteenth-century life.
Going to the Sources by
The updated fifth edition of Going to the Sources presents a practical guide to historical research and writing for all students of history. Focuses on the basics of historians? craft, introducing students to concepts including refining a topic, selecting sources, and engaging critically with their reading Appendices illustrate style for footnotes, endnotes, and bibliographical entries, as well as a list of commonly used abbreviations Features a new chapter on the use of non-textual sources for historians, including a case study discussion of the historical importance of D. W. Griffith's film The Birth of a Nation Addresses how to bring the critical assessment skills of reading to bear on film and other non-textual sources Includes a student-written historiographical essay, with marginal notes for instruction
Reading Primary Sources by
How does the historian approach primary sources? How do interpretations differ? How can they be used to write history? Reading Primary Sourcesgoes a long way to providing answers for these questions. In the first part of this unique volume, the chapters give an overview of both traditional and new methodological approaches to the use of sources, analyzing the way that these have changed over time. The second part gives an overview of twelve different types of written sources, including letters, opinion polls, surveillance reports, diaries, novels, newspapers, and dreams, taking into account the huge expansion in the range of written primary sources used by historians over the last thirty years. This book is an up-to-date introduction into the historical context of these different genres, the ways they should be read, the possible insights and results these sources offer and the pitfalls of their interpretation. All of the chapters push the reader beyond a conventional understanding of source texts as mere "reflections" of a given reality, instead fostering an understanding of how each of the various genres has to be seen as a medium in its own right. Taking examples of sources from around the globe, and also including a student-friendly further reading section, this is the perfect companion for every student of history who wants to engage with sources.
History and Material Culture by
Harvey opens up the discussion on sources to those beyond the 'traditional' textual ones, and into the material realm. Through 12 chapters different historians look at a variety of material sources from around the world and across centuries to assess how such sources can be used to study history.
History in Practice by 
The Look of the Past by
How can we use visual and material culture to shed light on the past? Ludmilla Jordanova offers a fascinating and thoughtful introduction to the role of images, objects and buildings in the study of past times. Through a combination of thematic chapters and essays on specific artefacts - a building, a piece of sculpture, a photographic exhibition and a painted portrait - she shows how to analyse the agency and visual intelligence of artists, makers and craftsmen and make sense of changes in visual experience over time. Generously illustrated and drawing on numerous examples of images and objects from 1600 to the present, this is an essential guide to the skills that students need in order to describe, analyse and contextualise visual evidence. The Look of the Past will encourage readers to think afresh about how they, like people in the past, see and interpret the world around them
History Goes to the Movies by
Can films be used as historical evidence? Do historical films make good or bad history? Are documentaries more useful to historians than historical drama? Written from an international perspective, this book offers a lucid introduction to the ways films are made and used, cumulating with the exploration of the fundamental question, what is history and what is it for? Incorporating film analysis, advertisements, merchandise and internet forums; and ranging from late-nineteenth century short films to twenty-first century DVD special editions, this survey evaluates the varied ways in which filmmakers, promoters, viewers and scholars understand film as history. From Saving Private Ryan to Picnic at Hanging Rock to Pocahontas, History Goes to the Movies considers that history is not simply to be found in films, but in the perceptions and arguments of those who make and view them. This helpful introductory text blends historical and methodological issues with real examples to create a systematic guide to issues involved in using historical film in the study of history. History Goes to the Movies is a much-needed overview of an increasingly popular subject."
Historical Research by
This is the first practical guide to cover the various stages of a history research project, from the selection of the topic and the organization and interpretation of source material, through to the completion of the written-up record. Whether it is for a dissertation, thesis article or, indeed, full-length book, Historical Research deals with the purpose of research, and the implications, limitations and benefits of different research methods, as well as the effective presentation of the finished result.
Studying History by 
What Is Cultural History? by
What is Cultural History? has established itself as an essential guide to what cultural historians do and how they do it. Now fully updated in its second edition, leading historian Peter Burke offers afresh his accessible guide to the past, present and future of cultural history, as it has been practised not only in the English-speaking world, but also in Continental Europe, Asia, South America and elsewhere. Burke begins by providing a discussion of the 'classic' phase of cultural history, associated with Jacob Burckhardt and Johan Huizinga, and of the Marxist reaction, from Frederick Antal to Edward Thompson. He then charts the rise of cultural history in more recent times, concentrating on the work of the last generation, often described as the 'New Cultural History'. He places cultural history in its own cultural context, noting links between new approaches to historical thought and writing and the rise of feminism, postcolonial studies and an everyday discourse in which the idea of culture plays an increasingly important part. The new edition also surveys the very latest developments in the field and considers the directions cultural history may be taking in the twenty-first century. The second edition of What is Cultural History? will continue to be an essential textbook for all students of history as well as those taking courses in cultural, anthropological and literary studies.
What Is History Now? by 
The Landscape of History by
What is history and why should we study it? Is there such a thing as historical truth? Is history a science? One of the most accomplished historians at work today, John Lewis Gaddis, answers these and other questions in this short, witty, and humane book. The Landscape of History provides a searching look at the historian's craft, as well as a strong argument for why a historical consciousness should matter to us today. Gaddis points out that while the historical method is more sophisticated than most historians realize, it doesn't require unintelligible prose to explain. Like cartographers mapping landscapes, historians represent what they can never replicate. In doing so, they combine the techniques of artists, geologists, paleontologists, and evolutionary biologists. Their approaches parallel, in intriguing ways, the new sciences of chaos, complexity, and criticality. They don't much resemble what happens in the social sciences, where the pursuit of independent variables functioning with static systems seems increasingly divorced from the world as we know it. So who's really being scientific and who isn't? This question too is one Gaddis explores, in ways that are certain to spark interdisciplinary controversy. Written in the tradition of Marc Bloch and E.H. Carr, The Landscape of History is at once an engaging introduction to the historical method for beginners, a powerful reaffirmation of it for practitioners, a startling challenge to social scientists, and an effective skewering of post-modernist claims that we can't know anything at all about the past. It will be essential reading for anyone who reads, writes, teaches, or cares about history.
Historians on History by
A follow-up to the bestselling The Pursuit of History,this Reader brings together the reflections of a number of major historians on the nature and purpose of their craft. They illuminate the different governing assumptions - political, social, personal - that have sustained these leading practitioners in their studies, and show how different influences and methodologies have impacted on them. In so doing, the book not only gives an insight into the great variety of aspirations and convictions that animate History as a discipline, but also brings into focus the key historiographic trends of the English-speaking world since World War II. Key themes which are highlighted include: The nation Marxism People's history Structural history Gender Race Quantitative history Ranging widely from the earlier traditions and schools to the wake of postmodernism, authors represented include Braudel, Carr, Elton, Himmelfarb, Hobsbawm, Scott and Zeldin. This Reader provides the core reading for all History and Theory courses.
The Pursuit of History by
This classic introduction to the study of history invites the reader to stand back and consider some of its most fundamental questions - what is the point of studying history? How do we know about the past? Does an objective historical truth exist and can we ever access it? In answering these central questions, John Tosh argues that, despite the impression of fragmentation created by postmodernism in recent years, history is a coherent discipline which still bears the imprint of its nineteenth-century origins. Consistently clear-sighted, he provides a lively and compelling guide to a complex and sometimes controversial subject, while making his readers vividly aware of just how far our historical knowledge is conditioned by the character of the sources and the methods of the historians who work on them. The sixth edition has been revised and updated with key new material including: - a brand new chapter on public history - sections on digitised sources and historical controversy - discussion of topics including transnational history and the nature of the archive - an expanded range of examples and case studies - a comprehensive companion website providing valuable supporting material, study questions and a bank of primary sources. Lucid and engaging, this edition retains all the user-friendly features that have helped to make this book a favourite with both students and lecturers, including marginal glosses, illustrations and suggestions for further reading. Along with its companion website, this is an essential guide to the theory and practice of history.
The Public History Reader by 
Sutton Hoo by
Charles Green tells here the dramatic story of the initial excavation of Sutton Hoo, one of the richest archaeological finds of all time. In the Sutton Hoo burial grounds scientists unearthed a ship containing the treasures of a king who was most likely the last of the pagan rulers of East Anglia. Green guides us through the scientific significance of the Sutton Hoo discovery: the beautiful jewelry indicates the high level of Anglo-Saxon artistic culture, the royal insignia offers clues to the organization of the East Anglican kingdom and its relations with neighboring regimes, while the burial ships themselves inspire new hypotheses regarding Anglo-Saxon immigration routes. Any reader will be irresistibly drawn to learn more of this archaeological dig which has uncovered such intriguing relics of our medieval ancestors. This edition takes into account discoveries that have been made since the publication of the original edition. Barbara Green, an archaeologist in East Anglia and Charles Green's daughter, has revised and updated the original text of her father's book.
Sutton Hoo: Burial Ground of Kings by 
The Sutton Hoo Helmet by
This short book in the 'British Museum Objects in Focus' series looks at one of the most striking and emblematic finds from Anglo-Saxon England. It presents the story of the excavations at Sutton Hoo and the discovery, in 1939, of the ship burial and the helmet. The process of restoring the helmet is described and it is put in context with other similar finds.
Sutton Hoo and Its Landscape by
The location of the Anglo-Saxon burial ground at Sutton Hoo, on a ridge overlooking the estuary of the river Deben, has always appeared strange and challenging. This is not so much because the site is today an isolated and lonely one, but rather because it lies on the very periphery of the early medieval kingdom of East Anglia, whose rulers - the Wuffingas - were buried there. In this extended meditation on the geography of a very special and evocative place, Tom Williamson explores the meaning of the cemetery's location. To understand the location of ancient monuments we need to examine not only the character of past landscapes, but also the ways that contemporaries may have experienced and felt about them: we need to reconstruct aspects of their mental world. Williamson argues that the cemetery was placed where it was not in order to display power and dominance over territory, but because the river, and its brooding estuary, had long held a special and central place in the lives and perceptions of a local society. As King Raedwald and his family rose to dominance over this river-people, they chose to be buried at the heart of their territory. Such approaches may help us to understand why the cemetery was established where it was within the territory of the Wuffingas : but they cannot explain why that group came to dominate the whole of East Anglia. For this, Williamson argues, we need to examine wider geographical contexts - patterns of movement, contact, and social allegiance which were engendered and shaped by landforms and topography at a regional and national level. It is only by joining aspects of the new 'phenomenological' approaches to the archaeology of landscape, to more traditional geographical interpretations, that we can appreciate the full significance of this important site. Combining a keen understanding of local and regional geography, Anglo-Saxon history, and current debates about approaches to past landscapes, this book is a masterly exploration of the context and meaning of an iconic set of monuments.
Rhino in the High Street: Ipswich Museum - the Early Years by 
