European History: From Prehistory to 1815, Part I
This course will give you an overview of European history from prehistory to 1815.
Professor Zbysek Brezina, PhD
Average rating:
5.0
Number of reviews:(133)
What's included
15 live meetings
12 hrs 30 mins in-class hoursClass Experience
US Grade 8 - 11
An examination of Europe from prehistory to 1815. This course will emphasize continent-wide developments and ideas, including the origins of European civilization in the ancient Near East, the civilizations of the Bronze Age, the Iron Age civilizations, the rise of Greek civilization including the development of Greek identity, the Hellenistic world, the rise and fall of Rome, the rise of Islam, and the Byzantine Empire. The course will also explore the the kingdoms of Western and Eastern Europe and the Church during the various periods of the Middle Ages, the Renaissance and its new cultural of expression, Europe's Age of Expansion including the motives and means, the Protestant Reformation across Europe, the European state building, the Scientific Revolution and Enlightenment, and finally, the French Revolution and Napoleonic Europe. Furthermore, we will also pay attention to the ethics (i.e., values and morals) of European history that have shaped both individual and socially-held beliefs and the formal and informal systems of belief from multiple viewpoints, including historical viewpoints by marginalized groups of people such as the Sami people in Sweden. Lesson 1: The Origins if Western Civilization in the Ancient Near East Lesson 2: The Rise of Greek Civilization and the Hellenistic World Lesson 3: The Rise of Rome, the Roman Empire, and the Fall of Western Roman Empire Lesson 4: The Eastern Mediterranean and the Kingdoms of Western Europe Lesson 5: The High Middle Ages Lesson 6: The Renaissance in Italy Lesson 7: the Renaissance in Northern Europe Lesson 8: Europe's Age of Exploration Lesson 9: Reforms in the Church Lesson 10: Thirty Years' War Lesson 11: State Building and the European State System after the Thirty Years' War Lesson 12: The Scientific Revolution Lesson 13: The Enlightenment Lesson 14: The French Revolution Lesson 15: Napoleonic Europe Questions for consideration: How did methods of acquiring food change during the course of the Stone Age? What factors encouraged the development of trading economies during the Bronze Age? How did geography influence the way peoples saw their place in the world? What was the role of iron in the Iron Age? How did Greek political organization evolve during the Dark Ages? How did the Athenian democracy function? What methods did Alexander the Great use to make his empire secure? What happened to Alexander's empire after his death? What values were important to the Romans? What caused the fall of the Roman Republic? How did the Roman Empire change after Christianity was legalized? Why did the western part of the Roman Empire fall but the eastern survive? In what ways did the Byzantine Empire decline? What cause the fragmentation of power in the west? How did the church provided continuity between the old Roman world and the new Frankish one? What factors helped revive the title of emperor in the west? What were the causes and outcomes of the Crusades? What did cathedrals do and symbolize? What were the economic consequences of the plague? How did the papacy and secular rulers contest each other for authority? How did the invention of movable type and the printing press bring about a revolution? How did many of the cultural benefits of the Italian Renaissance reach France? What were the unexpected outcomes of expansion? How did Europe's economic expansion create a global economy? What was the impact of Luther's reform? What did Catholic reformers want to change in the church? What explains the success of the Dutch economy? How did religious conflict affect the states of Europe? What were the characteristic features of French royal absolutism? What factors accounted for Prussia's rise in power? What factors explain the rise of the New Science What were the major items on the Enlightenment's agenda for reform? What explains Britain's leading role in the global trade? What factors favored industrialization in Great Britain? What were the causes of the French Revolution? How did the Revolution make possible the rise of Napoleon? What was the impact of revolutionary France and Napoleonic rule on Europe?
Learning Goals
This class has two specific goals. One is to provide you with basic factual knowledge of the history of Europe and its people. Just as important, however, is the ability to use this information productively. Thus, this class will also stress the ability to integrate the factual data into a basic understanding of Europe’s past and present. Rote memorization is not as important as the ability to produce and evaluate arguments based on historical evidence.
Other Details
Parental Guidance
The study of European history deals with some sensitive topics in history such as civil wars, wars, and slavery. I take great care to present the content in an age-appropriate manner.
External Resources
Learners will not need to use any apps or websites beyond the standard Outschool tools.
Sources
There are many sources that are used for teaching European history in this course. Dr. Brezina studied various primary and secondary sources (articles, books, dissertations, etc.) during his years as a teacher and professor of history that will allow him to interpret European history objectively and address the full range of a variety of peoples' histories, including marginalized populations. For example, Dr. Brezina will draw from these books,
Europe: A History by Norman Davies, The Birth of Classical Europe by Simon Price and Peter Thonemann, The Inherence of Rome by Chris Wickham, Europe in the High Middle Ages by William Chester Jordan, Renaissance Europe by Anthony Grafton, How Indigenous Americans Discovered Europe by Caroline D. Pennock, Blacks in Russia History by Allison Blakely, all of which are commonly used as objective and multi-cultural history textbooks in U.S. higher education. Furthermore, Dr. Brezina will use various primary sources such as the Digital Library of Classic Texts, Eurodocs Documents for Western Europe, French Revolution Digital Archive and Gallica - the Bibliotheque Nationale de France. (However, Dr. Brezina does not require students to purchase or use these books.)
Joined March, 2020
5.0
133reviews
Teacher expertise and credentials
Non-US Teaching Certificate in Social Studies/History
Doctoral Degree in History from Boston University
Dr. Brezina has taught European history at various university prep schools in Europe and the United States and as well as at several American colleges and universities.Reviews
Live Group Class
$375
for 15 classes1x per week, 15 weeks
50 min
Completed by 1 learner
Live video meetings
Ages: 12-17
2-10 learners per class
