"Cromwell at the Battle of Naseby in 1645" by Charles Landseer (From the collection of the Alte Nationalgalerie, Berlin, used under CC BY-NC-SA license)

History and Joint Schools

History at Merton is a vibrant subject with an outstanding tradition. The large size of each year group within a small and friendly college makes it easy for students to find colleagues with whom to debate their work. The college tutors of the history degree teach many of the general options in British, European and World history available in the history syllabus, but for more specialised courses in BA History, and for their final-year thesis, students have tutorials with experts in other colleges.

Key Information

Subject Intake: Eight single honours, six in joint schools

Course Duration: Three Years (BA); Four Years (BA) (English and Modern Languages)

Course Listings and Admissions Criteria

Course:

History at Oxford

Course:

History (Ancient and Modern)

Course:

History and English

Course:

History and Modern Languages

Course:

History and Politics

Course (NB this course is not taught by the History Faculty):

Classical Archaeology and Ancient History


Teaching Team

Benefits of Studying History at Merton

Merton College library has a strong collection of the books and journals used by undergraduate historians. It also holds outstanding medieval archives and early printed books.

We place no restriction on the choice of papers by students except that we teach the 'Approaches to History' rather than the 'Historiography: Tacitus to Weber' option in the first year, as we think it more stimulating.

For six decades, an Easter reading party has been held in the UK for our Tutors to help prepare undergraduates for their Finals. Discussions cover social, political and cultural history and a number of activities and visits are incorporated into the stay. Recent destinations have included Herefordshire and Cornwall.

Our students can participate in archive sessions in the College Library and Archives, an opportunity for them to examine at first hand items from the extensive collections of manuscripts that underline their studies.

Merton’s student-run History Society holds a variety of events, social activities and talks throughout the year, which are always popular.

A prize in memory of Conrad Russell is awarded each year to the undergraduate writing the best thesis in Finals.

Among the leading historians who have studied and taught at Merton College are Richard Cobb, Sir Rees Davies, Anthony Fletcher, Robert Gildea, Sir Martin Gilbert, Rodney Hilton, Dame Olwen Hufton, Sir Ian Kershaw, Robert Paxton, John Roberts, Lyndal Roper, Conrad Russell, and Hugh Trevor-Roper .

Former undergraduates who have studied history and the joint schools, and who have begun successful academic careers in history and related fields more recently include Ingrid Rembold, Eliza Hartrich, Adrian Bingham, Elizabeth Chatterjee, Matthew Johnson, Robin Whelan, Nussaibah Younis and Leah Astbury.

Joint Degree Courses

History (Ancient and Modern)

History and English

History and Politics

History and Modern Languages

Classical Archaeology and Ancient History

(NB This degree is not taught by the History Faculty)

Merton has a large Modern History teaching team, alongside dedicated in-house Ancient History teaching, and a strong Classics School. This makes it an excellent place to study this degree, supporting students to develop the comparative insights intrinsic to the course. The breadth of this programme enables students to develop and follow their own interests, since it allows the study of the entire continuum of human history. In this joint degree, students can explore how things have changed over time, and/or how aspects of modern society may in fact have their origins in ancient civilisation. The study of languages within this course is optional. If chosen, it will likely include at least some archaeological and material culture elements, but the core focus remains on textual analysis and the study of literature.

Merton has consistently admitted students to this joint degree since the course first began. We have three Tutors in each of History and English, allowing students to study different periods both through their literature and history. Graduates from this course have pursued a vast range of careers, including those in Art History and International Relations, as well as English and History.

With three history tutors and two politics tutors, Merton takes comparatively large numbers of students for the History and Politics degree. Students find different ways to combine courses from the two sides of history and politics degree, to focus, for example, on political ideas, international relations, or the political history of different areas of the world.

With Tutors in French and Spanish and college lecturers in other languages, we admit students to study History and French, German, Italian, Portuguese, Russian and Spanish. They find ample opportunity to pursue interests in the culture they are studying in the wide range of courses available from the History syllabus.

The integrated nature of this ancient history and archaeology degree makes it really special, whilst still allowing students to pursue their individual interests. Students may find themselves in tutorials with both an Archaeology and Ancient History tutor in the same room, encouraging the interdisciplinary nature of this course. At the heart of this joint degree is the study of the cultures of Ancient Greece and Rome, developing a thorough understanding of the classical world. Differentiating this degree from single honours Classics, our Classical Archaeology and Ancient History degree doesn’t have a compulsory language element in it, but this is still an option for those who do wish to include linguistic modules.


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Student Profiles

Student Life at Merton

Image of Upper Library Window

The Historic Library

Largest ever History Reading Party

Largest Ever History Reading Party

Image of Merton Students and Staff at the History Reading Party - April 2025

History Reading Party 2025

Careers

Merton historians go on to a wide range of careers, many outside history, where their skills in analysis and argument equip them for corporate, professional and public life. They include: