Through an analysis of primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the details, ideas and motivations behind Robespierre’s Jacobin Terror phase of the French Revolution, the basic structure and powers of the Committee of Public Safety, and how the Terror finally collapsed with Robespierre’s death and the victory of more conservative elements in the Thermidorian Reaction.

Through an analysis of primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the structure, details and purposes behind Napoleon’s Domestic Plan through a comprehensive investigation of the Napoleonic Code, his educational reforms and the establishment of the Bank of France.

Through an analysis of primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the details, ideas and motivations behind the Bourgeois phase of the French Revolution, the basic structure and points both the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen and the liberal French Constitution of 1791, and how the bourgeois phase collapsed due to a disastrous war program and the rise of radicals who were determined to “cleanse” France and to remake society from top to bottom.

Through an in-depth analysis of various primary and secondary sources including excerpts from contemporary accounts on both sides of the conflict, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the importance of the Battle of Tours (732 CE), how the Frankish army at Tours under Charles Martel was able to stand its ground against overwhelming Muslim forces, and how the battle set the stage for the eventual re-conquest of all of Western Europe by Christians in the centuries to come.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, including excerpts from the Franco American Alliance (1778), students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the basic terms of the 1778 alliance between France and the United States, how and why an absolutist French government under Louis XVI that was diametrically opposed to republican principals decided to support the American colonial cause against his arch rival Britain, and how the alliance was the deciding factor in a colonial victory over Britain and thus how the alliance undoubtedly helped cause the downfall of the Ancient Regime in France itself.

Through an examination of both primary and secondary sources on the subject, including various types of visual media in addition to electronic and written sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain French absolutism and the divine right theory as it developed under Louis XVI, how he used his power to subjugate the Roman Catholic Church in France, and how he turned the Palace at Versailles into one of the largest and grandest royal palaces in the world.

Students in this lesson will analyze and understand the basic story behind Voltaire’s satire by reading Candide (1759). In doing such analysis, students will also gain an appreciation and understanding of how Voltaire challenged the French government, the French system of taxation and social ideas behind wealth, and the Roman Catholic Church. Finally students will understand and be able to explain how a little bizarre story about a simple dim-witted character later inspired French Revolutionary leaders to topple the entire system.

Through an in-depth analysis of primary and secondary sources, specifically by reading and analyzing excerpts from two of Jean Jacques Rousseau’s major works, The Social Contract (1763) and Discourse on the Origin and Basis of Inequality among Men (1754), students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain Rousseau’s philosophical ideas and how those ideas inspired French Revolutionary leaders after 1789.

Students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain how Winston Churchill, through his speeches in 1940-1941, contributed to the formation of a collective British resolve to continue fighting during the Blitz, a critical time period when Britain was alone in fighting Germany.

By an in-depth analysis of primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will understand the basic facts behind the Blitz and how it affected the citizens of London, why Hitler decided to use the Luftwaffe against London and how a simple photograph served as a symbol around which the British people rallied during the dark early days of WWII.

Through the use of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain what happened at the Miracle of Dunkirk, why the BEF and its allies needed to be rescued, how the evacuation of Dunkirk took place (including the role of the so-called “little ships”), and how Churchill’s speech on the evacuation helped rally the British people as Hitler turned his eye towards Britain.

Through an in-depth analysis of primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the basic facts behind Dickens’ life and his major literary works, how those stories took their inspiration from the struggle between the Bourgeoisie and the Proletariat in Victorian society, and why Dickens’ works are still studied, over 100 years after his death.

Through an in-depth analysis of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain why Hadrian’s Wall was built in the 2nd century by the Roman army, what it meant to live on the “Roman frontier” and how the wall is seen today by the people of Great Britain.

Through an in-depth analysis of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain how and why the Romans conquered Britannia, how the Romans brought their culture to the island over the span of 400 years, why the Romans left Britain in the first decade of the 5th century CE, and finally what evidence Roman Britain is left in the United Kingdom today.

Through an in-depth analysis of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to compare and contrast the goals of the participants in the Pilgrimage of Grace and those who opposed the movement, and in doing so will then be able to theorize as to whether the movement had any real chance of succeeding in an age where royal authority was backed up by historical precedent, a monarch’s absolute control of the nation’s army and religious traditions designed around the idea that the king ruled by the authority of God.

Through an in-depth analysis of primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the split between London and Rome, how Henry VIII and his children each changed both the church and the government, the drama and intrigue behind characters such as Anne Boleyn and Sir Thomas More (religious opposites, and yet both executed at the Tower of London by Henry VIII) and finally the twists and turns of English history under the reigns of Mary and Elizabeth (half-sisters who ended up buried in the same grave at Westminster Abbey).

Through an in-depth analysis of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the story of Queen Mary I (Tudor), what religious changes she sought to bring to England after she came to power, why she was called “Bloody Mary” by her enemies, and how her involvement with various Catholic foreign powers on the continent had long-term effects for England after her death.

Through an in-depth analysis of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the story of Lady Jane Grey, how and why she assumed the throne of England after the death of Edward VI and why she lost her crown only nine days later.

Through an in-depth analysis of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the story of Anne Boleyn, how she and Henry VIII came to marry, how their apparently happy marriage soon turned sour, why the queen was executed and how the story of Anne Boleyn played a role in the English Reformation and the creation of an English Church separate from Rome.

Through an in-depth analysis of various primary and secondary sources, students in this lesson will identify, understand and be able to explain the story of Lord Chancellor Sir Thomas More and how his position on King Henry VIII’s break with the Catholic Church ultimately led to his arrest, trial and execution.