SYLLABUS
HSTEU 451
EAST CENTRAL EUROPE TO 1918
Professor Felak
Smith Hall, Room 112-B
e-mail: felak@uw.edu
Office Hours: Tuesdays 1:00 to 2:00 or by appointment (arrange via e-mail)
COURSE DESCRIPTION:
The history of the peoples of East Central Europe (Poles, Czechs, Hungarians, with some attention to the Slovaks and Carpatho-Rusyns) from the Late Middle Ages until the First World War. Through lectures and readings, we will follow these peoples through the centuries as they experience the upheavals that shook the eastern half of Europe from the collapse of the Middle Ages, the construction of the Habsburg, Ottoman, Russian, and German Empires, the emergence of modern nationalism, and the fundamental reorganization of the region due to World War One. No background is necessary, though some familiarity with European history is helpful.
COURSE TOPICS:
I-East Central Europe under the Medieval Piast, Arpad, and Premysl Dynasties
II-East Central Europe under the New Dynasties of the Fourteenth Century
III-Bohemia and Hungary before the Habsburgs
IV-Bohemia and Hungary under the Habsburgs, 1526 to 1740
V-The Rise and Decline of the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth
VI-The Partitions of Poland
VII-The Reformist Rule of Maria Theresa and Joseph II, 1740 to 1790
VIII--The Age of Metternich
IX-The Revolutions of 1848 and Their Aftermath
X-The Austro-Hungarian Empire, 1867 to 1914
XI--The Lands of Partitioned Poland to 1914
XII-World War One and Its Aftermath
TEXT:
Lonnie Johnson, Central Europe: Enemies, Neighbors, Friends
(available on-line through UW Libraries)
COURSE REQUIREMENTS:
1-two in-class essay examinations--one on Thursday, October 31 and one on Tuesday, November 26 (30% each)
2-take-home final exam handed out on the last day of class (30%)
3-participation in in-class discussions (10%)
IMPORTANT DATES:
Thursday, October 31--first examination
Tuesday, November 26—second examination
Thursday, December 5—take-home final handed out
In-class discussions—October 3, October 24, and November 7
NOTE:
I am interested in your development in this class. Feel free to consult with me if you have any questions or problems. I can be reached in class, via e-mail, or at office hours.
[This is a preliminary syllabus subject to possible modification]