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A History of London: 1066-1666
Online course
+44 (0)20 7942 2000
Explore the development of London from the Norman Conquest to the Great Fire and learn how London became one of the greatest cities in Europe, a centre of arts and crafts, performance and learning.
On this London history course you can learn from our world-class experts wherever you are, whenever suits you: watch lectures live or view the recording later in your own time. You can experience the full breadth and depth of the V&A's collections with more than 40 hours of study over 12 weeks. Learn at your own pace: lecture recordings and study materials, lecture notes, copies of the presentations, and additional study materials are available in our secure Microsoft Teams environment for up to 12 weeks after the course ends, so you'll never miss a thing. And finally, join the conversation: share your perspective with your fellow students, and support each other in your further enquiries outside of class time.
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V&A Academy Course Director
Mike Berlin
Mike Berlin is a lecturer at Birkbeck College, University of London. He is a specialist in the social history of early modern London and has published extensively on the history of London’s guilds. Before joining Birkbeck, he was a research officer at the Centre for Metropolitan History, Institute of Historical Research.
This was a fantastic course, one of the best I have done and I do a lot of them! Many thanks to Mike and all the team. Previous online course student
Course overview
Medieval London was a walled city of crowded streets and lanes, open air markets and half-timbered and stone houses, its inhabitants living perilously and piously amid a skyline of a hundred church spires. With the V&A’s collections and curators for inspiration, on this twelve-week course we will explore its dynamic and fascinating history from the Norman Conquest to the Great Fire. A city of learning and richly skilled crafts, during this period London went from being the prosperous capital of an emerging kingdom on the periphery of Christendom to being one of the greatest cities of Europe, the centre of a growing mercantile empire which looked outward to the Atlantic and beyond. London’s fame was built on the riches brought through trade and plunder, celebrated in plays and verse. Londoners surrounded themselves with the finery from the four corners of the world. Yet civil war, plague and fire forced a new city into being.
Speakers Include :
Peter Barber, OBE, FSA, former Head of Maps, The British Library
Tracy Borman, Joint Chief Curator, Historic Royal Palaces
Vanessa Harding, Professor Emeritus of London History at Birkbeck, University of London
V&A Academy Online. A learning environment you can trust.
Membership Priority Booking will open at 10.00am BST on Wednesday 26 June. General Booking will open at 10.00am on Monday 8 July.
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Online course: A History of London: 1066-1666
25 September 2024 - 11 December 2024
£425.00
Need help enrolling? Talk to the admissions team:
+44 (0)20 7942 2000
Open 10.00 - 13.00, Monday to Sunday (closed 24-26 December)
Related events
Header image: Designed and published in London by Stephen Harrison (active in London 1603), and engraved by William Kip (active in London about 1588-1610) - In 1604 James I went in formal procession through the City of London. This was one of seven temporary arches sponsored by merchants to celebrate the occasion. Museum Nr. 14006