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The English Factory at Hirado, Japan. A Microhistory of English Merchants in the early 17th century. We often talk about the practicality of transnational history; why do we study it? What can we truly learn? It seems that transnational ideas

In 1788, French botaniste du roi Hyppolyte Nectoux received seven new plants from British crown botanist Dr. Thomas Clarke for his botanical station at Saint Domingue, and in 1789 he received twenty more. This remarkable example of cross-cultural knowledge exchange

Research Question:  To what extent do supranational organisations impact individual identity in the case of the European Union (EU)? Thesis While EU citizens identify themselves as Europeans, they foremost identify with their national roots. However, all Europeans share an identifying

Art can be an excellent medium for learning about other cultures. I find film to be the most engaging of all common art forms. It feeds on our most perceptive senses – sight and sound — but also taps in

My other module I’m taking this semester covers modern Iran form 1800 to the present day. Last week we covered the Great Game, which refers to the imperial competition in Central Asia between the juggernaut empires of Russia and Britain.

It seems that in the last two years, transnational ideas have been challenged across the world. From Brexit to Trump and his trade protectionist policies the interconnectedness of the world seems to be unravelling at its seams. Repeatedly politicians hark

Last night I attended one of the student run fashion shows, Ubuntu. The show was suppose to be set in Mansa Musa’s Court prior to western colonisation. The vision was to recover the narrative of a strong, powerful, and flourishing

This week I’ve decided to write about cooking.  Before I left for the holiday period last semester I was given Michel Roux’s new cookbook, the french revolution. Its packed with traditional French recipes that appear under subheadings like ‘Légumes, Légumineuses et

On 18th October 1954 Antigone Costanda, Miss Egypt, became the first non-European to be crowned Miss World. The following year, during the 1955 Miss World beauty pageant, Costanda did not attend the event and crown her successor as per the

When mentioning terms such as colonialism and English identity, I tend associate words such as oppression and superiority (at least a superiority complex). Within my project however, I will seek to challenge these preconceptions by focusing on the earlier stages

And somehow, miraculously — after almost two years — not a drop of blood has been spilled. At least, unless you count a minor incident on Pancake Day 2018, when the three representatives of our respective nations stepped up to

“No! no!” cried Frodo. “The Council laid it upon me to bear it.” “It is by our own folly that the Enemy will defeat us,” cried Boromir. “How it angers me! Fool! Obstinate fool! Running wilfully to death and ruining

Tonio Andrade’s “A Chinese Farmer, Two African Boys; and a Warlord: Toward a Global Microhistory” was one of the most entertaining historical pieces I have ever read. I found its flowing narrative to be refreshing as it contained vivid imagery

Can transnational history be written without the mention of the “nation”? Reflecting on the Week 4 Readings, I was intrigued by the discussion regarding “nations.” As poignant stated in the ‘Introduction. Space and Scale in Transnational History’ article, the scale

Last weekend I took my mum to see the wonders of Dundee. The main reason we’d gone, other than the fact we’d managed to cover most of St Andrews in about a day, was to see the Victoria & Albert