History department seminar

Meet the History Department

Say hello to some of the people you'll meet in your first year!

Lancaster's History Department is a thriving and friendly centre of historical teaching and research at the heart of the university campus.

We pride ourselves on the strong sense of community in our friendly Department. Studying with us, you will have the flexibility to select modules that fascinate you and tailor your degree to your own individual interests. Our active student society organises a fun and exciting variety of social and course-related activities throughout the year.

Below, we introduce some of the people you may meet in your first year.

Helen Caton
Helen Caton

First-year Co-ordinator: Helen Caton

I am the Part I Co-ordinator for History and I will be your first point of contact in the department during your first year.

If you have any questions or problems, you can get in touch by email or phone but generally the best thing is to come to see me in my office.

If you need to talk through course options or about your seminars and lectures, I can usually help, or I can make appointments for our students to talk to our First-Year Pastoral Advisor. I will also point you in the right direction if it’s someone else in the university you need to see. I often contact first-year students directly and so recommend to that they check their Lancaster inbox regularly (every day!).

Director of Studies: Stephanie Wright

I am the Director of Undergraduate Studies in History.

You are likely to see me quite regularly during your degree. I am a member of the forum in which our student reps can raise issues and discuss general questions.

Students are a vital part of the History community and are involved throughout their degree. Each year group elects a number of representatives and they help me understand the degree programme from a student’s perspective.

I am a historian of modern Spain, specialising in the histories of disability, psychiatry, sexuality, and gender under the Francoist dictatorship.

I am currently writing a book on the experiences of maimed Francoist veterans of the Spanish Civil War, while starting a new research project exploring sexual violence under Francoism. The latter centres on the role of forensic doctors and psychiatrists within court cases dealing with sexual crimes in twentieth

Stephanie Wright
Dr Stephanie Wright
Deborah Sutton
Professor Deborah Sutton

History Lecturer: Professor Deborah Sutton

I teach a first-year module called ‘Histories of Violence: How Imperialism Made the Modern World’.

We explore the relationship between Britain’s imperial past and the present, from slavery in the late-eighteenth century to the anti-colonial movements in South-East Asia and East Africa in the 1950s and 1960s.

Through lectures and seminar discussions, we think about the social, cultural and economic histories and legacies of Empire. For example, what is the relationship between imperial culture and the illegalisation of homosexuality? What are the legacies of the economic systems and cultures of consumption that developed from the Trans-Atlantic slave trade? How did ideas of ‘race’ and ‘racial difference’ gain scientific and popular credibility among white populations in the nineteenth century?

I also teach a second and third-year optional course on Gandhi’s role in the Indian freedom movement. We look at Gandhi’s biography and political career in South Africa and India. Students have the chance to study Gandhian philosophies of resistance and selfhood and considers how his ideas were put into action, by him and by others, in the Indian struggle for independence.

History at Lancaster

  • Your First Year Studying History

    During your first year, you'll have the chance to explore subjects ranging from ancient to modern history, while choosing from a set of optional modules.

  • Beyond Your First Year

    Our second- and final-year historians choose from within an extensive range of modules, personalising their degree to suit their own interests and passions.

  • Study Abroad

    Choosing History at Lancaster will give you the opportunity to study at one of our partner universities overseas

  • Heritage Work Placements

    At Lancaster, we integrate work experience opportunities into your academic studies.

  • Preparing for History

    Here you'll find recommendations from our lecturers to help you get ready to become an undergraduate historian.

History courses

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