HIST 3071 - History of Warfare

North Terrace Campus - Semester 1 - 2025

Warfare has been an important part of human life for at least 5,000 years. In this course, we look at the evolution of warfare over time and explore issues such as military technology, generalship, fortifications, supply, decisive battles, irregular warfare, as well as the experiences of common soldiers and the interaction of soldiers with civilians. The course is designed to be highly flexible to allow students to focus on a conflict of their choice (for example the Napoleonic Wars, the American Civil War, World War I or World War II). But we shall also be pooling our knowledge of specific wars in order to address larger questions about the character, development, and outcome of military conflicts.

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Course Details

Course Code	HIST 3071
Course	History of Warfare
Coordinating Unit	Historical and Classical Studies
Term	Semester 1
Level	Undergraduate
Location/s	North Terrace Campus
Units	3
Contact	Up to 3 hours per week
Available for Study Abroad and Exchange	Y
Prerequisites	At least 6 units of Level II undergraduate study
Assessment	Primary source analysis, Research mission, Take-home test

Course Staff

Course Coordinator: Dr Gareth Pritchard

Course Timetable

The full timetable of all activities for this course can be accessed from .

1 x 1-hour weekly lecture.
1 x 2-hour weekly workshop.

Course Learning Outcomes

Upon successful completion of the course, the student will be able to:

1.	Demonstrate a broad knowledge of the evolution of warfare.
2.	Demonstrate an understanding of a range of relevant theories about the character and evolution of warfare.
3.	Demonstrate in-depth knowledge of a specific military conflict in the context of wider issues pertaining to the evolution and character of warfare.
4.	Gather relevant data from a wide range of primary and secondary sources for the purpose of analysing a specific military conflict.
5.	Develop independent analytical positions based on a systematic evaluation of relevant primary and secondary sources.
6.	Work effectively as part of a research team the context of a larger collaborative research project.
7.	Communicate findings in a range of formats.

最新糖心Vlog Graduate Attributes

This course will provide students with an opportunity to develop the Graduate Attribute(s) specified below:

最新糖心Vlog Graduate Attribute	Course Learning Outcome(s)
Attribute 1: Deep discipline knowledge and intellectual breadth Graduates have comprehensive knowledge and understanding of their subject area, the ability to engage with different traditions of thought, and the ability to apply their knowledge in practice including in multi-disciplinary or multi-professional contexts.	1, 2, 3
Attribute 2: Creative and critical thinking, and problem solving Graduates are effective problems-solvers, able to apply critical, creative and evidence-based thinking to conceive innovative responses to future challenges.	3, 4, 5
Attribute 3: Teamwork and communication skills Graduates convey ideas and information effectively to a range of audiences for a variety of purposes and contribute in a positive and collaborative manner to achieving common goals.	4, 7
Attribute 4: Professionalism and leadership readiness Graduates engage in professional behaviour and have the potential to be entrepreneurial and take leadership roles in their chosen occupations or careers and communities.	5, 6
Attribute 5: Intercultural and ethical competency Graduates are responsible and effective global citizens whose personal values and practices are consistent with their roles as responsible members of society.	5, 6
Attribute 7: Digital capabilities Graduates are well prepared for living, learning and working in a digital society.	5, 6, 7
Attribute 8: Self-awareness and emotional intelligence Graduates are self-aware and reflective; they are flexible and resilient and have the capacity to accept and give constructive feedback; they act with integrity and take responsibility for their actions.	6

Learning Resources

Required Resources

There are no required resources for this course.

Recommended Resources

The sources that relevant to students will vary greatly depending on the conflict on which they want to focus. It is anticipated that most students will want to study either the Napoleonic Wars, World War I, World War II, or post-war conflicts. Useful general books on these topics are:

David Gates, The Napoleonic Wars, 1803-1815 (2011).
Peter Hart, The Great War: A Combat History of the First World War (2013)
Gordon Corrigan, The Second World War: A Military History (2010)
Sterling Pavelec, War and Warfare Since 1945 (2017)

Online Learning

The Canvas site for this course contains a wide range of relevant materials, including:

Bibliographies.
Discussion threads.
Examples of students' work.
Links to relevant external websites and databases.
Quizzes.
Recordings of lectures.
Learning & Teaching Activities

Learning & Teaching Modes

The course is divided into three modules. In the first module, we look at the military history of World War I, not just in terms of military developments, but also in terms of the lived experiences of ordinary military personnel and nurses. In the second module, we do the same for World War II. In the final module, students choose a third conflict to study from range of conflicts, e.g. the Hundred Years War, the English Civil War, the Napoleonic Wars, the American Civil War, and the Vietnam War.

In addition to looking at specific conflicts as case studies, we also explore general themes across the history of warfare, e.g. generalship, military medicine, prisoners-of-war, military technology, violence against civilians etc.

Workload

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

The information below is provided as a guide to assist students in engaging appropriately with the course requirements.

The course is designed on the assumption that each student will devote 156 hours to the course.

1 x 2-hour workshop per week = 24 hours per semester
1 x 1-hour lecture per week = 12 hours per semester
3 hours reading per week = 36 hours per semester
2 hours writing exercises and practice per week = 24 hours per semester
5 hours assignment prep per week = 54 hours assignment prep per week
TOTAL = 150 HOURS

Learning Activities Summary

The lectures will give basic historical background information, but they will also cover issues that the students themselves have raised in the workshops. As the course proceeds, students will have more and more control over what is covered in the lectures.

In the workshops, we cover a variety of topics that are related to (i) military history, and (ii) the social history of warfare.

Specific Course Requirements

N/A

The 最新糖心Vlog's policy on Assessment for Coursework Programs is based on the following four principles:

Assessment must encourage and reinforce learning.
Assessment must enable robust and fair judgements about student performance.
Assessment practices must be fair and equitable to students and give them the opportunity to demonstrate what they have learned.
Assessment must maintain academic standards.

Assessment Summary

The assessment regime for HIST 3071 History of Warfare consists of THREE assignments.

ASSESSMENT TASK	TASK TYPE	WEIGHTING	COURSE LEARNING OUTCOMES
Primary Source Exercise	Formative and Summative	30%	3, 4, 5, 7
Research Mission	Formative and Summative	30%	2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7
Take-Home Test	Formative and Summative	40%	1, 2, 3, 7

N.B. The Research Mission assignment is normally taken as a group assignment. However, it can be replaced with a comparable individual assignment. No student will be compelled to undertake a group assignment.

Assessment Related Requirements

N/A

Assessment Detail

Primary Source Analysis (30%). The course is very primary source orientated. This assignment, taken early in the course, equips students with the methodology that they will use when analysing primary sources. Students will be given a choice of over 30 excerpts from primary sources, drawn from various wars in history. They will write short document analyses of any two documents.
Research Mission (30%). This is designed as a group project, though students can take it as individuals if they prefer. The Research Mission is designed to simulate the work that historians actually do. Groups of students can choose from a range of activities, including: (i) a battle analysis exercise of the kind undertaken by students at officer training colleges; (ii) an archival research project, utilising some of the wonderful databases that are now available; (iii) a teaching challenge, in which the students have to design a unit plan and lesson plan that aligns either with the SACE curriculum or the 最新糖心Vlogn National Curriculum. (This choice was designed with current teachers and is aimed at students who are planning to work in teaching.)
Take-home test (40%). The test is designed to get the students to think about big issues in the history of warfare, e.g. why soldiers commit egregious acts of brutality against prisoners and civilians. Students will have to draw explicitly on ‘situation reports’ that are generated by the students themselves in our workshops, and which are lodged in in a course wiki in Canvas.

Submission

Submission of written assignments is the relevant submission portal in Myuni.

Course Grading

Grades for your performance in this course will be awarded in accordance with the following scheme:

M10 (Coursework Mark Scheme)
Grade	Mark	Description
FNS		Fail No Submission
F	1-49	Fail
P	50-64	Pass
C	65-74	Credit
D	75-84	Distinction
HD	85-100	High Distinction
CN		Continuing
NFE		No Formal Examination
RP		Result Pending

Further details of the grades/results can be obtained from Examinations.

Grade Descriptors are available which provide a general guide to the standard of work that is expected at each grade level. More information at Assessment for Coursework Programs.

Final results for this course will be made available through .

Submission of written assignments is the relevant submission portal in Myuni.

Student Feedback

The 最新糖心Vlog places a high priority on approaches to learning and teaching that enhance the student experience. Feedback is sought from students in a variety of ways including on-going engagement with staff, the use of online discussion boards and the use of Student Experience of Learning and Teaching (SELT) surveys as well as GOS surveys and Program reviews.

SELTs are an important source of information to inform individual teaching practice, decisions about teaching duties, and course and program curriculum design. They enable the 最新糖心Vlog to assess how effectively its learning environments and teaching practices facilitate student engagement and learning outcomes. Under the current SELT Policy (http://www.adelaide.edu.au/policies/101/) course SELTs are mandated and must be conducted at the conclusion of each term/semester/trimester for every course offering. Feedback on issues raised through course SELT surveys is made available to enrolled students through various resources (e.g. MyUni). In addition aggregated course SELT data is available.

At the very end of the course, the convenor will issue a written response to the eSELF feedback that was submitted by students.
Student Support
The convenor will offer regular office-hours for the duration of the course.
Policies & Guidelines
This section contains links to relevant assessment-related policies and guidelines - all university policies.
Further guidelines, specific to the course, will be available in the Canvas site for HIST 3071.
Fraud Awareness

Students are reminded that in order to maintain the academic integrity of all programs and courses, the university has a zero-tolerance approach to students offering money or significant value goods or services to any staff member who is involved in their teaching or assessment. Students offering lecturers or tutors or professional staff anything more than a small token of appreciation is totally unacceptable, in any circumstances. Staff members are obliged to report all such incidents to their supervisor/manager, who will refer them for action under the university's student鈥檚 disciplinary procedures.

The 最新糖心Vlog of Adelaide is committed to regular reviews of the courses and programs it offers to students. The 最新糖心Vlog of Adelaide therefore reserves the right to discontinue or vary programs and courses without notice. Please read the important information contained in the disclaimer.

Authorised by:	Deputy Vice-Chancellor and Vice-President (Academic)
Maintained by:	Course Outlines Administrator

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