Britain Since 1688
Introduction to major themes in the history of imperial Britain and the modern world, covering industrial capitalism, liberalism, the modern state, and imperial war.
Summary
Past student reviews · Daniel Ussishkin
The course required two papers and exams, with weekly readings that were helpful for writing but not strictly necessary to do well in the class.
What you’ll be able to do
Identify and explain the major trajectories in British history since the 17th century.
Explain the various interpretive frameworks that historians have used to analyze or explain cultural, political, and economic transformations in imperial Britain in the past 300 years.
Analyze primary sources, both written and visual, in British history and evaluate or critique the ways in which it has been interpreted by others.
Produce original historical arguments, in both written and oral communication, and properly mobilize evidence, from both primary and secondary sources, to support those arguments.
Apply a critical and historical point of view to the contemporary world.
Source: UW Guide
Grade history
↗All recorded terms · compare terms & instructors
Prerequisites
Course mapNone
- None
This is a best-effort interpretation; check the catalog requirements above.
Prerequisite text tree
- None
Professors
Spring 2027No instructors recorded for this selection.
Historical instructors & teaching patterns
DANIEL USSISHKIN is recorded teaching in Fall 2011, Spring 2013, Spring 2014, Spring 2015, Spring 2016, Spring 2018, Fall 2018, Spring 2024, Spring 2025. Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
Recorded history may be incomplete and does not establish a future schedule.
Calendar & sections
Spring 2027Schedule loads here as you scroll.
| Section | Mode | Enrolled / capacity | Waitlist |
|---|
Times are Central. Select a meeting for details; export includes recorded dates for the selected sections.
Meeting source records
No records available.
Student experience
the class
Past student reviews · Daniel Ussishkin
Students found Professor Ussishkin to be nice, funny, and clear, though some noted that lectures could get long or ramble at times.
Recent recorded grades — Fall 2018: 3.62 GPA, 87.5% A/AB (n=40 letter grades); Spring 2024: 3.89 GPA, 94.4% A/AB (n=18 letter grades); Spring 2025: 3.97 GPA, 100.0% A/AB (n=16 letter grades).
difficulty & workload
Past student reviews · Daniel Ussishkin
The course required two papers and exams, with weekly readings that were helpful for writing but not strictly necessary to do well in the class.
Past student reviews · Daniel Ussishkin
Lecture slides were minimal, so students found attending class essential for understanding the material, though discussion sections were sometimes described as boring but helpful.
Topics
- Changing patterns of life and the development of modern identities.
- Commercial civil society, industrial capitalism, liberalism, and the modern state.
- Imperial and total war.
Skills
- Identifying and explaining major trajectories in British history since the 17th century.
- Explaining interpretive frameworks for analyzing cultural, political, and economic transformations in imperial Britain.
- Analyzing written and visual primary sources in British history and critiquing interpretations.
- Producing original historical arguments using primary and secondary evidence in written and oral formats.
- Applying a critical and historical perspective to the contemporary world.
Grades
Latest available · Spring 2025— not enough history to project Spring 2027.
Grade distribution · % of letter grades
Grades over time
Through Spring 2025
More grade details Grade mix, volume & source data
Not enough comparable courses for Spring 2027 in UW–Madison.
Sources & history
Catalog & offerings
Descriptions, prerequisites, and recorded course offerings.
Catalog observation history
Observations at scan time; dates do not imply when a catalog change took effect.
Selected offering source records
No offering records for the selected term.
Raw records
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Student reviews
Original comments behind the course and instructor summaries.
Read original reviews
Grade history
Recorded grade distributions by term, section, and instructor.
Explore recorded gradesRecorded 2026-10-14
Model outputs & technical records
LLM outputs across runs
Full model traces
Recorded model configuration, reasoning, and tool conversations.
Model & dataset provenance
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