History

One of the principal virtues of the Cambridge Historical Tripos is that it permits students to combine a programme of work in which horizons are steadily broadened, with a remarkably wide choice of specialist subjects, including not only British and European history, but also extra-European history, intellectual history and other subjects and approaches not commonly found in history studies at school.

Such a course of study can only be fully exploited under close personal tuition. A second virtue of the Historical Tripos is that it is undertaken within the ‘classic’ Cambridge system of teaching. The student’s working life revolves around regular weekly individual or small group supervisions (though there are also seminars and lectures). The College Fellows also organise regular classes in historical methodology, sometimes in connection with undergraduates from other colleges. As a foundation that has been fortunate in its past benefactions, Emmanuel has a good Library with a strong History section and also a special bequest whose income is specifically devoted to the furtherance of the study of History (the Whitaker Fund). This fund is used for a variety of purposes, including assistance to students with dissertation expenses, the provision of an annual History dinner and a subsidy to the College History Society (run entirely by undergraduates).