Sverige och Norden under tidigmodern tid (ca 1500-1800)

This class provides an overview of the early modern Nordic countries with a special focus on Sweden. We identify and analyze key social, cultural, economic and political developments in this region from around 1500 to 1800. Building on current research, the class addresses prominent themes in the field of early modern history, including the growth and development of the central state, power relations in society, and the changing role of Sweden and the Nordic countries in Europe during the period.

The class is organized around a set of wide-ranging questions. How did elites and governing bodies legitimize their position and policies? What opportunities did ordinary people, especially the peasant population, have to speak out and exert influence in the political arena? How were relations between men and women structured? What forms and avenues for knowledge formation and fulfillment existed for different segments of society? How did different groups shape early modern society? How did relations between Sweden and its Nordic neighbors develop?