BA (Hons) History field trips

Experience and engage with history outside of the classroom

History is about more than just sitting in the lecture theatre or seminar room. At Plymouth we believe students need to get out into the field to experience and engage with a wide variety of different types of historical sites ranging from museums to stately homes, to battleships and Cornish mines. Every student will have the opportunity to take part in a range of local, national and international trips during their degree

London field trip

The highlight for most first year students is our four day field trip to London. Linked to History Tomorrow, this trip explores a range of historical sites in the city. On the way up we stop at a National Trust property. Our first day is spent exploring the Tower of London and its collections (including some with a real Plymouth connection, such as a suit of Samurai armour that arrived in Plymouth in 1614 with John Saris as a gift for King James I). Students then have an afternoon free to explore historic sites that interest them – popular destinations include the Imperial War Museum, V&A, Science Museum and British Museum. On day three we break into small groups as staff take students behind the scenes at a range of historic sites including Greenwich and the National Maritime Museum, the National Portrait Gallery, Houses of Parliament, HMS Belfast and the British Library.

The current cost for this field trip is £20 which covers all transport, accommodation (B&B) and relevant admissions.

History students on a field trip to London visit the Cutty Sark

BA (Hons) History students on a day trip to Saltram house

Local field trips

Throughout the year history staff lead a range of day field trips to sites connected to modules. These include visits to local stately homes such as Saltram House and Powderham Castle. We also get out and about around Plymouth and visit sites such as Sutton Harbour, the Synagogue, Mount Edgecumbe, Bere Ferrers, the Hoe and Barbican. Going further afield we have visited Britannia Royal Naval College and Portsmouth Historic Dockyard with some of our naval history modules. In the coming year we are planning some new trip to venues such as the Tank Museum in Bovington for our World War II module Dunkirk to D-Day. There are no charges for students on day trips – all transport and admissions are paid for.

International field trips

Every May our second and third year students have the opportunity to take part in our International Field Trip to a major European city that has connections to our modules. In recent years we have been to Vienna, Budapest and Krakow. In 2019 we visited Berlin and students were able to explore the fascinating history of this city in conjunction with their German History module. Students pay a contribution towards the cost of this trip.

BA (Hons) History field trip to Vienna