A-Level History Masterclass 2026: The politics of early Stuart religion
Professor Jackson takes Westminster Abbey as a prism through which to revisit the political and religious views of England’s first two Stuart kings, James VI & I and Charles I. This is a ‘must see’ lecture for Stuart historians, who are encouraged to submit questions for the Q+A and get some top tips on studying History post A-level.
AQA: Absolutism challenged: Britain, 1603–1649, Monarchs and Parliaments, 1603–1629
Edexcel: Britain, 1625–1701: conflict, revolution and settlement
OCR: The Early Stuarts and the Origins of the Civil War 1603–1660, British Period Study: The Early Stuarts 1603–1646
Speaker
Clare Jackson is Honorary Professor of Early Modern History at Cambridge University and a Fellow of Trinity Hall. She has presented a number of highly successful programmes on the Stuart dynasty for the BBC and is the author of Devil-Land: England under Siege 1588-1688 (2021), which won the 2022 Wolfson History Prize. Her most recent book is The Mirror of Great Britain: A Life of James VI & I (2025), included in The Times’s ‘Best Non-Fiction Books of 2025 so far’.
Image credit: (c)Ian Farrell
How it works
A link to the YouTube recording of the lecture will be sent to those who have registered on 6th February 2026. Teachers can use this lecture however they choose, either watching it in class, or perhaps setting it as homework. Teachers and students should then submit their questions via an online form by 6th March 2026.
The Q+A recording answering students' questions, plus Clare's top tips on studying History post 16, will be sent out on 20th March 2026.
Suitable for: KS5
Duration: Recorded lecture: 45 mins; Recorded Q&A: 45 mins
Cost: £48 per class. Includes private links to the lecture and Q&A and the opportunity to submit questions in advance. Individual students and teachers may also book. (£6 per student, £10 per teacher).
