A new MSt in Histories and Cultures of Colonisation will be open for applications from autumn 2026.

Colonial conquest and settlement are at the heart of global history. They form the basis of modernity, as well as of the structures defining contemporary global capitalism. Since its inception, colonialism has generated manifold movements and cultures of resistance. These lay bare the inegalitarianism of colonial ideology and pursue multiple alternative ways of imagining local, national, and global cultures. 

This flagship new MSt in Histories and Cultures of Colonisation is groundbreaking in being the first to study together the histories and cultures of colonisation. It will be taught by both historians and cultural scholars, combining methodologies from both disciplines to provide a multifaceted understanding of colonisation and its aftermaths. The course examines the historical mechanics of colonialism in various regions of the globe. It also analyses cultural movements, philosophers, writers, and artists that have articulated forms of anticolonial critique. Historical sources are read alongside theoretical, cultural, and literary work to provide a uniquely profound understanding of the political, economic, and social significance of colonial histories. The course also analyses and compares different forms of colonialism as they were implemented throughout history by different powers across Africa, Asia, and the Americas. Students will choose to focus on the tensions of decolonial cultures produced in English, French, Spanish, Portuguese, German, Italian and Russian as they answer back to colonial power in the colonial language, while maintaining dialogue with local and indigenous languages and cultures. In (co)taught seminars and in their own research, they will also unpack the history of ideas and ideologies that led to the critique of colonial models. 

Applications will open in autumn 2026 for first entrance in the 2027/28 academic year.  Further details on the course content and structure will be published in September 2026.