History

Head of Department: Mr William Lane

Lower School curriculum

In the Lower School, girls study a range of historical topics from the Middle Ages to the 20th century. In Remove, the focus is on Medieval England, with a study of topics such as the Norman Conquest, life in the Middle Ages, Magna Carta, the Crusades, the Peasants’ Revolt, the Black Death, and the medieval Kingdom of Mali.

In the Lower Fourth, girls study Tudor England and the Chinese Qing dynasty, and in the Upper Fourth, Britain and the wider world from the 18th to the 20th century. This starts with a look at the British Empire, moves on to a study of Britain and the First World War, and concludes with a study of the Holocaust.

Upper School curriculum

At GCSE, pupils follow the EdExcel IGCSE Specification – a course that covers a number of aspects of modern world history including the Russian Revolution, Germany between the First and Second World Wars, the Cold War and the Middle East in the 20^th and early 21^st century.

Sixth Form curriculum

In the Sixth Form, girls take the AQA A Level course. The core course covers Tudor England, studying the reigns of monarchs such as Henry VIII and Elizabeth I, alongside 20th century China, covering the communist revolution of 1949, Mao’s dictatorship, and its aftermath to 1997. In addition, girls study a 100-year period which lies outside the examined course and undertakes a Historical Investigation on a topic of their own choosing from within it. Periods for study vary from year to year but include the Age of the Crusades, Golden-Age Spain and twentieth-century America.

This gives them the opportunity to research an area of historical debate and write a 4,500-word essay. Pupils learn to work independently, supervised by a member of the Department.

A pioneering department

The History Department at Downe House has been at the forefront of developments in secondary history teaching for a number of years. Overall, our courses provide pupils with a thorough understanding of the political, economic, social, religious and cultural issues of the past through an understanding of contemporary perspectives and historical debate.

A large number of pupils go on to study the subject at university in order to develop a wide range of careers in finance, law, the arts and teaching.

Further information about the teaching and learning of history may be obtained by contacting the Head of Department, Mr William Lane.

Meet the History Department

William Lane

Will joined Downe House as Head of History in September 2014 from Charterhouse, where he had been Head of the Sixth Form, Deputy Director of Studies, Head of History and a Housemaster. He read Medieval History at St Andrews University, and, after a year at Emory University in the United States, completed his PGCE at Cambridge. He chaired the syllabus development committee for Pre-U History and was for many years an A-level History Principal Examiner.

Andrew Hobbs

Andrew arrived at Downe House in September 1993 having spent the previous three years working as a Loss Adjuster in London. Prior to that he read History at St John’s College, Cambridge, completed a PGCE at the University of Exeter and taught for four years at Hemel Hempstead School in Hertfordshire. Having held the post of Assistant Teacher of History at Downe House for three years, Andrew was Head of Department from 1996 – 2014. Andrew has had considerable involvement on the pastoral side of school life given that his wife was a Housemistress and he lived on site for four years.

Sarah Barnard

Sarah came to Downe House in September 2005 having spent five years at St Mary’s, Wantage. She read History at St Andrews University before spending two years as an assistant housemistress teaching History at St Leonards. For many years Sarah was Assistant Head of VIth Form and for seven years Housemistress of Tedworth. She is currently in charge of the Futures department, overseeing university applications.  Sarah was a GCSE History examiner for AQA, has a GDL in Law and is studying for a Level 6 (degree level) careers guidance qualification.

Candice Greenly

Candice joined Downe House in September 2021 from St Mary’s Calne where she spent nine years as a teacher of History and an academic and evening tutor in the Fourth and Fifth Form boarding houses. Prior to this she taught at St Catherine’s Bramley, having completed a PGCE at the Institute of Education. She holds a BA and MA in History from Newcastle University, with a particular passion for the Early Modern era.

Jenny Grant

Jenny joined the History & Politics department at Downe House in 2024. Having graduated from Oxford with a First in Modern History, she completed an MA at the School of Slavonic & Eastern European Studies and then a PGCE at Cambridge. She has worked as a Head of History at a range of girls’ schools, both in the UK and overseas, including NLCS Jeju and Bromley High School GDST. She is currently teaching part-time as she completes her PhD at Queen Mary University of London, researching the Polish Armed Forces in the West.

Hannah Tomlin

Hannah joined Downe House as an Assistant Housemistress and Teacher of History of Art in 2020, having worked in boarding at schools including Bootham School and Westonbirt. She read undergraduate History at the University of York, followed by a Masters degree in Renaissance and Early Modern Studies. She has worked with leading experts in History, History of Art and English Literature and taught on the undergraduate History and History of Art programmes and the History of Art Masters course at the University of York, for which she received awards and recognition for her teaching practice. Most recently, Hannah has spent time in postgraduate research on the long seventeenth century in Florentine history and art history, dividing her time between the University of York, archival research and study in Florence and her role at Downe House.

Eleanor West

Ellie studied History at the University of Essex. After graduating she joined Downe House in 2019 as a Graduate Pastoral Tutor in the Lower School, she has since become an Assistant Housemistress in the Upper School.