Course Description

For centuries, the influence of royal dynasties has transcended the borders of individual kingdoms and empires to shape military conflicts, diplomatic relationships, trade routes and cultural change around the world. We will examine ten royal dynasties whose influence changed the course of world history by building vast empires or resisting colonization. We will discuss how political and personal decisions came together in war, trade, and dynastic marriage which in turn shaped the rise and fall of royal dynasties throughout history. The legacy of all ten of the dynasties examined in this course informs current events in the 21st century.

Course Director

Carolyn Harris

Dr. Carolyn Harris is an instructor in history at the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies. She received her Ph.D in European history from Queen’s University in 2012. Her writing concerning the history of monarchy in the UK, Europe, and Canada has appeared in numerous publications including the Globe and Mail, Canada’s History Magazine and the BBC History Magazine. She is the author of 3 books: Magna Carta and Its Gifts to Canada (Dundurn: 2015), Queenship and Revolution in Early Modern Europe: Henrietta Maria and Marie Antoinette (Palgrave: 2015) and Raising Royalty: 1000 Years of Royal Parenting (Dundurn: 2017). She is a frequent contributor to the Historica Canada Canadian Encyclopedia. She recently co-edited a book series about royal consorts, English Consorts: Power, Influence, Dynasty (2023).  

Carolyn Harris

Term and Time

Winter 2026 – Starting January
12:50 pm on Friday afternoon
Room TBA in York Hall

Course Outline

Two weeks before the course starts, you can download a printable PDF giving the 10-week detailed course outline.

NOTE: The course outline opens in a new browser tab where you cannot see the LLIR page header and menu. You can download the outline for future reading and printing. When you are finished, return to our website as follows:
— On a large screen, click the X on the right side of the browser tab to close it.
— On a smartphone, click the back button displayed as a back arrowhead ( < ) .

Lecture Notes

Links to resources such as additional reading or play lists are provided here as the Course Director makes them available during term. Like the course outline, lecture notes open in a new browser tab so that you can download and print them.

Return to the list of current courses to check out another course.