This enquiry addresses the first point of the specification within the ‘early modern England’ section. It focuses on the context for migration, ‘change and continuity in reasons for migration and patterns of settlement’.
It centres upon five engaging case studies, including that of ‘John Blanke the Blacke Trumpet’. John Blanke is explored in detail in Miranda Kauffman’s book Black Tudors.
The other case studies are the original ‘Pocahontas’, and Jamie Macpherson, one of the first Roma Gypsies in England that we know of by name.
Students are tasked with deciding how ‘typical’ John Blanke’s (relatively positive) experiences of migration were, as they gather evidence about the individuals in question. Finally, students are equipped to respond to the enquiry question, before they apply their new knowledge to a useful re-cap activity.
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- Lesson presentation: PowerPoint
- Lesson write-up: PDF
- Worksheet 1-4: PDF
