Violence is a phenomenon that historians have long had a hard time grappling with, since historical works on subjects such as wars, colonialism, violent crime, terrorism, or even genocide are generally oddly silent on the nature of violence itself, its origins, and its impact on human minds, bodies and societies. This module will challenge such absences through interrogating violence as an historical force and considering its causes, rationales, forms, impacts, and consequences in a variety of western and non-western contexts (including Britain, the United States, and India) from the nineteenth century onwards. Taking a thematic approach, the module will focus on subjects such as the ways in which law serves to rationalise violence, different forms of violence (such as war, conquest and colonisation, genocide and massacre, torture, gendered violence, and structural violence), and the impact of violence on individuals, groups, and societies.