Contemporary Military and International History

Contemporary military and international history examines the conflicts, crises, and strategic competitions that have defined the world from the late eighteenth century to the present day. Military history is not simply the study of battles and campaigns: it explores the political, social, economic, and technological conditions that make wars possible and shape how they are fought, as well as the intelligence operations, propaganda efforts, and diplomatic manoeuvres that determine their outcomes. International history adds the broader frame, tracing how states, empires, and international organisations have competed, cooperated, and clashed across the past two and a half centuries.

At Salford this three-year full-time programme takes you through topics as diverse as terrorism and counter-terrorism, the history of intelligence, the role of propaganda in modern conflict, and the strategic dimensions of contemporary warfare. You will develop a thorough analytical understanding of the conflicts that have shaped the modern world, from the Napoleonic era through two World Wars and the Cold War to post-Cold War interventions and the changing character of armed conflict in the twenty-first century. A year abroad is embedded in the programme, giving you the opportunity to study at an international institution and engage with how other academic and national traditions approach these questions.

The skills you develop are genuinely transferable: the capacity to research complex events from primary and secondary sources, analyse competing interpretations, and communicate clearly about contested and sensitive subjects is valued across many professional contexts.

Graduates pursue careers in the armed forces, intelligence and security services, government and the civil service, think tanks and policy research, journalism, broadcasting, museum and archive work, and education. Many also go on to postgraduate study in history, international relations, security studies, or strategic studies, building the specialist expertise that academic and policy careers in this field require.