Law and History

Law and history is a combination that rewards those who want to understand not just what the law is but where it came from and why it takes the forms it does. Law is shaped by history at every level, from the common law doctrines developed over centuries of judicial reasoning to the constitutional settlements that define relations between states and citizens. History, in turn, requires an understanding of legal institutions, property rights, and the frameworks through which power has been exercised and contested.

At the School of Oriental and African Studies in London, this three-year, full-time joint degree approaches both subjects from a perspective that takes the non-Western world seriously, with particular strengths in the history and legal systems of Africa, the Middle East, South and East Asia.

You will study legal reasoning, constitutional and public law, and the history of legal institutions alongside historical scholarship that spans a wide range of periods, regions, and thematic concerns. The programme develops your capacity to work with primary sources, to construct sustained arguments from evidence, and to read both legal texts and historical documents with critical precision. The foundation year option provides an additional supported entry route for students who would benefit from a year of preparation before the main degree.

SOAS's unique position in London, with its close connections to international legal and historical scholarship, gives the programme a distinctive character.

Graduates of law and history at SOAS are well placed for careers in legal practice, the civil service, international organisations, journalism, human rights work, academia, and the heritage sector. The combination of rigorous legal training and broad historical perspective is particularly valued in roles with an international, comparative, or policy dimension. Many graduates also go on to the Graduate Diploma in Law, the Legal Practice Course, or postgraduate research in law or history.