Planning Your Essay

Step One: Analyse the Question

• 'Explain' and 'Why' questions('What factors' questions generally fall into this category as
well): generally divide into broad categories that each contribute to the topic under
consideration. Then explore the particular or pertinent details of these broad factors or
themes. Each factor or reason will have to be clarified as to its significance to the question;
and explained i.e. the ways in which it affected or caused the question; and illustrated with
examples.

Example question: Why did the Medici lose control in Florence in the late fifteenth century?

Some possible factors that contributed to this: Political, social, foreign affairs, economic problems,
inept leadership

Political factors: Florence had a Republican political system which the later Medici leaders did not
effectively uphold. This was basically the key to why they lost control in Florence. By not working
within the system, they effectively lost the support of the people on which their power rested. This
is seen clearly in the example o f . . .

• 'To what extent' questions: require you to make a judgement. Set up a series of 'test' areas
or themes that you can investigate in turn. Then in your conclusion pull together the results
of your tests to make a judgement.

Example Question: Catherine Medici's reliance on the Guise family was the key cause to the French
Wars of Religion. To what extent is this an accurate assessment?

Some possible tests: The role of the Guise family in the wars; Catherine's policy towards the
different factions; the role of the royal family in dictating state religion.

Catherine's policy: Catherine Medici maintained a policy of compromise between the differing
factions. In contrast her husband had maintained a heavy hand that effectively suppressed the
conflict between the warring Catholic and Protestant factions. By trying to compromise, however,
Catherine's policy undermined the authority of the royal family, and allowed the conflict between
the factions to spiral out of control. One example of this ...

Step Two: Preliminary reading

Things to look for while you are doing your reading:

• Is there a debate among historians over this issue: if so you will have to talk about either the
problems this poses or use it to frame your argument.
• Are there any issues or terms that cause problems or need defining: many of the topics in
medieval history are contestable or have been made up by modern historians, i.e.
Feudalism. You will have to discuss the problems associated with the term and in a sense
define how you are going to use it. If there is a significant debate around the use of the term
or problem this will generally dictate how your argument should develop.
 • Main thing is to identify, through an assessment of the sources you are reading, an
argument that answers the question

Step three: Write a plan

• Think of your overall conclusion or the essence of your argument

• Define the approach you are going to use i.e. thematic (in that you have identified several
themes to explore the question), compare and contrast etc.
• Identify the points that you need to make to support your argument
• Consider alternative points of views that you may need to consider or contest
• Plan out the evidence and examples that support your main points
• Think about whether the evidence or examples require more information
• Consider whether the evidence or example could be used in a different way or if it has
caused debate, if so you will have to mention this aspect of the evidence and explain or
justify your use of it
• Think about whether you need more material to make your argument convincing

Step Four: Specific research of the points on which your argument hinges

• Once you have a broad plan, you need to review your notes and possibly undertake further
investigation of the problems you identified when writing your plan
• This might involve a reassessment of your original argument, as you may find a better way of
answering the question, or you might find evidence better suited to make your points.

Example of a basic essay plan:

Question: Why did the Medici lose control in Florence in the late-Fifteenth century?

Approach: identify the factors on which Medici power had rested in the first part of the century and
then explore how their actions and/or policies had weakened in these areas

• Political control: The Medici had come to power through a complex manipulation of
Florence's Republican system. Essentially they created a believable facade of Republicanism
that allowed them to take control
• Later Medici family members let this facade slip thus undermining the basis on which their
power rested.
• Evidence or example: Piero Medici had the laws changed so he could take power, which
openly showed the people of Florence that he had no respect for their Republican system
• Areas to research further: the 'mechanics' of the Florentine political system and the ways in
which they were able to manipulate it i.e. elections.

• Social factors: The early Medici leaders had spent a lot of energy in gaining public popularity
• Later Medici family members got very lazy in this area
• Evidence or example: It was the 'public' that eventually threw the Medici out of Florence
• Areas to research further: Get primary source material to compare public opinion of Cosimo
and Piero Medici; Analyse how dependant Cosimo was on public opinion; Look for examples
whereby Piero disregarded their importance.
 • Cultural factors: The Medici were prolific patrons of both art, literature and learning and
deployed these things effectively in both the public and private spheres.
• The later Medici did not exert the same cultural influence, thus undermining their prestige
which their enemies exploited to their detriment both publically and privately.
• Areas to research further: Compare the areas of patronage between Lorenzo and Piero,
specifically identify key pieces of art, literature, or architecture and the ways and areas in
which they were deployed to create private and public prestige i.e. religious imagery,
patronage of art depicting great Florentine victories.

Writing your introduction:

• A good introduction is the most important component of your essay

• You need to clearly show your purpose in writing and how you intend to answer the
question
• First step: An opening sentence. This is designed to explicitly introduce the problem or topic
you are addressing. Sometimes this is just a matter of either reframing your question or
even directly alluding to your overall conclusion
• Indicate the line of argument you are going to take
• Give an idea of the approach you will take
• Provide an overview of the organisation that will follow: it is important to provide 'signposts'
for you reader to follow (this also gives you a structure to follow in your writing)
• Point to the historical problems or debates (if relevant)
• Discuss the type of material you will use (if relevant)
• Point to the general nature of the conclusion

Basic Example: The fortunes of the Medici changed radically over the course of the fifteenth
century; they went from exercising considerable political control in what was ostensibly a
Republican system to being violently exiled from Florence as autocratic tyrants, [this shows a) that
the essay is about the Medici; b) that it will focus on the change in fortune that they suffered; c)
hints at the kinds of themes that the essay will explore i.e. the exercise of political control in a
Republican system]. The reasons for the Medici's exile from Florence are both numerous and
complex. Establishing the areas in which the Medici had been able to gain control in Florence in
the early part of the century, essentially reveals the areas in which the later Medici were
significant failures and that ultimately led to their forcible ejection from Florence. [This is
essentially the line of argument I'm taking] This essay will be divided thematically to systematically
address the areas in which the later Medici were significant failures in comparison to their
predecessors. [Defining approach] Firstly, the Medici manipulation of Florence's republican system
will be considered. The extent to which they constructed and maintained a facade of
Republicanism was a key factor to their ability to gain control, and the failure of Piero Medici to
uphold this was detrimental to the family in many ways. [This sentence marks a signpost for the
reader to follow, it also hints at some possible conclusions and the type of examples that will be
used, i.e. Piero's political policy]. Public popularity provides the second overarching theme to
consider why the Medici were unable to maintain control. Relying heavily on primary evidence,
this section will explore the importance of public opinion in Renaissance politics and social order.
[This sentence marks another sign post, shows the type of material that will be used, and also points
to some broader themes for the period in general. Tip: try to always keep in mind broader themes
relevant to the period under consideration, as historians we are often trying to point to general
factors through specific events and topics]. Finally, cultural influence will be considered. While
cultural influence is often thought to be a minor aspect to the exercise of power, in the case of the
Medici, an analysis of some of the art and literature produced under their patronage reveals that
this was in fact fundamental to the ways in which they were able to exert influence in many areas
of Florentine society and politics, [final sign post] Ultimately, the later Medici could not exert the
same political, social, or cultural influence in Florence due to their failure to maintain or follow the
patterns of control set out by their more successful predecessors. [General nature of conclusion].

Tip: Your introduction should be about 10% ofyour overall word limit.

Paragraph construction

• A good structure is crucial to writing a good essay.

• Each paragraph should make one point that is clearly linked to supporting your overall
argument
• The relevance to your argument should be clearly demonstrated.
• Use a topic sentence to signal the subject and demonstrate its relevance to the problem
• Each following sentence should directly address or develop this idea.
• After the topic sentence, present your evidence and examples that directly support the point
made in your topic sentence (this can be a combination of primary or secondary material).
• Then engage in an analysis of the evidence and what results or conclusions it points to.
• Basically: topic - relevance - evidence- analysis
• You don't necessarily have to follow this order; this is just a general guideline of the things of
which a paragraph is comprised.
• Try to give your reader a sense of what are your opinions or judgements and what is being
used as evidence. Phrases such as 'this reveals' or 'this is significant because' help you to do
this and clearly shows your engagement with analysis. (Try to vary your 'markers' though,
get creative with your sentences)

Tip: paragraphs should be more than three sentences but no more than ten

Conclusion

• The conclusion logically follows the main points set out in your paragraphs. You should never
introduce anything new in the conclusion.
• If your structure is good your conclusion should be easy to write: You basically need to
restate the line of argument that you followed, review individually the pre-conclusions that
you made in your paragraphs based on the evidence, and end with a focused and forceful
statement of the overall conclusion.
• Try not to repeat the exact language that you used elsewhere in the essay, especially the
introduction.