If you like the topic, this is a worthy lecture series tracing the macro-level political, economic, and social themes running through European history in the centuries leading up to the modern era. Personally, I found the lecturer’s style grating: he frantically chasing tangents of thought as he flutters between large concepts and small, overly-minute details. A typical five minute segment will include a brief, fluttering focus on half a dozen cities or countries intermixed with comments on some disconnected details or tangential comments. It is as if the professor’s mind is racing three steps ahead of him, and he’s rushing to catch it. On the one hand, I love the breath of knowledge. I the other, I would really appreciate a more settled, grounded delivery of the content. It’s not just a style preference — I do think the disarrayed delivery detracts from the e comprehensibility of the information.

Professor Merriman is a wonderfully engaging teacher. His enthusiasm for European history and his energy are infectious. His occasional anecdotes about his colorful youth are a bonus.