Journey Through Europe's Past
A group of Years 10 and 11 History students spent the holidays on a fascinating two-week tour through Italy and Germany, visiting some of Europe's most significant historical sites.
Most of the student participants study Elective History and are enrolled in either Modern or Ancient History (or both) for their Senior College years. Their itinerary took them from ancient Rome through Renaissance Florence to the sobering memorials of 20th-century Germany.
The adventure began in Rome, where they explored the city's layered history. Their program included the Colosseum and Forum Romanum, the heart of ancient Roman political and social life. They also descended into the Catacombe di San Callisto, the underground burial chambers that sheltered early Christian communities.
A city walk took them through Rome's iconic spaces including the Spanish Steps, Trevi Fountain, and the Pantheon, while their Vatican City tour encompassed the Vatican Museums, Sistine Chapel, and St Peter's Basilica.
From Rome, the group travelled south to Sorrento, where their studies of ancient civilisation continued at Pompeii and Herculaneum. Both cities, preserved by the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD, offer remarkable insights into Roman daily life. A planned climb of Vesuvius itself had to be cancelled due to dangerous wind conditions, but the students gained valuable understanding from the archaeological sites below.
The Sorrento leg also included a hands-on Italian gelato-making class, adding a fun and delicious cultural element to their historical studies.
Florence provided the Renaissance chapter of their journey. The Uffizi Gallery visit allowed students to view masterpieces many had studied in class, while their guided walking tour covered significant sites including the Duomo, Ponte Vecchio, Palazzo Vecchio and Dante's House. They also visited the Gates of Paradise at the Baptistery and saw Giotto's Bell Tower, key examples of the artistic innovation that defined the period.
The tour's German section focused heavily on 20th-century history. In Berlin, students visited the Jewish Museum, the Topography of Terror and the Holocaust Memorial. Their guided tour of the city included Checkpoint Charlie, the Berlin Wall, Brandenburg Gate, the Reichstag and Potsdamer Platz, tracing both Nazi-era sites and Cold War division points.
Dresden offered another perspective on wartime Germany through the Museum of Military History, alongside sites such as the Church of Our Lady and Bruhlsche Terrasse.
Nuremberg proved particularly significant for students of Modern History. The Nazi Party Rally Grounds Museum illustrated how the regime used architecture and spectacle for propaganda purposes. The War Crimes Trial Museum, located near the Justice Palace where the trials took place, examined the post-war reckoning with Nazi crimes. The city tour also included Nuremberg's medieval centre, from Albrecht Durer's House to St Sebald Church.
Munich provided the tour's final destination. Students visited the Residenz palace and Schloss Nymphenburg, exploring Bavarian royal history. Their tour of the city covered Marienplatz, the Frauenkirche, and the 1972 Olympia Park. They also visited BMW Welt, seeing how Germany rebuilt its industrial capacity after the war.
The tour concluded with a visit to Dachau, the first Nazi concentration camp, opened in 1933. This memorial site provided a learning-rich if sombre end to the students' examination of Europe's complex history and a chance to transform classroom learning into lived understanding.