Dr. Leah Astbury

Assistant Professor

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Biography

Leah Astbury is a historian focusing on health, medicine, and gender during the period c. 1500-1750. She joined the University of Bristol as a Lecturer in Health History in August 2024. Previously, she was a Postdoctoral Research Associate for the 'Sleeping Early Modern World' project at the University of Manchester under Professor Sasha Handley from 2018 to 2022. She has also held the position of Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellow in the Department of History and Philosophy of Science at the University of Cambridge and was the Molina Fellow in History of Medicine at the Huntington Library in San Marino, US in 2017/18. Astbury has been involved in various research fellowships, including at The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities and the Society for Renaissance Studies. Her book, 'Making Babies in Early Modern England,' is set to be published by Cambridge University Press in October 2025. She is interested in supervising students working on early modern social, cultural, gender, medical, and environmental history, with a current focus on animal history and intersectional histories of race, colonization, and gender in the early modern world.

Research Interests

Experience

Lecturer

2024-08-01 — Present

University of Bristol • Bristol, ENG

Lecturer in Health History.

Postdoctoral Research Associate

2018-01-01 — 2022-01-01

University of Manchester • Manchester, ENG

Worked on the 'Sleeping Early Modern World' project.

Wellcome Postdoctoral Fellow

2018-01-01 — 2022-01-01

University of Cambridge • Cambridge, ENG

Worked in the Department of History and Philosophy of Science.

Courses

Disease, Deviance and Disability Tudor World Sexualities Medicine, Magic and Sex in Early Modern England Colonies Explorations in Early Modern History

Requirements for University of Bristol

Doctorate Program
Requirements
GPA Requirement
Required:3.3
IELTS
Listening
Required:6
Reading
Required:6
Writing
Required:6
Speaking
Required:6
Overall
Required:6.5
TOEFL
Listening
Required:19
Reading
Required:20
Writing
Required:22
Speaking
Required:22
Total
Required:88
Prerequisites
Upper second-class MSci honours degree in physics or related discipline Or a relevant postgraduate MSc
Application Checklist
  • Online application form
  • Academic transcripts
  • Two academic references
  • Personal statement
  • Curriculum Vitae (CV)
  • Research statement/proposal
Specialization Notes

Department of Physics research themes include Astrophysics, Materials and Devices, Particle Physics, and Quantum and Soft Matter.