leese_michael_2024

Michael Leese

Associate Professor
Phone: (603) 862-5102
Office: History, Horton Social Science Center Rm 439, Durham, NH 03824

Michael Leese completed his Ph.D. in the University of Michigan’s interdepartmental program in Greek and Roman history. Previously, he earned a B.A. in classics and an M.A. in Latin education at the University of Connecticut as well as an M.A. in classics at the University of British Columbia. He also had the good fortune of being bussed around the beautiful countryside of Greece as a fellow and regular member of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens during the 2011-12 academic year. In 2014-15, he served as the first postdoctoral associate with the Responsible Governance and Sustainable Citizenship Project at UNH in the Department of Classics, Humanities, and Italian Studies. His research interests focus on the economic history of the ancient Greek world, as well as the evolution of capitalism throughout world history. In his teaching, he draws upon a wide array of interdisciplinary theory to demonstrate how the ancient world can provide a useful perspective on problems in the world today. Courses he teaches at UNH include pre-modern world history, economic history, Greco-Roman history, and historical methodology. He is currently finishing his first book project based on his dissertation, entitled “Making Money in Ancient Greece,” and has also been awarded a Loeb Classical Library Foundation Fellowship from Harvard University for the fall of 2018 to begin his next major project, which explores the effects of ancient Greek institutions on economic growth and development.

Courses Taught

  • CLAS 511: Special Studies in Greek Hist
  • CLAS 686: UNH in Greece Study Abroad
  • CLAS/HIST 675/873: History of Ancient Greece
  • CLAS/HIST 676/876: Topics Ancient Greek History
  • HIST 421: World History to 16th Century
  • HIST 440E: Honors/Drugs, Addict Wrld Hist
  • HIST 676/876: Class&Hellenistic Greek Worlds
  • HIST 678/878: Roman Empire
  • HIST 690/890: Sem/Rich vs. Poor
  • HIST 695: Independent Study
  • HIST 797/897: Coll/Gendr&Sexualty in Ancient
  • LATN 755: Advanced Studies Silver Age

Education

  • Ph.D., Greek History/Lit, University of Michigan
  • M.A., Latin Teacher Education, University of Connecticut
  • B.A., Classics, University of Connecticut

Research Interests

  • Ancient Greek economy and economics
  • Greco-Roman history
  • History of world capitalism

Selected Publications

  • Leese, M. S. (2018). Lysias and a Forgotten Law on the Administration of Orphans’ Estates in Classical Athens. Dike: rivista di storia del diritto greco ed ellenistico, 19, 107-125.

  • Bachrach, B. S., Bachrach, D. S., & Leese, M. (2017). Deeds of the Bishops of Cambrai, Translation and Commentary. Routledge.

  • Leese, M. S. (2017). An Economic Perspective on Marriage Alliances in Ancient Greece. In D. P. Kehoe, & T. A. J. McGinn (Eds.), Ancient Law, Ancient Society. (pp. 32-45). Ann Arbor, MI: University of Michigan Press.

  • Kapêloi and Economic Rationality in Fourth-Century BCE Athens (2016). Retrieved from https://classicalstudies.org/