It’s a Wednesday afternoon and inside the towering, echo-filled halls of Rockefeller Chapel, history is not only being studied–it’s being resurrected. Cardinals march with purpose, nobles whisper in corners and city-states will rise and fall on Discord servers after the class is over for the day. Welcome to Italian Renaissance: Petrarch, Machiavelli, and the Wars of Popes and Kings—a course so challenging, immersive, and legendary that students call it UChicago’s “intellectual boot camp.”
Taught by Professor Ada Palmer, the course is far from a typical history class. Over the span of 10 weeks, students dive into a live-action roleplay (LARP) simulation of 15th-century Italy. They assume the identities of Renaissance cardinals, generals, diplomats and spies, and play out events representing papal elections and city-state warfare while alliances shift to constantly change the dynamic. With time, the result becomes a sprawling, intricately woven historical drama where each student is simultaneously both scholar and actor.
“I’ve known about this class since I was 16,” says rising fourth-year Danny Kind. “It’s famous around the world for being one of the most rigorous classes you can take, like a military boot camp for your brain.”
Kind played Ascanio Sforza, the cardinal from Milan who, through cunning and charisma, was elected Pope Ambrose I in the simulation. “It feels like the greatest game of D&D ever—except the dungeon master has a PhD, and everyone is in it for a grade.”
Students are assigned 40-page character dossiers detailing family histories, political goals and personality quirks. Every role, no matter how minor, is important.
“Even my character, who is supposed to be a chef, helped shape the direction of the class,” says Katherine Chen, AB’25, who played Bucha il Pisano. “It made me fall in love with history all over again.”
Julia Morales, a rising fourth-year majoring in history and near eastern language and culture, played Lucrezia Borgia, a schemer vying for her family’s dominance in the Church and military. For Morales, the simulated war phase of the class was unexpectedly emotional.
“We had to decide which cities to sack and which to spare. People—fictional ones—died. My character lost her brother. That changed how I played the rest of the game. It felt real.”
Indeed, one of the paradoxes of the course is how emotional it becomes, despite the fictional stakes.
“You’re breathing life into a real historical figure,” said Kind. “You start to empathize with people who lived 500 years ago. It’s a weird, powerful feeling.”
The course unfolds in three phases: the papal election, the war, and the post-war reconstruction. Between classes, the political drama continues online. “We’re on Discord until 10 p.m., plotting alliances and betrayals,” says fourth-year Lily Yu, who plays Corporal Tillio. “It’s fun, but it’s also serious work.”
The level of historical detail is unmatched. “Professor Palmer is the only person who has read all the original manuscripts,” says Kind. “Wikipedia isn’t even accurate enough to help us here. This class is the only one of its kind in the world.”
Sometimes, fiction and reality collide in unexpected ways. “We watched Conclave one night,” says Chen. “And the very next day, we elected a pope in class—and the real Pope passed away that morning. It felt surreal.”
Still, despite its intensity, students say the class is a joy. “It’s silly and smart,” says Morales. “You get to dress up, plot with friends, and still learn so much. It’s everything a college class should be.”
At UChicago, where academic rigor is practically a religion, the course stands apart, not only for its scholarship, but for its magic. It brings history to life, forces students to think deeply and strategically, and gives them the chance to become someone else, if only for a quarter.
As the simulation ends, no actual crowns are won, and no cities truly fall. But what students gain—a deeper empathy for the past, a sharper mind, and a fierce appreciation for the chaos of history—might last a lifetime.