Welcome to the History of Parliament blog!
Here we share posts about our current research projects, wider parliamentary history, highlights from our events, seminars and conferences, and future publications. The History of Parliament’s core work lies in researching and writing series of volumes depicting Parliamentary life and proceedings throughout the past 700 years. These academically rigorous works contain detailed biographies of parliamentarians, studies of constituencies and introductory surveys. The Sections currently underway … Continue reading Welcome to the History of Parliament blog!
The origin of the Wars of the Roses? The marriage of Richard of Conisbrough and Anne Mortimer and the union of the houses of York and Mortimer
Whilst many see the ignition of the Wars of the Roses as taking place later in the 15th century, Dr Simon Payling, of our 1461-1504 section, explores the impact of the marriage of Richard of Conisbrough and Anne Mortimer in 1408 and the consequences of their union… In the study of medieval landholding, it is a common theme that an aristocratic marriage might have the … Continue reading The origin of the Wars of the Roses? The marriage of Richard of Conisbrough and Anne Mortimer and the union of the houses of York and Mortimer
Cricket in the Commons: a Victorian First Eleven
With the 2025 Ashes between England and Australia getting underway this week, we have a cricketing themed post from our House of Commons, 1832-1945 project. Historically, cricketing terminology, with its allusions to ‘fair play’ and playing with a ‘straight bat’, has been a mainstay of British political discourse. This was certainly the case in the Victorian era. For example, in 1864, when the Conservative opposition … Continue reading Cricket in the Commons: a Victorian First Eleven
‘The Tartan Rage’: Fashion, High Society, and Scottish Identity in Eighteenth-Century London
At the IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar on Tuesday 25 November, Dr Natalee Garrett of The Open University, will be discussing Jane, duchess of Gordon and the Romanticisation of Scottish Identity in London, c.1780-1812. The seminar takes place on 25 November 2025, between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. It will be hosted online via Zoom. Details of how to join the discussion are available here. ‘The … Continue reading ‘The Tartan Rage’: Fashion, High Society, and Scottish Identity in Eighteenth-Century London
A Lancastrian City? Coventry and the Wars of the Roses, 1451-1471
This piece is in memory of Professor Peter W. Fleming, who died in April 2025. His publishing career spanned 40 years, from an article on the religious faith of the gentry of Kent in 1984 to a defining monograph on the history of late-medieval Bristol in 2024. His career would have been yet more notable but for the ill-health that blighted his last years. A … Continue reading A Lancastrian City? Coventry and the Wars of the Roses, 1451-1471
MPs and the Second World War
Ahead of Remembrance Day, and with 2025 marking 80 years since the end of the Second World War, Dr Kathryn Rix, Assistant Editor of our House of Commons, 1832-1945 project, follows up her series on MPs and the First World War by looking at the 23 MPs commemorated in the Commons chamber who died during the Second World War. On 6 July 1943 the Speaker … Continue reading MPs and the Second World War
‘Confirmation of the People’s Rights’: commemorating the ‘Glorious Revolution’ of 1688
For many, the beginning of November means the advent of longer nights as the year winds down to Christmas. Some may still enjoy attending firework displays marking the failure of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot. In November 1788, though, serious efforts were made to establish a lasting memorial to the Revolution of 1688, whose centenary was celebrated nationwide. However, as Dr Robin Eagles shows, no one … Continue reading ‘Confirmation of the People’s Rights’: commemorating the ‘Glorious Revolution’ of 1688
‘Abominable, unutterable, and worse than fables’: the campaign to pass the Criminal Law Amendment Bill
At the IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar on Tuesday 11 November, Steven Spencer of Birkbeck, University of London, will be discussing the campaign to pass the 1885 Criminal Law Amendment Act. The seminar takes place on 11 November 2025, between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. It is fully ‘hybrid’, which means you can attend either in-person in London at the IHR, or online via Zoom. … Continue reading ‘Abominable, unutterable, and worse than fables’: the campaign to pass the Criminal Law Amendment Bill
The ladies’ gallery in the temporary House of Commons
This article from Dr Kathryn Rix, Assistant Editor of our House of Commons, 1832-1945 section, looks at the provision made for women to witness debates in the temporary chamber used by the Commons between 1835 and 1852. In the chamber used by the House of Commons before the catastrophic fire of October 1834, women – officially barred from the chamber itself since February 1778 – had … Continue reading The ladies’ gallery in the temporary House of Commons
John Robartes, 2nd Baron Robartes of Truro (later earl of Radnor): reading in the revolution
In this guest article, Dr Sophie Aldred, lecturer in Early Modern History at the University of Oxford, explores the library of Lord Robartes and what it tells us of his political position during the revolutionary years of the 1640s. Variously described as of an ‘unsociable nature and impetuous disposition’, ‘sour’, ‘surly’, and a ‘destroyer of every body’s business’, John Robartes, 2nd Baron Robartes of Truro … Continue reading John Robartes, 2nd Baron Robartes of Truro (later earl of Radnor): reading in the revolution
The Speakers and the Suffragettes
At the IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar on Tuesday 28 October, Dr Mari Takayanagi will be discussing ‘The Speakers and the Suffragettes’. The seminar takes place on 28 October 2025, between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. It is fully ‘hybrid’, which means you can attend either in-person in London at the IHR, or online via Zoom. Details of how to join the discussion are available … Continue reading The Speakers and the Suffragettes