Parliamentary Life
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Do as you will? Behind the scenes of ‘the Hellfire Club’
As hospitality venues and social spaces in much of the UK reopen after lockdown this week, in today’s blog Dr…
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Edward, Lord Stafford and the 1621 parliamentary protections scandal
Four hundred years ago this month, in an unprecedented move forced on it by circumstances, Parliament adjourned for more than…
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‘leaping and creeping’: Honours in the early 18th century
Ahead of the Queen’s official birthday this weekend and its accompanying honours list, in today’s blog Dr Robin Eagles, editor…
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An Indispensable Member? Legal expertise in the Long Parliament, ‘an ancient lawyer’ and civil war intimidation
In the past, as with now, it was not uncommon to find those trained in the practice of law seated…
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‘What a theatre is the House of Commons!’
In today’s blog we hear from the History of Parliament’s director Dr Paul Seaward, continuing our recent theme of Parliament…
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Adapting the chambers of Parliament: from the galleries of the 18th-century Lords to the division lobbies of the 19th-century Commons
Ahead of next Tuesday’s Virtual IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar, we hear from Dr Robin Eagles and Dr Kathryn Rix,…
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Life as an MP: a recipe for marital bliss?
In today’s blog Dr Emma Peplow, coordinator of the History of Parliament’s Oral History Project, picks up our recent theme…
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Elizabeth I, the ‘estate of marriage’, and the 1559 Parliament
To mark Women’s History Month, Dr Paul Hunneyball, assistant editor of our Lords 1558-1603 section, recalls the first public statement…
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A History of Parliamentary Cucumbers
Our friends at Hansard at Huddersfield provide a great tool for tracking the popularity of certain words in parliamentary debate.…
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Violence at the Door of Parliament, 1640-48
Over the past few weeks the eyes of the world have been on Washington. As the United States prepares to…
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Did the Puritans ban Christmas dinner?
The Puritans are often accused of banning Christmas, and although the House of Commons did sit on Christmas Day during…
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Taking back control of a ‘disordered and distracted nation’: the Provisional Government 11-25 December 1688
As many of us face a very unusual and unsettled Christmas due to the Covid-19 pandemic, we are reminded that…