Parties
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‘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…
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‘The sect of Alarmists’: The Third Party and the reluctant leadership of William Windham, 1793-4
In this latest post, the Georgian Lords welcomes a guest article by James Orchin, PhD student at Queen’s University, Belfast, re-examining William Windham’s ‘Third Party’, known as ‘The Alarmists’. The group was mostly made up of former Foxite Whigs, who…
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‘I have attached myself to no party’: Daniel Gaskell and parliamentary life in the 1830s
Our Victorian Commons project is shedding new light on the increasingly important role played in the behind-the-scenes business of the post-1832 House of Commons, particularly in the committee-rooms, by MPs who came from non-elite backgrounds. Dr Kathryn Rix looks at…
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From bills to bullets: Spring 1775 and the approach to war in America
A recent article in this series [Background to the American Revolution] looked at the debates in the House of Lords in early February 1775 on a bill for conciliation with the American colonies. After its rejection the imperial crisis continued…
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The evolving electoral system: the 1835 and 1865 general elections compared
This year marks the 190th anniversary of the 1835 general election and the 160th anniversary of the 1865 general election. Our assistant editor Dr Kathryn Rix looks at some of the ways in which the electoral system had evolved in…
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‘of all others most desirable’: Pitt the Younger and elections for Cambridge
From the onset of his lengthy political career, William Pitt the Younger had his eyes fixed on representing his alma mater, the University of Cambridge. Writing to his mother in July 1779, he observed that the University seat was ‘of…
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Some thoughts on William Pulteney, earl of Bath
The 31 May 2025 marks Dr Stuart Handley’s last day at the History of Parliament. One of his last biographies for The House of Lords, 1715-90 has been William Pulteney, earl of Bath. It will be the third History of…
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‘A Socialist Identity in Parliament’? The Campaign Group of Labour MPs, 1982-2015
Ahead of next Tuesday’s Parliaments, Politics and People seminar, we hear from Alfie Steer of Hertford College, University of Oxford. On 11 February Alfie will discuss the Campaign Group of Labour MPs, 1982-2015. The seminar takes place on 11 February 2025, between…
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Robert Burns in Edinburgh: peers, patrons, and politics
In the wake of Burns Night, it is worth considering how the patronage of a small number of Scottish nobles helped Robert Burns become established as the national bard. In his latest piece for the Georgian Lords, Dr Charles Littleton,…
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A Meddlesome Mother? Queen Charlotte and the Regency Crisis
In October 1788, George III fell ill with an unknown ‘malady’ which rendered him unable to fulfil his duties as sovereign: the beginning of the king’s famous ‘madness’. In the latest post for the Georgian Lords, we welcome Dr Natalee…
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Cynog Dafis: Britain’s first Green MP?
While Caroline Lucas is commonly referred to as Britain’s first Green Member of Parliament, Cynog Dafis, who entered parliament as the Plaid Cymru MP for Ceredigion and North Pembrokeshire nearly twenty years earlier, could also claim this title. Alfie Steer…
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Tales from the Green Benches: An Oral History of Parliament
This week, The History of Parliament Trust is excited to announce a new podcast series, ‘Tales from the Green Benches: An Oral History of Parliament’. Since 2012, the History of Parliament has been interviewing former members of the House of…