As the New Year approaches, Emma Peplow reviews 2012 at the History of Parliament. 2012 has been an exciting year for Britain, and a very busy one for the History; aside from our continuing work building up accounts of politics, politicians and constituencies in the fifteenth, seventeenth (the lords and commons) eighteenth and nineteenth centuries, there were new publications, new projects and a great deal … Continue reading The History of Parliament in 2012
The History of Parliament are delighted to announce the winners of our undergraduate and sixth form essay competitions for 2012. The undergraduate prize is awarded to the best undergraduate dissertation on a subject relating to British or Irish parliamentary or political history (this year, limited to the period before 1832.) The 6th form essay competition is awarded to the best essay on any aspect of … Continue reading Winners of the History’s annual dissertation and essay prizes
The History’s Philip Baker tells us about his new book, out this week, on the Levellers’ Agreements of the People.. Many people might be surprised to learn that we need not have waited until the present day for fixed-term parliaments, or even until the 1832 Reform Act for a significant expansion of the franchise and redistribution of parliamentary seats, if proposals discussed at the height … Continue reading The Agreements of the People, 1647-1649
Dr Kathryn Rix of The Victorian Commons reports back on the latest ‘parliaments, politics and people’ seminar The final paper of 2012 for the ‘Parliament, Politics and People’ seminar was given by Professor Richard Toye, of the University of Exeter, who spoke on ‘The rhetorical culture of the House of Commons in the interwar years’. Richard’s excellent talk, which drew on research undertaken for a … Continue reading Parliaments Politics and People seminar: Richard Toye, ‘The rhetorical culture of the House of Commons in the interwar years’
Dr Charles Littleton discusses the ‘Provisional Government’ that formed on this day – 11 December – in 1688 to take control after James II’s first flight from William of Orange. The members of the late 17th-century House of Lords were in no doubt that they were the ‘natural’ governors of the realm next to the king himself. Thus on 11-16 December 1688, for the brief … Continue reading The first meeting of the ‘Provisional Government’ and the signing of the Guildhall Declaration
Dr Stephen Roberts, editor of the HOP’s House of Commons 1640-60 project, explains the importance of “Pride’s Purge” which took place on this day in 1648. Since the victories by the New Model Army which brought the first civil war between Parliament and King Charles I to an end in 1646, relations between the soldiers and their parliamentary employers had been uneasy. Many of the … Continue reading 6 December, 1648: Pride’s Purge
In our first blog on the methods our academics use for their research, Dr Vivienne Larminie discusses that great resource for political historians and journalists that can still cause a sensation today: The private diary. Akin to contemporary minutes of meetings, the seventeenth century Commons’ and Lords’ Journals principally record decisions taken, committee appointments and the number of votes on either side in divisions. Lacking … Continue reading Researching the House of Commons: Parliamentary Diaries
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