Month: March 2015

Elections, Medieval history

York v Lancaster: elections during time of Civil War

Today, Parliament will be officially dissolved and election writs issued for all constituencies. Over the election campaign, we’ll be running a series of blogposts on campaigning and elections throughout the centuries, starting with a post from Dr Simon Payling, Senior Fellow of the Commons 1422-1504 section, on elections during the Wars of the Roses… Elections today may be closely-fought contests, but during the Civil Wars … Continue reading York v Lancaster: elections during time of Civil War

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Medieval history

Richard III and the Parliament of 1484

As Richard III is today reburied in Leicester Cathedral, Dr Hannes Kleineke, Senior Research Fellow on the Commons 1422-1504 section, discusses the importance of Richard’s only Parliament… As the bones of King Richard III are laid to rest at Leicester this week, there has been much renewed debate over the kind of King he might have been, had he reigned for longer. Richard’s apologists in … Continue reading Richard III and the Parliament of 1484

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19th Century history, Conferences/seminars

Parliaments, Politics and People seminar: Rebekah Moore, ‘Contested spaces: temporary houses of Parliament and government, 1834-52’

At our last ‘Parliaments, Politics and People’ seminar, Rebekah Moore, holder of an AHRC collaborative doctoral award with the History of Parliament and Institute of Historical Research, gave a paper on the temporary Houses of Parliament after the fire of 1834. Here Rebekah gives an overview of her paper… From 1557, the House of Commons was situated in St Stephen’s Chapel, one of the medieval … Continue reading Parliaments, Politics and People seminar: Rebekah Moore, ‘Contested spaces: temporary houses of Parliament and government, 1834-52’

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Early modern history

Henry, 4th Lord Willoughby of Parham: an accidental life

In today’s blogpost, Dr Paul Hunneyball, Senior Research Fellow on the Lords 1603-1660 section, shares the story of the mysterious 4th Lord Willoughby of Parham… The History of Parliament’s biographical approach to studying the Lords and Commons frequently throws up unexpected personal details, sometimes in the least promising places. The surviving archive for the Jacobean barons Willoughby of Parham is small, and the individuals concerned were of … Continue reading Henry, 4th Lord Willoughby of Parham: an accidental life

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20th century history, Events, Schools

The History of Parliament Schools competition: 2014 winners’ prize days and 2015 competition

2014 was the tenth year of the History of Parliament’s schools competition. As I’m sure you know, every year we run two competitions, one for A level students and one for Key Stage Three (KS3) students (11-14 year olds) – details of how to enter this year’s competition also in this post! Our 2014 winners were Matthew Pearson (Salesian College, Hampshire) at KS3 and Alan … Continue reading The History of Parliament Schools competition: 2014 winners’ prize days and 2015 competition

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Conferences/seminars, Early modern history

Parliaments, Politics and People seminar: Stephen Roberts, ‘The uses of a parliamentary diary in the making of a royalist: the case of Henry Townshend of Worcestershire’

Dr Stephen Roberts, editor of the Commons 1640-60 section, reports on his paper given at our last ‘Parliaments, Politics and People’ seminar: ‘The uses of a parliamentary diary in the making of a royalist: the case of Henry Townshend of Worcestershire, 1640-3’… Henry Townshend (c. 1602-1663) was a Worcestershire gentleman who lived in Elmley Lovett, a village ten miles north of Worcester. He was the … Continue reading Parliaments, Politics and People seminar: Stephen Roberts, ‘The uses of a parliamentary diary in the making of a royalist: the case of Henry Townshend of Worcestershire’

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Medieval history

Parliament in the North

Yesterday, the Commons Speaker John Bercow suggested that MPs may have to move out of the House of Commons for extensive repair work to take place in the Palace of Westminster. Yet Parliament has not always been held in Westminster, or even London. Dr Hannes Kleineke, Senior Research Fellow on the Commons 1422-1504 section, discusses Parliament’s travels in the medieval period… If by the present day … Continue reading Parliament in the North

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Early modern history

1624: The Last Parliament of James I

In the second in our series of blogs marking the release of the Commons’ proceedings of the 1624 Parliament – with those for March 1624 available here from today – Professor Chris Kyle, of Syracuse University, considers the historical significance of the assembly and the publication of its debates. The last Parliament of James I was a unique and unusual assembly: it was legislatively successful. … Continue reading 1624: The Last Parliament of James I

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