Month: May 2018

18th Century history, Early modern history, Women and Parliament

Duchesses in the Gallery: women watching the eighteenth-century House of Commons

This month’s installment of our ‘Women and Parliament’ blog series comes from the HPT’s Dr Paul Seaward, who is currently holder of a British Academy / Wolfson Foundation Research Professorship for his project, Reformation to Referendum: Writing a New History of Parliament. You can read more about the project, which involves looking at Parliament’s past in a very different way, here . In this blog, Paul … Continue reading Duchesses in the Gallery: women watching the eighteenth-century House of Commons

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20th century history, Conferences/seminars, Elections, military history

Parliaments, Politics and People seminar – Ex-servicemen and the Liberal Party: the Great War generation and the electoral and parliamentary politics of the 1920s

Today’s blog ahead of our Parliaments, Politics and People seminar at the Institute of Historical Research this evening, is from Dr Matthew Johnson. Matthew is Associate Professor (Modern British History) at the University of Durham. He gave his paper at our last PPP seminar on ‘Ex-servicemen and the Liberal Party: the Great War generation and the electoral and parliamentary politics of the 1920s’… The political … Continue reading Parliaments, Politics and People seminar – Ex-servicemen and the Liberal Party: the Great War generation and the electoral and parliamentary politics of the 1920s

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17th Century history, Early modern history, Health and Medicine, James I to Restoration, social history

Dudley North, 3rd Lord North and the discovery of the waters of Tunbridge Wells

As part of our focus on health and medicine, Dr Ben Coates of the Lords 1604-29 Section considers the origins of the famous spa at Tunbridge Wells, Kent, and ponders whether the parliamentary context might shed light on the date of these events… In March 2017 a new, cartoon-style mural by artist Chris Burke was unveiled on platform 2 of Tunbridge Wells station in Kent. … Continue reading Dudley North, 3rd Lord North and the discovery of the waters of Tunbridge Wells

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19th Century history, 20th century history, Health and Medicine

‘Of unsound mind’? MPs, mental health and the 1886 Lunacy (Vacating of Seats) Act

Today, during Mental Health Awareness Week, we hear from Dr Kathryn Rix, Assistant Editor of the Commons 1832-1868 Section and the Victorian Commons blog. She explains the legislation that bound MPs suffering with prolonged periods of mental illness from 1886 until legislative reform in 2013… In 1886 Parliament passed the first piece of legislation dealing directly with the mental health of its members, the Lunacy … Continue reading ‘Of unsound mind’? MPs, mental health and the 1886 Lunacy (Vacating of Seats) Act

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18th Century history, Early modern history, military history, Royal family

‘Skulking on the Poop’: the court martial of Captain Henry Rufane 1745

Today’s blog for Mental Health Awareness Week is from Dr Robin Eagles of the Lords 1660-1832 Section. He describes the controversy surrounding the mental and physical health of Marine Captain Henry Rufane during his trial following a battle at sea with the forces of the Young Pretender in 1745… In the summer of 1745 Charles Edward Stuart (the Young Pretender) launched his bid for the British … Continue reading ‘Skulking on the Poop’: the court martial of Captain Henry Rufane 1745

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19th Century history, Elections, Electoral Reform

The 1868 Boundary Act: Disraeli’s attempt to control his ‘leap in the dark’?

This year marks the 150th anniversary of the 1868 Boundary Act. As Martin Spychal of the Commons 1832-68 Section discusses in today’s blog, the oft-neglected story of the Act provides several key insights into Britain’s second Reform Act and, in particular, the intentions of Benjamin Disraeli, the Conservative Prime Minister in 1868… It is often forgotten that Benjamin Disraeli intended to mitigate the democratising impact … Continue reading The 1868 Boundary Act: Disraeli’s attempt to control his ‘leap in the dark’?

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19th Century history, Conferences/seminars

Parliaments, Politics and People seminar – The Victorian Palace of Science: scientific knowledge and the building of Britain’s Houses of Parliament

Today’s blog ahead of our Parliaments, Politics and People seminar at the Institute of Historical Research this evening, is from Dr Edward J. Gillin. Edward is a postdoctoral research fellow at the University of Cambridge, working in the history of the science of sound in the nineteenth century. He gave his paper at our previous PPP seminar on the Houses of Parliament and their significance in the emerging … Continue reading Parliaments, Politics and People seminar – The Victorian Palace of Science: scientific knowledge and the building of Britain’s Houses of Parliament

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