Politics and play in girls’ schools in England, 1870-1914

Ahead of next Tuesday’s hybrid Parliaments, Politics and People seminar, we hear from Dr Helen Sunderland of St Catherine’s College, University of Oxford. On 16 May, between 5.30 p.m. and 6.30 p.m., Helen will discuss politics and play in girls’ schools in England between 1870 and 1914. The seminar takes place on 16 May 2023, between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. It is fully ‘hybrid’, which means … Continue reading Politics and play in girls’ schools in England, 1870-1914

2023 KS3 Schools Competition: How can political campaigns of the past inspire those of the present?

In collaboration with the Letters of Richard Cobden Online, the History of Parliament Trust is excited to announce their Key Stage 3 (11-14 y/o) History and Citizenship Competition: ‘How can political campaigns of the past inspire those of the present?’ ‘How can political campaigns of the past inspire those of the present?’ The History of Parliament is excited to once again be running its history … Continue reading 2023 KS3 Schools Competition: How can political campaigns of the past inspire those of the present?

Review of the Year 2022

2022 has been a bumper year for the History of Parliament, as we settled into a ‘new normal’ of events both online and in person, launched new projects and publications, and continued to grow our online outreach. Here’s our Public Engagement Manager Connie Jeffery with a round-up of another busy twelve months… After two years of uncertainty and unsettled working, for the History of Parliament … Continue reading Review of the Year 2022

“From wickedness or from weakness”: the beginning of the end for Sir Robert Walpole

During July we welcomed year 12 student Thomas O’Donoghue to the History of Parliament office, to carry out a work experience placement with our research and outreach teams. During his time, Thomas worked with Dr Robin Eagles, editor of our Lords 1715-1790 project, to explore an attempt in 1741 to topple Sir Robert Walpole from power. Here Thomas writes about the impact of two key … Continue reading “From wickedness or from weakness”: the beginning of the end for Sir Robert Walpole

George Huntingford, bishop of Hereford and tutor to Viscount Sidmouth

The Georgian Lords are delighted to welcome a guest blog from Laurence Guymer, master at Winchester College, on the influential warden of Winchester, George Huntingford, successively bishop of Gloucester and Hereford and a guiding influence on his former pupil, Prime Minister Henry Addington, Viscount Sidmouth. George Huntingford was warden of Winchester College (1789-1832), bishop of Gloucester (1802-1815), and of Hereford (1815-1832). He owed the two … Continue reading George Huntingford, bishop of Hereford and tutor to Viscount Sidmouth

Children and Parliament in Medieval England

Continuing the theme of children and Parliament following Helen Sunderland’s blog about schoolgirls’ visits to the House of Parliament, 1880-1918 from earlier this week, senior research fellow for our Commons 1461-1504 project, Dr Simon Payling, explores the relationship between children and Parliament in the later middle ages… It is not surprising that children, whether as individuals or a group, appear very rarely in the records … Continue reading Children and Parliament in Medieval England

The 1842 Chartist Petition – why over 3 million signatures translated into less than 50 votes

Today’s blog about the Chartist Petition of 1842 is part of our focus on wider electoral and political reform throughout this significant anniversary year in women’s political history – for more blogs in the series see here. The following blog has been written by year 10 work experience student, Layla Barwell from Dartford Grammar School for Girls. Layla spent the week with the public engagement … Continue reading The 1842 Chartist Petition – why over 3 million signatures translated into less than 50 votes

Schools: competition prize day!

Last month we welcomed our 2016 Key Stage Three Schools competition winner to Westminster… Slightly later than we hoped, thanks to this year’s snap election, the HPT welcomed our KS3 competition winner, Layla Barwell, and her family to Parliament. Layla attends Dartford Grammar School for girls, and was 13 when she wrote her excellent competition entry. We asked students to write newspaper reports on either … Continue reading Schools: competition prize day!

History of Parliament A level competition 2017

For those of you deep in exam season for GCSEs, AS and A Levels at the moment, very good luck to you all, especially in your history papers. Once they are all over and everything has calmed down, those of you thinking about studying history at university may well be interested in taking part in our A level competition (something to add to your application … Continue reading History of Parliament A level competition 2017

Review of the year 2016

It’s been yet another busy year here at the History of Parliament Trust. By far the most exciting event was the publication in July of our very first volumes focussing on the Upper House. The House of Lords 1660-1715, published in five volumes, features the biographies of nearly 700 spiritual and temporal peers, along with an introductory survey. The volumes are now available through Cambridge … Continue reading Review of the year 2016