You’ve come to this page to find out the answers to the quiz- so which of these famous names sat in Parliament?

Geoffrey Chaucer (1343-1400), author of The Canterbury Tales…

Yes! Chaucer was elected as knight of the shire for Kent in 1386. Find out more about Chaucer’s political career on our website, here.

Richard Whittington (d.1423), Lord Mayor of London and cat-owner

Yes! Richard ‘Dick’ Whittington, the 15th century Mayor of London, was elected as MP for the city in 1416. His History of Parliament biography sadly lacks any information about his cat, but you can read about his parliamentary career here.

Sir Thomas More  (1477-1535) advisor to Henry VIII and Catholic saint

Yes! Sir Thomas More was an MP in the early 16th century, and even served as Speaker of the House of Commons in 1523. However, his refusal to accept Henry VIII as the head of the English Church led to his imprisonment in the Tower of London and he was executed for treason in 1535. His parliamentary biography features in our 1509-1558 volumes, here.

Sir Francis Drake (1540-96) privateer, Admiral and circumnavigator

Yes! Sir Francis Drake, a favourite of Queen Elizabeth I well known for his career as an explorer and seaman, served as an MP for three different constituencies in 1572, 1584 and 1593. Read about his time in Parliament here.

Christopher Marlowe (1564-1593) playwright, poet and translator

No! The celebrated Elizabethan playwright never sat in Parliament, but Marlowe was close to some members of the Queen’s Privy Council, with some believing that he even acted as a government spy. These rumours have not been proven, however.

Thomas Fairfax (1612-1671) Civil War commander-in-chief

Yes! The Captain General of the New Model Army led the Parliamentary forces to victory at the Battle of Naseby (1645), but Fairfax also served as an MP in 1649 and 1650, before returning to Parliament in 1659 and 1660. You can read more about him in our latest publication, the House of Commons 1640-1660.

Charles Dickens (1812-1870), author, social critic

No! The 19th century author was never an MP, but did work as a Parliamentary reporter. He worked for The Mirror of Parliament, owned by his uncle, and his election reporting for the Morning Chronicle inspired his depiction of Eatanswill in Pickwick Papers. Find out more in this blog from our Victorian Commons project.

Isaac Newton (1642-1727) physicist, philosopher, mathematician

Yes! Newton represented the Cambridge University seat in 1689 and 1701, and he often informed the vice-chancellor of proceedings which ‘he didn’t always understand himself’! Read more in our Commons 1660-1690 volumes, here.

George Stephenson (1781-1848) engineer, ‘Father of railways’

No! Stephenson, known for his pioneering work during the industrial revolution, was never a Member of Parliament. However, his son Robert was Conservative MP (1847-59) for Whitby, a constituency our Victorian Commons colleagues have written a blog about here.

William Henry Fox Talbot (1800-1877) pioneer of photography

Yes! Talbot was elected as a Whig MP for Chippenham in 1832, but complained that attending parliamentary debates that often lasted until 3am prevented him from pursuing his scientific interests. In 1835 he abandoned his political career to pursue photographic invention. Our colleagues at the Victorian Commons blog wrote about Talbot, here.

Millicent Garrett Fawcett (1847-1929) suffrage campaigner

No! Despite being known as the leader of the National Society of Women’s Suffrage Societies and campaigning for women’s right to the vote, Millicent Fawcett never herself sat in Parliament. However, her husband Henry served as an MP from 1865-1884 and was the first completely blind MP. You can read about Henry Fawcett’s career and his partnership with Millicent here.

Ernest Shackleton (1874-1922) polar explorer

No! Shackleton led three expeditions to the Antarctic (one of which we have a blog about here), but never made it to Parliament. He stood as the Liberal Unionist Party’s candidate for Dundee in the 1906 General Election, but was unsuccessful, eventually only ranking fourth out of five candidates.

Christabel Pankhurst (1880-1958) suffragette

No! Christabel was a central figure in the suffragette movement, with her mother Emmeline acting as the leader of the Women’s Social and Political Union. Following the passing of the Representation of the People’s Act in 1918 which granted some women the opportunity to stand as MPs, Christabel ran as a Women’s Party candidate for the constituency of Smethwick in the 1918 General Election, but narrowly lost to the Labour Party candidate.

Megan Lloyd George (1902-1966) campaigner, daughter of David

Yes! The youngest child of former Prime Minister David Lloyd George, in 1929 Megan became the first female MP from a Welsh constituency. She represented Anglesey 1929-1951 and Carmarthen 1957- 1966, even serving as Deputy Leader of the Liberal Party 1949-50.

Constance Markievicz (1868-1927) Irish Nationalist campaigner and suffragist

Yes! In 1918 Constance Markievicz became the first woman to be elected to the House of Commons, chosen for the Dublin St Patrick’s constituency. However, as per her party Sinn Féin’s policy, Markievicz never actually took her seat in Westminster. You can find out more about Markievicz on the History of Parliament YouTube channel.

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