Category: Buildings and Architecture

The Commons in the Wars of the Roses, 15th Century History, Buildings and Architecture, Local History, Medieval, Parliamentary Life

Lineage and Architectural Display: the ‘Golden Chapel’ at Tong (Shropshire) and the Commemoration of Sir Henry Vernon, governor of the household of Prince Arthur

Dr Simon Payling of our 1461-1504 section explores the life and remembrance of MP for Derbyshire Sir Henry Vernon, and his family’s enduring relationship with Tong (Shropshire). In the funerary landscape of late-medieval England, parish churches provided gentry families a hallowed setting, at the heart of their communities, in which their lineage and status could be publicly and enduringly expressed. The church of St Bartholomew at Tong in … Continue reading Lineage and Architectural Display: the ‘Golden Chapel’ at Tong (Shropshire) and the Commemoration of Sir Henry Vernon, governor of the household of Prince Arthur

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19th Century history, Buildings and Architecture, Parliamentary Life, Victorian, Victorian Commons

Four prorogations and a conflagration: Parliament and its buildings in 1834

Continuing our series on parliamentary buildings, Dr Kathryn Rix of our House of Commons 1832-1945 project looks at the makeshift arrangements made for the prorogation in the aftermath of the devastating Westminster fire of October 1834. On 15 August 1834 the House of Commons assembled for the last day of the 1834 parliamentary session. Around seventy members were present in the chamber – the former St … Continue reading Four prorogations and a conflagration: Parliament and its buildings in 1834

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A statue of a queen on a throne with two women to either side
19th Century history, Art, Fashion and Material Culture, Buildings and Architecture, Conferences, Seminars and Events, Queen Victoria, Victorian, Women and Parliament

‘Unobtrusive But Not Unimportant’: Representations of Women and Sovereign Power at the New Palace of Westminster, 1841-1870

At the IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar on Tuesday 17 February, Dr Cara Gathern of UK Parliament Heritage Collections, will be discussing representations of women and sovereign power at the New Palace of Westminster, 1841-1870. The seminar takes place on 17 February 2026, between 5:30 and 6:30 p.m. It is fully ‘hybrid’, which means you can attend either in-person in London at the IHR, or online … Continue reading ‘Unobtrusive But Not Unimportant’: Representations of Women and Sovereign Power at the New Palace of Westminster, 1841-1870

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History of Parliament Trust, 17th Century history, 18th Century history, Art, Fashion and Material Culture, Buildings and Architecture, Factions, George III, Georgian, Georgian Lords, James II, Local History, Margaret Thatcher, Mary II, Military history, Parties, Stuart, William III, William Pitt the Younger

‘Confirmation of the People’s Rights’: commemorating the ‘Glorious Revolution’ of 1688

For many, the beginning of November means the advent of longer nights as the year winds down to Christmas. Some may still enjoy attending firework displays marking the failure of the 1605 Gunpowder Plot. In November 1788, though, serious efforts were made to establish a lasting memorial to the Revolution of 1688, whose centenary was celebrated nationwide. However, as Dr Robin Eagles shows, no one … Continue reading ‘Confirmation of the People’s Rights’: commemorating the ‘Glorious Revolution’ of 1688

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Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Buildings and Architecture, Victorian, Women and Parliament

The ladies’ gallery in the temporary House of Commons

This article from Dr Kathryn Rix, Assistant Editor of our House of Commons, 1832-1945 section, looks at the provision made for women to witness debates in the temporary chamber used by the Commons between 1835 and 1852. In the chamber used by the House of Commons before the catastrophic fire of October 1834, women – officially barred from the chamber itself since February 1778 – had … Continue reading The ladies’ gallery in the temporary House of Commons

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Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Buildings and Architecture, Victorian

The Westminster Fire of 1834

In this guest article, Dr Caroline Shenton, author of ‘The Day Parliament Burned Down‘ and ‘Mr Barry’s War: Rebuilding the Houses of Parliament after the Great Fire of 1834‘, describes the dramatic events that took place at the Palace of Westminster on 16 October 1834. By the late Georgian period, the buildings of the Palace of Westminster had become an accident waiting to happen. The rambling … Continue reading The Westminster Fire of 1834

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Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Buildings and Architecture, Parliamentary Life, Victorian

‘A place of business’: the temporary chamber of the House of Commons, 1835-1851

As part of our series on parliamentary buildings, Dr Kathryn Rix of our House of Commons, 1832-1945 project looks at the temporary chamber used by the House of Commons from 1835 until 1851, after its previous chamber was destroyed by fire in October 1834. The devastating fire at the Palace of Westminster on 16 October 1834 made the House of Commons chamber in the former … Continue reading ‘A place of business’: the temporary chamber of the House of Commons, 1835-1851

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Georgian Lords, 14th Century history, 15th Century History, 16th Century history, 17th Century history, 18th Century history, 19th Century history, 20th century history, Art, Fashion and Material Culture, Buildings and Architecture, Constituencies, Edward VI, Elections, Elizabeth I, George I, George III, Georgian, Henry VII, History of Parliament Trust, James II, John Stuart, 3rd earl of Bute, Local History, Medieval, Oliver Cromwell, Religious history, Stuart, Tudor

Descended from a giant: the Worsleys of Hovingham

The recent death of HRH the Duchess of Kent, who was married to the late queen’s cousin at York Minister in 1961, reminds us of her family’s long association with Yorkshire. This has included two brothers who served as archbishop of York and several members of her family who were elected to Parliament. Dr Robin Eagles considers the Worsley family’s connection with the north of … Continue reading Descended from a giant: the Worsleys of Hovingham

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19th Century history, Buildings and Architecture, Parliamentary Life, Victorian, Victorian Commons

‘The status of the Press is changed indeed’: the reporters’ gallery in the nineteenth-century House of Commons

Continuing our series on parliamentary buildings, Dr Kathryn Rix looks at the accommodation provided for the newspaper journalists who reported on the proceedings of the nineteenth-century House of Commons. The history of parliamentary reporting in the 19th century has two connected strands: the history of Hansard, and the history of reporting by the newspaper press, whose accounts of Commons debates formed the basis for Hansard’s … Continue reading ‘The status of the Press is changed indeed’: the reporters’ gallery in the nineteenth-century House of Commons

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19th Century history, Buildings and Architecture, Electoral Reform, Victorian, Victorian Commons, Women and Parliament

Harriet Grote (1792-1878) and the first reformed Parliament, 1833-34: a woman at Westminster

In the third of his articles on Harriet Grote (1792-1878), our research fellow Dr Martin Spychal looks at Harriet’s introduction to politics at Westminster during the first ‘reformed’ Parliament of 1833-34. Harriet Grote (1792-1878) was one of the most important British politicians of the 1830s. As I’ve discussed in my previous articles, she had been a key figure among London’s intellectual radicals during the previous … Continue reading Harriet Grote (1792-1878) and the first reformed Parliament, 1833-34: a woman at Westminster

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