Category: Victorian

Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Constituencies, Elections, Electoral Reform, Parties, Victorian

Reappraising England’s reformed electoral map, 1832-1868: the impact of the 1832 Reform Act

Dr Martin Spychal, Senior Research Fellow on our House of Commons 1832-1868 Commons project, discuses the impact of the 1832 reform legislation on English electoral politics. This article draws from Martin’s book, Mapping the State: English boundaries and the 1832 Reform Act (2024) which is available to download free in open access. The 1832 Reform Act (and its associated legislation, the 1832 Boundary Act) reshaped … Continue reading Reappraising England’s reformed electoral map, 1832-1868: the impact of the 1832 Reform Act

Martin SpychalLeave a comment
Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Constituencies, Elections, Victorian

Who could vote? From potwallopers to ten-pounders: post-1832 franchises explained

Clarifying the workings of England’s historic electoral system, Philip Salmon examines who could vote following the changes made by the ‘Great’ Reform Act of 1832. This article covers the system which was in operation until the next major Reform Act in 1867. Potwallopers, ten-pounders, scot and lot voters, copyholders, burgage holders, freemen, forty-shilling freeholders, tenants-at-will – these are just some of the archaic terms for … Continue reading Who could vote? From potwallopers to ten-pounders: post-1832 franchises explained

Philip SalmonLeave a comment
Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, Elections, Parliamentary Life, Parties, Robert Peel, Speakers of the House, Victorian, William IV, William Lamb, 2nd Viscount Melbourne

The Speakership election of 1835

In this article Dr Kathryn Rix and Dr Martin Spychal of our House of Commons, 1832-1868 project discuss a pivotal vote in the early nineteenth-century Commons – the selection of the Speaker in February 1835. They explore popular reaction to the vote, its short and long-term significance and the difficulties of compiling an accurate division list before the publication of an official record of parliamentary … Continue reading The Speakership election of 1835

Martin SpychalLeave a comment
A map of Buckinghamshire, that includes the three Chiltern Hundreds of Stoke, Desborough and Burnham in the south of the county
17th Century history, 14th Century history, 15th Century History, 16th Century history, 18th Century history, 19th Century history, 20th century history, Constituencies, Elections, Georgian, Interregnum, Legislative History, Medieval, Modern, Parliamentary Life, Stuart, Tudor, Victorian

How does an MP resign? The Chiltern Hundreds & the Manor of Northstead

Have you just heard that an MP has resigned by ‘taking the Chiltern Hundreds’? Our Senior Research Fellow, Dr Martin Spychal, explains the practice and explores its historical context… MPs are not allowed to resign from Parliament. However, a parliamentary loophole exists that allows an MP to vacate their seat by asking the chancellor of the exchequer to disqualify them from sitting in the Commons. … Continue reading How does an MP resign? The Chiltern Hundreds & the Manor of Northstead

Martin Spychal2 Comments
Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Parties, Robert Peel, Victorian

Sir Robert Peel and the modern Conservative party

Sir Robert Peel, twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (1834-35, 1841-46), entered Parliament at only 21 years of age. He went on to establish the Metropolitan police, repeal controversial laws such as the Test and Corporation Acts and later the Corn Laws, and introduce Catholic emancipation. However, as Dr Philip Salmon from our House of Commons 1832-68 section explores, Peel also played a significant … Continue reading Sir Robert Peel and the modern Conservative party

Philip SalmonLeave a comment
Victorian, Parliamentary Life, Resources and Publications, Victorian Commons

Accessing Hansard online: a research guide

Hansard – the official record of what is said in Parliament – originated in the early 19th century. Our Commons 1832-68 project team have previously written about how the reporting of parliamentary debates evolved in the 19th century and what conditions were like in the reporters’ gallery. In this post, Dr Kathryn Rix has put together a research guide for other researchers or interested readers … Continue reading Accessing Hansard online: a research guide

Kathryn RixLeave a comment
Victorian, 19th Century history, Resources and Publications

The Politics of Organising in the Long 19th Century

Dr Naomi Lloyd-Jones, Research Fellow on the Victorian Commons project, has edited ‘The Politics of Organising in the Long 19th Century’, this year’s special issue of the journal Parliamentary History. The whole issue is free to read until the end of June 2026. This collection of 11 essays makes the case for a fresh approach to the history of extra-parliamentary politics that examines both the … Continue reading The Politics of Organising in the Long 19th Century

History of ParliamentLeave a comment
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

Kathryn RixLeave a comment
19th Century history, Conferences, Seminars and Events, Constituencies, Elections, Victorian

Parliamentary politics in the London boroughs, 1832-68

At the IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar on Tuesday 19 May, Dr Jeremy Crump of the Institute of Historical Research, will be discussing parliamentary politics in the London boroughs between 1832 and 1868. The seminar takes place on 19 May 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 Parliamentary politics in the London boroughs, 1832-68

History of ParliamentLeave a comment
Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Georgian, History of Parliament Trust, Minority Ethnic History, Scottish History, Slavery, Victorian

‘Philly’ or ‘Filly’ (c.1790-unknown): mother and enslaved domestic worker of Barbados and Guyana

In this extended third article in his series on Peter McLagan, MP for Linlithgowshire 1865-1893, Dr Martin Spychal explores the life of ‘Philly’ or ‘Filly’. Philly was enslaved at the domestic residence of McLagan’s father in Demerara (modern-day Guyana) at the time of McLagan’s birth. This article draws on research in the ‘Slave registers and records of the Slave Compensation Commission, 1812-1851’, held by the … Continue reading ‘Philly’ or ‘Filly’ (c.1790-unknown): mother and enslaved domestic worker of Barbados and Guyana

Martin SpychalLeave a comment