Category: Social history

17th Century history, James I to Restoration, Local History, Religious history, Social history, Stuart

Bayntun v. Hungerford: rival perspectives on puritan marriage in civil war Wiltshire

In our latest blog Dr Vivienne Larminie, assistant editor of our Commons 1640-1660 project, continues with our recent theme of marriage. She considers two mid-17th century Wiltshire MPs and their opposing personalities by way of their family lives… By late 1642, as the confrontation between king and Parliament escalated, personal rivalries between two leading local gentlemen threatened to undermine fatally the parliamentarian war effort in … Continue reading Bayntun v. Hungerford: rival perspectives on puritan marriage in civil war Wiltshire

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Conferences, Seminars and Events, 19th Century history, Electoral Reform, Social history, Victorian

Romantic Memory: Forgetting, Remembering and Feeling in the Chartist Pantheon of Heroes, c.1790–1840

Ahead of Tuesday’s Virtual IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar, we hear from Dr Matthew Roberts, the author of Chartism, Commemoration and the Cult of the Radical Hero (2020). He will be responding to your questions about his research on the politics of memory in the Chartist movement between 5:15 p.m. and 6:30 p.m. on 19 January 2021. Details on how to join the discussion are available here or by contacting seminar@histparl.ac.uk. … Continue reading Romantic Memory: Forgetting, Remembering and Feeling in the Chartist Pantheon of Heroes, c.1790–1840

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James I to Restoration, 17th Century history, Interregnum, Parliamentary Life, Social history

Did the Puritans ban Christmas dinner?

The Puritans are often accused of banning Christmas, and although the House of Commons did sit on Christmas Day during the English Republic, Dr Stephen Roberts felt the need to do a little myth-busting about the wholesale cancellation of Christmas during the interregnum, by way of the Christmas dinner table… Two images of the mid-17th century Christmas stick in the mind. The documented one is … Continue reading Did the Puritans ban Christmas dinner?

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Social history, 17th Century history, Interregnum, James I to Restoration, Legal history, Oliver Cromwell, Religious history

Cancelling Christmas? William Prynne, kill-joy and martyr, and the onslaught on ‘pagan Saturnalia’

With the government currently recommending scaled-back Christmas celebrations, due to the Covid-19 pandemic, Dr Vivienne Larminie, assistant editor of our Commons 1640-60 project, considers a man who advocated scrapping Yuletide festivities for a quite different reason… The idea that ‘the puritans cancelled Christmas’ has widespread acceptance. Indeed it surfaced in the House of Commons recently in debate over what kind of celebration might be prudent … Continue reading Cancelling Christmas? William Prynne, kill-joy and martyr, and the onslaught on ‘pagan Saturnalia’

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The Commons in the Wars of the Roses, 15th Century History, Parliamentary Life, Social history

Divorce, cuckoldry and bastardy: two unhappy medieval marriages

Today’s blog comes from Dr Charles Moreton, senior research fellow in our Commons 1461-1504 project, who begins our latest blog series all about parliamentarians’ marriages. Here Dr Moreton turns his attention to two particularly unhappy medieval marriages… Unlike some of the blogs to come in this series, the following offers a couple of examples of unhappy marriages. Both of the parliamentarians in question, Sir Thomas … Continue reading Divorce, cuckoldry and bastardy: two unhappy medieval marriages

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Contemporary History, 20th century history, Margaret Thatcher, Minority Ethnic History, Modern, Social history

The Politics of Protest in Britain: Race Riots in 1980-81

To mark Black History Month 2020, today’s post comes from guest blogger Dr Simon Peplow, senior teaching fellow at the University of Warwick. Dr Peplow is a researcher of modern British race, ethnicity, and migration history and his book ‘Race and Riots in Thatcher’s Britain‘ was released in paperback this month. In this blog he looks into parliamentary responses to the Race Riots that took … Continue reading The Politics of Protest in Britain: Race Riots in 1980-81

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James I to Restoration, 17th Century history, James I, Legal history, Parliamentary Life, Religious history, Social history, Stuart

Henry Percy, earl of Northumberland: the brains behind the Gunpowder Plot?

As we approach Bonfire Night on 5 November, Dr Paul Hunneyball of our Lords 1558-1603 project ponders whether we should be remembering a much more prestigious figure than Guy Fawkes… The Gunpowder Plot is one of the great ‘what ifs’ of British history. For more than four centuries we’ve commemorated the scheme’s failure – but if it had succeeded, and the House of Lords had … Continue reading Henry Percy, earl of Northumberland: the brains behind the Gunpowder Plot?

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Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Social history, Victorian

Book Review: Peterloo: The English Uprising by Robert Poole

Dr Martin Spychal, research fellow on the Commons 1832-1868, reviews Robert Poole’s Peterloo: The English Uprising (Oxford, 2019) What drove 400 volunteer soldiers and special constables to murder 18 and maim nearly 700 of their fellow Lancastrians? This is the key question that Robert Poole’s definitive and illuminating Peterloo sets out to answer. As Poole states in his prologue, ‘two hundred years on, it is … Continue reading Book Review: Peterloo: The English Uprising by Robert Poole

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17th Century history, Interregnum, James I to Restoration, Parliamentary Life, Social history, Stuart

Parliament and the Mayflower: the case of Samuel More’s children

This month marks the 400 year anniversary of the voyage of Mayflower, the ship that transported 102 passengers to begin their lives in ‘New England’. Last month the History of Parliament’s Director, Dr Stephen Roberts, explored the men who during the 1640s and 50s made the return journey from America to take up seats in Westminster. Today Stephen casts his attention to the MP Samuel … Continue reading Parliament and the Mayflower: the case of Samuel More’s children

Stephen Roberts3 Comments
James I to Restoration, 17th Century history, Constituencies, Interregnum, Local History, Parliamentary Life, Social history, Stuart

Of Puritans and Pilchards

In recent years, following the impact of Brexit, fishing regulation has become a recurring topic in the UK’s political discussions. Similarly, in the 17th century control over piscatorial exports was controversial. In our latest blog Dr Patrick Little, from our Commons 1640-1660 section, looks to the Cornish coast and the politicisation of their local delicacy, pilchards… In the Parliaments of the 1650s it is rare … Continue reading Of Puritans and Pilchards

Patrick Little2 Comments