Category: Electoral Reform

Conferences, Seminars and Events, 19th Century history, Art, Fashion and Material Culture, Electoral Reform, Social history, Victorian

Producing, Performing and Curating Radicalism: How was radical material culture produced, used and curated in early 19th century Britain?

Ahead of next Tuesday’s Parliaments, Politics and People seminar, we hear from Dr Caitlin Kitchener. On 28 January Caitlin will discuss the production, use and curation of radical material culture in the early nineteenth century. The seminar takes place on 28 January 2025, between 5:30 and 6.30 p.m. It will be hosted online via Zoom. Details of how to join the discussion are available here. … Continue reading Producing, Performing and Curating Radicalism: How was radical material culture produced, used and curated in early 19th century Britain?

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Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Constituencies, Elections, Electoral Reform, Local History, Victorian

The impact of the 1883 Corrupt Practices Act: the York by-election

Continuing her series on the 1883 Corrupt Practices Act, Dr Kathryn Rix looks at its impact on electioneering, focusing on the November 1883 York by-election, which was the first parliamentary election held in England under the Act’s terms. The 1883 Corrupt and Illegal Practices Prevention Act, a landmark reform aimed at tackling the corruption and expense of elections, received royal assent on 25 August 1883, … Continue reading The impact of the 1883 Corrupt Practices Act: the York by-election

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Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Elections, Electoral Reform, History of Parliament Trust, Local History, Victorian

Mapping the State: English Boundaries and the 1832 Reform Act

In this week’s blog, Dr Martin Spychal, Senior Research Fellow on the Commons 1832-1868 project, discusses his new book Mapping the State: English Boundaries and the 1832 Reform Act. The book is part of the Royal Historical Society’s New Historical Perspectives series and has been published by the University of London press. It is available now to download free in open access, or to purchase … Continue reading Mapping the State: English Boundaries and the 1832 Reform Act

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Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Elections, Electoral Reform, History of Parliament Trust, William Ewart Gladstone

Tackling the problem of electoral corruption: the 1883 Corrupt and Illegal Practices Prevention Act

Marking the anniversary of the passage of the 1883 Corrupt Practices Act, Dr Kathryn Rix, assistant editor of the House of Commons, 1832-1945, begins a series of blog posts on this landmark reform by looking at the key changes made by the act and the motivations behind it. On 25 August 1883, the final day of the parliamentary session, the Corrupt and Illegal Practices Prevention … Continue reading Tackling the problem of electoral corruption: the 1883 Corrupt and Illegal Practices Prevention Act

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Georgian Elections Project, 18th Century history, Elections, Electoral Reform, Factions, Georgian, History of Parliament Trust, Parties

Breaking the Political Mould: a new 18th-century political party

With a multiple of parties vying for your vote in the 2024 General Election, the Whig and Tory monopoly of the 18th Century would have presented a much more limited choice for Georgian voters. However, in today’s blog for the Georgian elections project Dr Robin Eagles explores how one new party in particular threatened to upset the apple cart… Direct comparisons with today’s political parties … Continue reading Breaking the Political Mould: a new 18th-century political party

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History of Parliament Trust, 18th Century history, Elections, Electoral Reform, Georgian, Georgian Elections Project

To reform or not to reform: Party manifestos

As many modern political parties announce their manifestos this week Dr Robin Eagles from our House of Lords 1715-1790 project looks back at the decisions around flagship policies that could make or break parties and alliances in the 18th century, as part of our Georgian Elections Project. Party manifestos as we know them today are largely a product of the post-1832 changes in the way … Continue reading To reform or not to reform: Party manifestos

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Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Conferences, Seminars and Events, Elections, Electoral Reform, Local History, Victorian

‘The corruption of the best things becomes the worst.’ The Politics of Electoral Registration in Several Midland Boroughs in the Age of Reform, 1832-41

Ahead of next Tuesday’s Parliaments, Politics and People seminar, we hear from Sarah Boote Powell, of the University of Warwick. On 14 May she will discuss the politics of electoral registration in the Midlands in the aftermath of the 1832 Reform Act. The seminar takes place on 14 April 2024, between 5:30 and 6.30 p.m. It is taking place online, via Zoom. Details of how to … Continue reading ‘The corruption of the best things becomes the worst.’ The Politics of Electoral Registration in Several Midland Boroughs in the Age of Reform, 1832-41

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Georgian Lords, 18th Century history, 19th Century history, Conferences, Seminars and Events, Electoral Reform, Victorian Commons

The political identity of ‘inhabitant’ in early nineteenth-century England

Ahead of next Tuesday’s Parliaments, Politics and People seminar, we hear from Mary O’Connor of Somerville College, University of Oxford. On 12 March she will discuss the political identity of ‘inhabitant’ in early nineteenth-century England The seminar takes place on 12 March 2024, 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 … Continue reading The political identity of ‘inhabitant’ in early nineteenth-century England

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Georgian, 18th Century history, 19th Century history, Conferences, Seminars and Events, Electoral Reform, Social history

Everyday Experiences of Politics: Material Culture in the Age of Reform, 1780-1832

Our Parliaments, Politics and People seminar is back for the autumn term! At next week’s seminar Kerry Love of the University of Northampton will discuss material culture and the everyday experience of politics between 1780 and 1832. The seminar takes place on 3 October 2023, between 17:30 and 19:00. It is fully ‘hybrid’, which means you can attend either in-person in London at the IHR, or … Continue reading Everyday Experiences of Politics: Material Culture in the Age of Reform, 1780-1832

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Contemporary History, 20th century history, Elections, Electoral Reform, Modern, Oral history, Women and Parliament

All-Women Shortlists: 30 Years On

During the 1993 Labour Party Conference, all-women shortlists were endorsed by the party. In the following general election in 1997, the number of women MPs doubled. In this blog, Alfie Steer explores our oral history archive and discusses the controversy of AWS and its impact on Parliament. This year marks thirty years since the Labour Party first introduced all-women’s shortlists (AWS) for parliamentary selections. Its … Continue reading All-Women Shortlists: 30 Years On

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