Category: Legal history

Tudor, 16th Century history, Conferences, Seminars and Events, Legal history, Religious history, Social history

Parliaments, Politics and People Seminar: The Political and Religious Origins of the 1563 Witchcraft Act

Ahead of this evening’s session of the IHR’s Parliaments, Politics, and People seminar, Lewis Brennen, PhD candidate at the University of Southampton, summarises the themes that he covered in his paper, ‘The Political and Religious Origins of the 1563 Witchcraft Act’, at our last session… The 1563 Witchcraft Act, formally titled an ‘Act agaynst Conjuracons Inchantments and Witchecraftes’, was one of the most significant pieces … Continue reading Parliaments, Politics and People Seminar: The Political and Religious Origins of the 1563 Witchcraft Act

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Modern, 20th century history, Conferences, Seminars and Events, Legal history, LGBTQ+ History, Social history

Disregarding the Past: The Problems of Pardoning Homosexual Offences

Ahead of this evening’s IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar, the speaker from the previous session in collaboration with the History of Sexuality seminar, Dr Justin Bengry, Director of the Centre for Queer History at Goldsmiths, University of London, summarises the issues raised in his paper about the pardoning of historical homosexual offences. In June 2015 I was approached by filmmaker Rosemarie Reed who was … Continue reading Disregarding the Past: The Problems of Pardoning Homosexual Offences

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Georgian Lords, 18th Century history, Georgian, Legal history, Scottish History, Women and Parliament

Tobacco Fraud and the Prorogation of April 1707

In the latest blog for the Georgian Lords, Dr Stuart Handley, senior research fellow in the Lords 1715-90 section, considers how an unexpected prorogation around the time of the Union was employed to attempt to secure the passage of much-needed legislation Prorogations have been much in the news of late, but they are a common occurrence in parliamentary history. Parliament is prorogued at the end … Continue reading Tobacco Fraud and the Prorogation of April 1707

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Medieval, 15th Century History, Legal history

Conversations with a medieval MP: Sir Thomas Billing and the Pastons

This month’s Medieval MP of the Month is highly esteemed fifteenth century lawyer, Sir Thomas Billing. Here’s Dr Simon Payling of our House of Commons 1422-1461 Section with more… THE HISTORY OF PARLIAMENT: THE HOUSE OF COMMONS 1422-1461, edited by Linda Clark, is out now. For further details about the volumes, including purchasing information,  visit the Cambridge University Press website, here. It is rare to have … Continue reading Conversations with a medieval MP: Sir Thomas Billing and the Pastons

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Georgian, 19th Century history, Electoral Reform, Legal history, Social history

The Six Acts and Censorship of the Press

Today we round off our Peterloo blog series with Dr Katie Carpenter’s second post about the legislation that was rushed through Parliament following the Peterloo Massacre on 16 August 1819. Today she discusses its aim of censoring the press… After the Peterloo Massacre, Lord Liverpool’s government quickly passed six pieces of oppressive legislation in late 1819. These new laws, which became known as the Six … Continue reading The Six Acts and Censorship of the Press

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Georgian, 19th Century history, Electoral Reform, Legal history, Social history

The Inquest into the death of John Lees

Our blog series to mark the bicentenary of the Peterloo Massacre continues today with Dr Katie Carpenter‘s third piece, which considers the inquest into the death of a young man following the infamous event at St. Peter’s Field in August 1819. Katie’s previous pieces and others in this series can be found here. There was never an official parliamentary inquiry into the Peterloo Massacre, that dark day on 16 August 1819 when … Continue reading The Inquest into the death of John Lees

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James I to Restoration, 17th Century history, Buildings and Architecture, Legal history, Parliamentary Life, Stuart

Alternative uses for the palace of Westminster: the early 17th-century picture

With the palace of Westminster requiring a major restoration programme, and some people suggesting that Parliament should permanently relocate to a new home, Dr Paul Hunneyball of the Lords 1604-29 section considers some of the uses to which the old Palace was put 400 years ago… Since the 19th century, the palace of Westminster has been synonymous with Parliament – but that wasn’t always the … Continue reading Alternative uses for the palace of Westminster: the early 17th-century picture

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Medieval, 15th Century History, Legal history, Parliamentary Life

Too few lawyers? The ‘Unlearned Parliament’ of October 1404

Following Dr Hannes Kleineke’s two part piece on the Good, the Bad, the Wonderful and the Merciless Parliaments of the late fourteenth century in June, Dr Simon Payling of our House of Commons 1422-1504 project discusses the ‘Unlearned Parliament’ of 1404… In the modern Parliament lawyers are the best represented of the professions with between about 10% and 15% of MPs qualified as barristers or … Continue reading Too few lawyers? The ‘Unlearned Parliament’ of October 1404

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Medieval, 15th Century History, Legal history

Medieval MP of the Month: The sea hawk – Robert Wenyngton alias Cane

June’s medieval MP of the month is the swashbuckling Robert Wenyngton of Dartmouth. Dr Hannes Kleineke, of our House of Commons 1422-1504 Section, discusses this fifteenth century pirate (and politician) below… THE HISTORY OF PARLIAMENT: THE HOUSE OF COMMONS 1422-1461, edited by Linda Clark, is out now. For further details about the volumes, including purchasing information,  visit the Cambridge University Press website, here. Long before Queen Elizabeth’s … Continue reading Medieval MP of the Month: The sea hawk – Robert Wenyngton alias Cane

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James I to Restoration, 17th Century history, Legal history, Resources and Publications, Stuart

Commission impossible? Deciphering job titles in History of Parliament biographies (part 1)

In the first of an occasional series, Dr Paul Hunneyball of the Lords 1604-29 section considers some of the unlikely-sounding posts held by MPs in the early seventeenth century… All published History of Parliament biographies, currently covering periods up to the nineteenth century, begin with a highly compressed digest of information about the life of the man in question. The first paragraph mostly contains genealogical … Continue reading Commission impossible? Deciphering job titles in History of Parliament biographies (part 1)

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