Category: Legislative History

Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Arthur Wellesley, 1st duke of Wellington, Charles Grey, 2nd Earl Grey, Electoral Reform, Legislative History, Queen Victoria, Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd marquess of Salisbury, Victorian

House of Lords reform: a Victorian perspective

Unlike the House of Commons, which underwent major ‘democratic’ reform in the 19th century, the Lords remained virtually unchanged during the entire Victorian period. With a new hereditary peers bill now entering its final stages, Dr Philip Salmon explores how and why the House of Lords was able to survive the ‘age of reform’, highlighting constitutional difficulties that still have relevance today. The 19th century … Continue reading House of Lords reform: a Victorian perspective

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Revolutionary Stuart Parliaments, 16th Century history, 17th Century history, Conferences, Seminars and Events, Edward VI, Legislative History, Religious history, Stuart, Tudor

Parliament and the Church, c.1530-c.1630

In this blog, Dr Alex Beeton reviews a fascinating colloquium, held recently at the History of Parliament’s office in Bloomsbury Square. In the early modern period, both England’s Church and its Parliament changed. A Catholic country split from Rome and the importance and prominence of the two Houses of Parliament dramatically increased. These two seismic shifts were not isolated from one another. Parliament’s role in … Continue reading Parliament and the Church, c.1530-c.1630

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Contemporary History, 20th century history, Legislative History, Modern, Tony Blair

‘A negative achievement’: Behind the scenes of the House of Lords Act 1999

Ahead of major pieces of legislation designed to reform the composition of the House of Lords, and our recent event ‘Reforming the House of Lords’ discussing the history of this tricky issue, Dr Emma Peplow, Head of Contemporary History, draws upon our Oral History Project to revisit the last time significant reforms were introduced. The House of Lords Act 1999 was the last major reform … Continue reading ‘A negative achievement’: Behind the scenes of the House of Lords Act 1999

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Victorian Commons, 19th Century history, Legislative History, Victorian, Women and Parliament

‘The only really important public service I performed’: John Stuart Mill’s women’s suffrage amendment, 20 May 1867

Having looked at John Stuart Mill’s role in presenting the first mass petition for women’s suffrage, our colleague Dr Kathryn Rix explores his continued efforts for the cause of ‘votes for women’, bringing forward an amendment on women’s suffrage as part of the debates on the 1867 Reform Act. John Stuart Mill (1806-73) is best known as a philosopher and influential political thinker, but he … Continue reading ‘The only really important public service I performed’: John Stuart Mill’s women’s suffrage amendment, 20 May 1867

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