Category: Women and Parliament

Stuart, 17th Century history, James I to Restoration, Women and Parliament

Women Petitioners and The Parlament of Women

As part of our Women and Parliament blog series to mark the centenary of the first women gaining the vote in 1918, this week we hear from Assistant Editor of the Commons 1640-1660 project, Dr Vivienne Larminie. She describes a seventeenth century satirical pamphlet about a fictitious women’s parliamentary meeting and explains how women interacted with Parliament in the seventeenth century… In 1640, a year … Continue reading Women Petitioners and The Parlament of Women

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18th Century history, Elections, Georgian Lords, Women and Parliament

‘A little door to get in, and a great crowd without’: how to get elected to Parliament in early Georgian Britain

Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, is still renowned as a poet, commentator on Ottoman society, from when she accompanied her husband on an embassy to Istanbul, and an early proponent in England of inoculation against small pox. Lady Mary’s letters can also offer us a view of how members of the Georgian House of Lords and their families were involved in elections to the ‘unreformed’ House of Commons. Continue reading ‘A little door to get in, and a great crowd without’: how to get elected to Parliament in early Georgian Britain

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

Women MPs in the 1990s

This month’s blog for the Women and Parliament series as part of our activities in celebration of the centenary of the Representation the People Act 1918, which allowed some women to vote in the UK for the first time, comes from our Assistant Director and one of the coordinators of our oral history project, Dr Emma Peplow. She discusses the experiences of women MPs in the … Continue reading Women MPs in the 1990s

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Medieval, 15th Century History, Parliamentary Life, Social history, Women and Parliament

A medieval MP’s Valentine’s Day Letters

Dr Hannes Kleineke of the 1422-1504 Commons explains how the commercial holiday we now recognise as St Valentine’s Day was observed by a young lover in the fifteenth century… It is a little known fact that the earliest known Valentine’s letter was in fact addressed to an MP, albeit a future one. In February 1477 Margery Brewes, soon to be married to the Norfolk gentleman John … Continue reading A medieval MP’s Valentine’s Day Letters

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Modern, 20th century history, Elections, Electoral Reform, Social history, Women and Parliament

The Representation of the People Act, 1918: A radical reform measure

This is the second in our blog series, women and parliament in this, the centenary year of the Representation of the People Act 1918. Here at the History of Parliament we are closely involved in celebrations, commemorations and projects relating to this anniversary. So today, on the actual anniversary that this Act became law it seemed pertinent to honour its passage. To that end, our … Continue reading The Representation of the People Act, 1918: A radical reform measure

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Medieval, 15th Century History, Elections, Women and Parliament

Women and Parliament in the Fifteenth Century

2018 is the centennial anniversary of the Representation of the People Act 1918 under the terms of which, for the first time in the history of the British Politics, some women were permitted to vote in Parliamentary elections. In order to mark this step in the progression of equality for women in our country’s political system we will be publishing a series of blogs about … Continue reading Women and Parliament in the Fifteenth Century

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Modern, 20th century history, Electoral Reform, Social history, Speakers of the House, Women and Parliament

Votes for Women and the Speaker’s Conference on Electoral Reform 1916-17

January 2017 marks the 100th anniversary of the Speaker’s Conference on Electoral Reform 1916-17, which first sat in October 1916 and reported on 27 January 1917.  Dr Mari Takayanagi, Joint Project Manager for the Vote 100 Exhibition Project, discusses the significance of the Conference for women’s suffrage. The Speaker’s Conference on Electoral Reform 1916-17 was the brainchild of Walter Long MP, President of the Local … Continue reading Votes for Women and the Speaker’s Conference on Electoral Reform 1916-17

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Modern, 20th century history, Irish History, Social history, Women and Parliament

The Eligibility of Constance Markievicz

On 14th December 1918, Countess Constance Markievicz (1868-1927) became the first woman to be elected to the UK Parliament, but she did not take her seat. Dr Mari Takayanagi, Senior Archivist at the Parliamentary Archives  and joint Project Manager for Vote 100  discusses how this came about and whether she would in fact have been eligible to be an MP. In 1918, the Representation of … Continue reading The Eligibility of Constance Markievicz

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Georgian, 18th Century history, 19th Century history, Elections, Social history, Victorian, Women and Parliament

‘Horsham is Lady Irwin’s Borough’: the power of the 18th Century political widow

We continue our series on election campaigning through the centuries today, with an example of the power aristocratic women could hold in the pre-1832 electoral system. Elaine Chalus, Professor of British History in Bath Spa University, discusses the story of Lady Irwin, who recently featured in BBC2’s Suffragettes Forever… When Frances, Lady Irwin, died in 1807, the 11th duke of Norfolk — the notoriously hard-drinking … Continue reading ‘Horsham is Lady Irwin’s Borough’: the power of the 18th Century political widow

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Medieval, 13th Century history, Social history, Women and Parliament

Eleanor de Montfort, countess of Leicester (b. c. 1215-d. c. 1275): A countess and a rebel

Continuing our ongoing series celebrating the anniversaries of Magna Carta and Simon de Montfort’s Parliament, this week’s guest blogpost looks at the role of a woman who helped to shape the politics of her time. Louise Wilkinson, Professor of Medieval History at Canterbury Christ Church University, explains the key role of Eleanor de Montfort… In the thirteenth century, Eleanor de Montfort was one of the … Continue reading Eleanor de Montfort, countess of Leicester (b. c. 1215-d. c. 1275): A countess and a rebel

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