Dr David Scott, Editor of the 1640-60 House of Lords section, explores the role of the peers in securing the right of Parliament to meet regularly. The Triennial Act of February 1641 was the first piece of legislation passed by the ‘Long Parliament’ in its momentous thirteen-year history of reform, rule and, in 1649, regicide. Of course, none of the peers and MPs who had … Continue reading The Baronial Context of the 1641 Triennial Act
Guest blogger Dr Fraser Dickinson uses the events surrounding Philip Herbert, 4th earl of Pembroke, between May and July 1641, to illustrate the interaction between the paradigms of ‘history from above’ and ‘history from below.’ The past is often viewed as being either ‘history from above’ (the ‘great man theory’ of history), or ‘history from below’ (the Marxist emphasis on economic and social forces). Of … Continue reading ‘History from above’ and ‘history from below’: the example of Philip Herbert, 4th earl of Pembroke, May to July 1641
As part of the History of Parliament’s blog series on marriage, Dr Paul Hunneyball, assistant editor of the Lords 1558-1603 project, considers the options available four centuries ago to those whose marriages had broken down… Contrary to popular belief, Henry VIII never got divorced. In sixteenth-century England, the option of divorce as we now understand it didn’t exist. The only way to end a marriage … Continue reading Three degrees of separation: alternatives to divorce in early modern England
