Tag: violence

19th Century history, Irish History, Victorian, Victorian Commons

‘A kindhearted savage of a man’: Arthur Wills Blundell Sandys Trumbull Windsor Hill, Earl of Hillsborough (1812-68)

Today (6 August) marks the anniversary of both the birth and death of the Irish MP Arthur Wills Blundell Sandys Trumbull Windsor Hill, Earl of Hillsborough (and from 1845 Marquess of Downshire). Hillsborough‘s repeated physical altercations implicated him in two deaths and earned him a ferocious reputation, as this article from our House of Commons, 1832-1945 project explains. Hillsborough’s family (marquesses of Downshire) possessed large … Continue reading ‘A kindhearted savage of a man’: Arthur Wills Blundell Sandys Trumbull Windsor Hill, Earl of Hillsborough (1812-68)

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History of Parliament Trust, 17th Century history, 18th Century history, Revolutionary Stuart Parliaments, Stuart

The Madness of the Mohuns

Violence was not uncommon among the early modern aristocracy, but the behaviour of the Mohun (pronounced ‘Moon’) family – Barons Mohun of Okehampton – was shocking even to contemporaries. In the next blog for our Revolutionary Stuart Parliaments series, Dr Patrick Little from our Lords 1640-1660 project explores the family weakness for mindless violence… John Mohun, 1st Baron Mohun, was proud of his ancestry, boasting … Continue reading The Madness of the Mohuns

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Victorian, 19th Century history, Conferences, Seminars and Events, Elections, Electoral Reform, Legal history, Social history

The Secret Ballot: The Secret to Reducing Electoral Violence?

In July 1872, 150 years ago this month, the Ballot Act introduced the secret ballot to all UK parliamentary and local elections. Here guest blogger Dr Gary Hutchison, of the Causes and Consequences of Electoral Violence project, discusses how the secret ballot affected violence at elections. An Interactive Map of over 3,000 violent events, from individual assaults to riots, can be found on their website. … Continue reading The Secret Ballot: The Secret to Reducing Electoral Violence?

History of Parliament2 Comments
Medieval, 14th Century history, 15th Century History, Edward II, The Commons in the Wars of the Roses

Parliament and the Politics of intimidation in Medieval England

As some of our previous blogs demonstrate, Medieval parliamentarians were no stranger to acts of physical violence. However as Dr Simon Payling from our Commons 1461-1504 project suggests, sometimes the mere threat was enough to influence political change… It is a central tenet of parliamentary history that the political complexion of a Parliament was determined by its membership, particularly that of its fluctuating electoral element, … Continue reading Parliament and the Politics of intimidation in Medieval England

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Stuart, 17th Century history, Buildings and Architecture, Charles I, Parliamentary Life, Social history

Violence at the Door of Parliament, 1640-48

Over the past few weeks the eyes of the world have been on Washington. As the United States prepares to swear in its 46th President, Joe Biden, after what has been a tumultuous transition of power, Dr Stephen Roberts examines the threat of violence against the seat of power in 17th century Britain in our latest blog… The great achievement of the English Parliament between … Continue reading Violence at the Door of Parliament, 1640-48

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Medieval, 14th Century history, Legal history, Parliamentary Life

The barbarity of the medieval criminal law: petty treason and the murders of Sir Thomas Murdak and John Cotell

In today’s blog Dr Simon Payling, senior research fellow in our Commons 1461-1504 project, once again turns his attention to crime and punishment in the medieval period. In the 14th century, the criminal law system may have worked slowly, but it was particularly harsh to those convicted of ‘petty treason’… In the first months of 1316 there was a notable series of deaths in the … Continue reading The barbarity of the medieval criminal law: petty treason and the murders of Sir Thomas Murdak and John Cotell

Simon PaylingLeave a comment
James I to Restoration, 17th Century history, Health and Medicine, Parliamentary Life, Social history, Stuart

The perils of foreign travel in the early modern era

With holidays abroad still a major challenge due to the ongoing coronavirus epidemic, Dr Paul Hunneyball, assistant editor of our Lords 1558-1603 project, considers the risks associated with travel overseas four hundred years ago… One of the standard clichés of life a few centuries ago is that people tended not to travel very far. While this was broadly true for the bulk of the population, … Continue reading The perils of foreign travel in the early modern era

Paul Hunneyball2 Comments
Medieval, 15th Century History, Legal history, Parliamentary Life

Violent times? MPs as victims of murder in the mid-fifteenth century

Today Dr Simon Payling of the 1422-1504 Section explores the murders of MPs in the mid-fifteenth century… The completion of a set of History of Parliament volumes, in this case those for the reign of Henry VI (1422-61), provides an opportunity to answer some statistical questions.  How often, for example, did MPs fall victim to murder?  In the modern era, such murders, whether of sitting … Continue reading Violent times? MPs as victims of murder in the mid-fifteenth century

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Georgian Lords, 18th Century history, Georgian, Legal history, Social history

“More the air of an assassin than of a gentleman”: Duels and attempted murder in eighteenth-century England

The recent BBC adaptation of John Preston’s book – A Very English Scandal – about the trial of the former Liberal leader Jeremy Thorpe for conspiracy and incitement to murder, prompted us at the HPT to think about other parliamentarians with links to murder, conspiracy and scandal. Today’s blog from our Lords 1715-1790 project Editor, Dr Robin Eagles considers duels between MPs and their political connections… Politics could … Continue reading “More the air of an assassin than of a gentleman”: Duels and attempted murder in eighteenth-century England

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