Jennifer Davey

Extremely brief. My chapter in @iaindale.bsky.social 'British By-Elections 1769-2025' covers the by-election...

‘In a dirty ditch somewhere in France’: the Hon. Thomas Charles Reginald Agar-Robartes (1880-1915) - The History of Parliament For a detailed account of Agar-Robartes’ political career, see Paul Holden, ‘“A very English gentleman”. The Honourable Thomas Charles Reginald Agar-Robartes

#OTD 1915, Hon. Thomas Charles Reginald Agar-Robartes, Liberal MP for St Austell, died, having been wounded at the battle of Loos.

Dr Kathryn Rix explored his life and career on the #HistParl website:

It’s also exciting to have doctoral student @chloechallender.bsky.social contributing ‘Ringside seat? Women’s modes of entry to the early 19th century parliament’, which promises to be a fascinating read!

Parliamentary History Click on the title to browse this journal

We’re delighted that @jamesepeate.bsky.social is one of the early career contributors to the next edition of Parliamentary History on ‘Rough Work on the Hustings’: Sheridan, Cobbett, and Newspapers in the General Election of 1806.

Subscribe here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/1750...

When saving becomes loss: Archival memory in the digital age Explore archival memory, data loss, and attempts to preserve the past in the digital age at this year’s Annual Digital Lecture.

Join us on 20 November for the Annual Digital Lecture, a partnership between The National Archives, UK and the School of Advanced Study. The wonderful @nannathylstrup.bsky.social will be speaking about ‘When saving becomes loss: archival memory in the digital age’. Free to register!

Parliament and Politics in the Later Middle Ages - The History of Parliament Dr Simon Payling, of our 1461-1504 section, tracks the development of Parliament and Politics in the Later Middle Ages, from its Anglo-Saxon roots to the more

How different did Parliament look in the Middle Ages?

Dr Simon Payling seeks to answer this question, tracing its Anglo-Saxon roots to the more formal split between the House of Commons and House of Lords that we recognise today:

Robin Eagles of @histparl.bsky.social has a piece in the latest edition of @historytoday.com on John Wilkes, whose 300th birthday is coming up in October.
#WilkesandLiberty #HistParl

Descended from a giant: the Worsleys of Hovingham - The History of Parliament Dr Robin Eagles considers the Worsley family’s connection with the north of England.

New post on the @histparl.bsky.social site from Robin Eagles on the long history of the family of HRH the late Duchess of Kent:
historyofparliament.com/2025/09/16/t...

High Speed 2: The Victorian Perspective - The History of Parliament After yesterday's speech from Ed Balls at the Labour party conference, the High Speed 2 rail link is in the news again. Today’s blog is from a guest blogger,

Died #OTD 1830, William Huskisson, MP from 1796-1830. A leading financier and influential politician, he is also considered the first wildly reported railway casualty, after being runover by Robert Stephenson's 'Rocket' locomotive.

A quarter length portrait of a man in front of a plain light green background. He is wearing a black coat with a white frilled shirt appearing just over the high neckline. He is also wearing a black cap with silver detailing. He has short brown hair which is just noticeable due to the cap, and a long goatee and moustache with a reddish tint to it.

Died #OTD 1549, Sir Anthony Denny.

MP for Ipswich and Hertfordshire, Denny became an intimate friend of Henry VIII. As groom of the chamber he attended the reception of Anne of Cleves, where the King confided to him his disappointment in the new Queen:
historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1509-...

From Jockeys to Ministers: How Horse Racing Shaped Rockingham’s First Ministry - The History of Parliament In the latest post for the Georgian Lords, we welcome Ioannes Chountis de Fabbri from the University of Aberdeen, who considers the importance of horse racing

#ICYMI, last week on the #HistParl website guest author Ioannes Chountis de Fabbri explored the importance of horse racing during the Rockingham administration of 1765. Read the post here:

Currently researching Duncan McLaren, Liberal MP for Edinburgh from 1865. On holiday in 1868 the men of the family went to a Liberal meeting at Oban, but the women did not. McLaren's wife Priscilla Bright McLaren wrote: 'As we have the misfortune to wear petticoats we are not to go’.

Born #OTD 1926, Patrick Jenkin, Conservative MP for Wanstead and Woodford from 1964 to 1987, and an influential cabinet minister under Edward Heath and Margaret Thatcher. In 2012 he took part in our #OralHistory project:

‘The status of the Press is changed indeed’: the reporters’ gallery in the nineteenth-century House of Commons - The History of Parliament MPs temporarily moved into the chamber previously used by the House of Lords. A dedicated reporters’ gallery with its own separate entrance was created within this space in 1835.

New article today from @victoriancommons.bsky.social.

Dr Kathryn Rix explores the creation of a dedicated reporters' gallery in the House of Commons after the fire of 1834, showing the growing importance of the press in reporting proceedings in the Commons in the 19th century:
buff.ly/Y1uTIXt

‘The status of the Press is changed indeed’: the reporters’ gallery in the nineteenth-century House of Commons Continuing our series on parliamentary buildings, Dr Kathryn Rix looks at the accommodation provided for the newspaper journalists who reported on the proceedings of the nineteenth-century House of…

As dinner time approaches, we're hoping for something better than the offering for parliamentary reporters in the Commons in the 1860s: 'a bottle of whisky on tap, a loaf or two of stale bread, and a most nauseous-looking ham’. victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2025/09/08/t...

A coloured picture of women gathering outside a barbed fence. To the right a group of women are sitting down on the brown coloured land, to the left women are walking down the path and gathering next to the fence boundary. The sky is overcast and light grey.

#OTD 1981 the first women arrived at Greenham Common to protest against nuclear missiles being stored at a nearby RAF base. The protest developed into a women-only Peace Camp, that would protest outside the military base for another 19 years.🧵 (1/8)

We are very sorry to hear of Frank O'Gorman's death. His work made a huge contribution to the history of elections and he was kind enough to support our House of Commons, 1832-68 project by writing some articles for us.

MP of the month: James Barlow Hoy (1794-1843) As biographies of long-forgotten politicians go, this month’s MP ticks all the boxes, offering an extraordinary rags-to-riches tale, the beginnings of a brilliant political career accompanied by fr…

James Barlow Hoy, formerly Conservative MP for Southampton, died #OnThisDay 1843 after falling into a ravine in the Pyrenees. But was this an accident or murder? Find out more in our blog: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2016/09/28/m...

York: exploring the local history of a Victorian constituency This blog, which explains some of the key features of our constituency articles, and how they might be of use to those interested in the history of a particular locality, originally appeared on the…

For #YorkshireDay we are revisiting some of our past articles. Here we looked at the constituency of #York, one of relatively few seats where a Chartist candidate stood during our period: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2020/07/30/y...

‘A negative achievement’: Behind the scenes of the House of Lords Act 1999 - The History of Parliament The House of Lords Act 1999 was the last major reform to membership of the House of Lords; removing the rights of all but 92 hereditary peers to sit in the House. This act was intended to be a ‘first…

During the King's Speech of July last year, the government proposed a bill which would remove all hereditary peers from the House of Lords.
But reform to the Lords is not new. Find out about the changes made in 1999 and debates around it, in this article from Dr Emma Peplow:

A new free exhibition, curated by Dr @teadevotee.bsky.social, at Bruce Castle Museum & Archive spotlights trailblazing MP Joyce Butler (Wood Green, 1955–79) - a pioneer of women’s rights, peace activism, & consumer protection.

Congrats Lyndsey on the successful launch of this project! 🎉

This looks great!

"We had come out week after week in this bitter summer weather, in the piercing cold and drenching rain of an English July..."

(Suffrage activist, July 1927).

Those were the days...

Tebbit was well known for his forthright views and confidence in the face of critics.

Former MP Hugo Summerson described one memorable run-in with hecklers in a 2017 interview:

Norman Tebbit, who died yesterday, was one of the most prominent, and controversial, politicians of his era.

Former Conservative MP Michael Stern reflected on Tebbit's reputation as a minister and parliamentarian in a 2017 interview with our #OralHistory project:

UCL – University College London UCL is consistently ranked as one of the top ten universities in the world (QS World University Rankings 2010-2022) and is No.2 in the UK for research power (Research Excellence Framework 2021).

Modern British History maternity leave cover (7 months in first instance) teaching position, predominantly 20th century, UCL History Dept. Starts 1 October 2025. Friendly department with excellent students and great library resources. PhD required. Deadline 24 July.

Parliament Matters: A podcast about the institution at the heart of our democracy Join two of the UK’s leading parliamentary experts, Mark D’Arcy and Ruth Fox, as they guide you through the often mysterious ways our politicians do business and explore the running controversies…

🎉 Parliament Matters podcast hits 100 episodes tomorrow!

Across 100 episodes, we've heard insights from politicians, academics, historians, and others about the institution at the heart of our democracy: Parliament.

Subscribe below to keep hearing more 🔽
buff.ly/HIjYCWm

GIF showing glimpses of the online course 'Applied Public History: Places, People, Stories'

Interested in historic #places, and public or #community #history? Did you know there's a free online course from @ihr.bsky.social, presented by me, along with colleagues & guests showcasing brilliant case-study projects? Advice, practical tips and inspo! www.coursera.org/learn/uol-pu...

APEX Awards The APEX awards are a new funding opportunity designed to promote collaboration across academic disciplines through the support of world-leading interdisciplinary research projects.

Given the need for more interdisciplinary and curiosity-driven research, we are offering up to £200k awards for research on the boundary between social science/humanities and science or engineering
www.thebritishacademy.ac.uk/funding/apex...

Could a dead person be elected to #Parliament?
Yes - or at least this was the case in May 1728, when Sidney Wortley Montagu was declared the winning candidate in the disputed 1727 general election return for Peterborough, even though he had died six months earlier.
#HistParl