Dr Kathryn Rix

Re-membering the medieval parliament, 1769-1886 - The History of Parliament At the IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar on Tuesday 17 March, Dr Sarah Wride of the University of York and the Institute of Historical Research,

Really looking forward to hearing about May Day, the folkmote & reform debates in the 18/19C from @srwride.bsky.social at the IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar on 17 March. The event is FREE in-person in London and online. @ihr.bsky.social Details: historyofparliament.com/2026/03/10/r...

‘The first humble beginnings of an agitation’: the women’s suffrage petition of 7 June 1866 - The History of Parliament A. Dingsdale, '"Generous and lofty sympathies": the Kensington Society, the 1866 women's suffrage petition and the development of mid-Victorian feminism'

In 1866, the first mass petition for women's suffrage was presented to Parliament.

Dr Kathryn Rix explores the petition with 1,500 signatories and its reception in the House.

Venturing beyond the Victorian Commons, here's my short article on PMs in the 19th century Lords.

MP of the month: George Faithfull Continuing our recent focus on Victorian female voters and women’s suffrage, this MP of the month feature highlights the career of George Faithfull (1790-1863), a Brighton radical who clashed spect…

George Faithfull, one of Brighton’s first MPs (1832-5), died #OnThisDay 1863. For #WomensHistoryMonth, find out more about his valiant but unsuccessful efforts to defend the rights of women to vote in Brighton’s local elections. victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2013/06/19/m...

‘Like herrings in a barrel’: the chamber of the House of Commons prior to 1834 In this new series of blogs on the Palace of Westminster, we look at the three different debating chambers occupied by the MPs who sat in Parliament between 1832 and 1868, beginning with the Common…

Although what I was looking for was this: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2021/01/25/l...

Showing the eclectic and wide-ranging nature of @histparl.bsky.social's work, a search on the website for 'herrings' brings up 7 hits: historyofparliament.com?s=herrings+ Top marks to @georgianlords.bsky.social for finding ‘Herring’s Norfolk antidote for the bite of a mad dog and other mad animals’.

‘Had she been a man, she would have been the leader of a party’: Harriet Grote (1792-1878), radicalism and Parliament, 1820-41 In the first of his blogs on Harriet Grote (1792-1878), our research fellow Dr Martin Spychal, explores Harriet’s early life, her emergence as a central figure among London’s intellectual radicals …

Finally, here’s one of our series on Harriet Grote, a prominent figure among London’s intellectual radicals, who ‘had she been a man, she would have been the leader of a party’: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2021/01/04/h... #IWD #WHM

The ladies’ gallery in the temporary House of Commons - The History of Parliament I am very grateful to Dr Mari Takayanagi for drawing to my attention the subtle differences between Catherine Gladstone's account of her visit to the Ladies'

Our assistant editor @kathrynrix.bsky.social has explored the facilities provided for women to view debates in the temporary House of Commons chamber used after the 1834 fire, where visitors included Charlotte Brontë: historyofparliament.com/2025/10/30/t... #IWD #WHM

The 'Bifrons Purse': Elizabeth, Marchioness Conyngham and aristocratic women's participation in nineteenth-century elections - The History of Parliament our research fellow Dr Naomi Lloyd-Jones explores the political life of Elizabeth, Marchioness Conyngham (1769-1861). Best known as George IV’s final mistress...

Our most recent post from our research fellow Dr Naomi Lloyd-Jones looks at the behind-the-scenes roles which aristocratic women could play in 19th century elections. historyofparliament.com/2026/02/26/t...

For #InternationalWomensDay and #WomensHistoryMonth we are sharing some of our favourite research on women’s participation in 19th century politics.

#britishmuseum #archive holds very many references to women: the earliest recorded female visitors in 1762, Angelica Kaufmann paid to paint on Derby china in the 1790s, an 1857 photo, Beatrix Potter & women employed after the law for Civil Servants changed in 1921. #internationalwomensday #women

‘One of the greatest Rugby players who ever sat in the House’: Pat Munro MP - The History of Parliament Pat Munro made his debut as a Scotland rugby international on 4 February 1905 at Inverleith, Edinburgh, taking on Wales in the Home Nations Championship (the

Did you know that a former Scottish Rugby captain sat in the House of Commons?

With Scotland taking the field against France later today in the #SixNations, @kathrynrix.bsky.social explores the sporting and political career of Pat Munro MP.

World Book Day Down the rabbit hole in Parliament...

In honour of #WorldBookDay today, @jhdavey.bsky.social searched through the (digital) pages of Hansard to see which fictional characters have made an appearance in the House of Commons chamber...

Read all about it via our substack:

Took advantage of some free time in London to make a long overdue visit to the refurbished National Portrait Gallery. Hayter's painting of the 1833 House of Commons was a must-see:
www.npg.org.uk/collections/...

‘One of the greatest Rugby players who ever sat in the House’: Pat Munro MP - The History of Parliament Pat Munro made his debut as a Scotland rugby international on 4 February 1905 at Inverleith, Edinburgh, taking on Wales in the Home Nations Championship (the

New blog from me today for @histparl.bsky.social, with a #SixNations theme. It looks at the career of Pat Munro, a former Scotland rugby international who was MP for Llandaff and Barry from 1931. He was the oldest MP to die on war service during WW2. historyofparliament.com/2026/03/02/p...

For #WomensHistoryMonth I'll be sharing some snippets on women & elections. Here's a very human moment from the Commons committee rooms in 1842, when a pair of spectacles was found for Sarah Davis (one of a dozen female witnesses to the Great Marlow election committee) to help her see a document.

‘One of the greatest Rugby players who ever sat in the House’: Pat Munro MP - The History of Parliament Pat Munro made his debut as a Scotland rugby international on 4 February 1905 at Inverleith, Edinburgh, taking on Wales in the Home Nations Championship (the

New blog from me today for @histparl.bsky.social, with a #SixNations theme. It looks at the career of Pat Munro, a former Scotland rugby international who was MP for Llandaff and Barry from 1931. He was the oldest MP to die on war service during WW2. historyofparliament.com/2026/03/02/p...

Before the vote was won: women and politics, 1868-1918 - The History of Parliament Dr Kathryn Rix, Assistant Editor of the House of Commons 1832-1868 Section explains the relationship between women, Parliament and politics in the late

This Women's History Month we are highlighting the long history of female involvement in Parliament and politics.

Below, Dr Kathryn Rix overviews the political involvement of women in the years leading up to some women gaining the right to vote in 1918.

#WomensHistoryMonth #WHM

Join us this #WomensHistoryMonth in amplifying women’s voices past and present.

Our website is a wonderful place to start learning more. Spread the word!

womenshistorynetwork.org

#WHM2026 #WomensHistory #GenderHist

Image: Pit girl brow workers, Wigan, 1900. COPY 1/445, The National Archives.

I'm now recruiting for a crucial post in my team - Curator: Parliamentary Art Collection. A rare chance to work with a wonderful collection in a unique setting.

Please do share, and feel free to get in touch with any questions

There's a connection to my article on the agents, as the gentleman seated on the front left is Thomas Schofield, whose son Sim became a Liberal agent. It was Sim who arranged for this photograph to be taken. The oldest person featured in it is Catherine McMurdo, aged 88.

I love the cover image for this special issue (which I may have had a hand in choosing). It shows 11 survivors of Peterloo assembled at Failsworth near Oldham in 1884 in support of parliamentary reform, and speaks to many of the themes contained in the special issue.

Very pleased to have an article out today - looking at the professional constituency agents, 1880-1914 - and many congratulations to my colleague Naomi who has done a brilliant job in pulling this special issue together.

Great piece from my colleague, and very pertinent to my current project on women and electoral corruption in the 19thC.

‘A woman actually voted!’: Lily Maxwell and the Manchester by-election of November 1867 - The History of Parliament More than half a century before the partial enfranchisement of women in 1918, Lily Maxwell, a Manchester shopkeeper, cast a parliamentary vote. Dr Kathryn Rix

With the Gorton and Denton by-election taking place tomorrow, we're sharing our article on an earlier Manchester by-election. How was a woman able to vote there in 1867, decades before women received the parliamentary franchise? Find out more here: historyofparliament.com/2025/03/14/l...

We are advertising a two-year lectureship in Modern British History at University of Cambridge, please spread the word!
www.cam.ac.uk/jobs/assista...

Interesting (if sad) deposition from 1747 of Margaret Ley, a gingerbread maker from Lichfield, who reported being assaulted at her stall in Birmingham by 4 men, because her husband and son had voted Whig at the recent general election.
discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C1...
#HistParl

On the Althing I am currently reading Independent People (1946) by the Icelandic Nobel Prize winner Halldór Laxness.

In this week's Scribble Book, #HistParl director @jhdavey.bsky.social takes a literary trip to Iceland, and discusses the importance of Parliament in one of the country's most famous novels.

Read and subscribe via the link below!

The photo doesn't do justice to the amazing beauty of the frost patterns on the window this morning.

'Unobtrusive But Not Unimportant': Representations of Women and Sovereign Power at the New Palace of Westminster, 1841-1870 - The History of Parliament Dr Cara Gathern of UK Parliament Heritage Collections, will be discussing representations of women and sovereign power at the New Palace of Westminster, 1841-1870.

This evening, Dr Cara Gathern will be speaking at the next IHR Parliaments, Politics and People seminar on Representations of Women and Sovereign Power at the New Palace of Westminster.

📍 Senate House, London / Online
⏱️5:30-6:30pm

Find out more about the paper and how to attend below: