Dr Lisa Berry-Waite

Lisa and Graham stand in a grand looking room with wooden panelling behind them and portraits. In front of them is a table with three documents displayed.

Declaration of Independence

Last month, the US Speaker visited Parliament to mark 250 years of American independence.

As part of this visit, we displayed records from The National Archives at a Speaker’s House reception, including the Declaration of Independence. It’s always great showing original records to audiences!

Crossing the Floor: Tales from the Oral History Project - The History of Parliament Political defections, commonly known in Westminster parlance as ‘Crossing the Floor’, have been a phenomenon in Parliament since at least the 17th century.

Following the news of another political defection in Westminster, we're resharing our recent #HistParl article on the history of MPs 'crossing the floor' and changing their party affiliation, drawing heavily upon extracts from our #OralHistory archive.

historyofparliament.com/2026/01/16/c...

You can find out more about accessing parliament's archive collections here: www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/help-with-yo... - records are becoming available and searchable on TNA's catalogue in phases

Thanks Zoe!

Thank you!

This was such an interesting blog post to see through to publication on the @womenshistnet.bsky.social’s blog.

Great to work with @harveybonehist.bsky.social and @txbatha.bsky.social, and learn about their fascinating research - do give their blog post a read!

Thank you!

New year, new job! 💫 Thrilled to share that I’ve started a new role at The National Archives as a Modern Parliament Records Specialist.

I’ll be working with Parliament’s archive collections that have been relocated to TNA. Looking forward to engaging audiences with this fascinating collection!

📣 Call for Papers!

Join us for the Women’s History Network Annual Conference, celebrating 100 years of The Women’s Library.

Open to scholars, independent researchers & heritage practitioners.

Full info: womenshistorynetwork.org/whn-annual-c...

Deadline: 29 March 2026

#WomensHistory #GenderHist

Group image © House of Commons

Group photograph of eight women smiling with display boards behind them.

Lisa is wearing a brown jumper and stands in the centre of the photograph smiling. Behind her are paintings and two statues of politicians.

In the centre of the photograph is a light installation which is illuminated and has a green background.

What an incredible two years @ukparliament.parliament.uk! I’ve learnt a lot & worked with so many wonderful people.

From starting in Heritage Collections engaging audiences with a working collection to leading the initial planning for the Equal Franchise centenary, it’s been an amazing experience!

Contemporary British History The Contemporary British History seminar seeks to explore all aspects the recent past of the British Isles from a historical point of view.

Our programme for this term's @cont-brit-hist.bsky.social seminars at @ihr.bsky.social is now available! Please do join us in-person or online.

www.history.ac.uk/news-events/...

Parliament is full of red and green, and not just because it’s Christmas. The colours hold special significance for the @houseofcommons.parliament.uk and @houseoflords.parliament.uk

Election poster with a black and white image in the centre. Four young flappers stand in a busy high street wearing cloche hats. Around the image, it reads 'Money buys more under Free Trade. Women should vote Liberal.

Lisa stands at a lectern, speaking into a microphone, with a powerpoint presentation behind her.

Four women stand in the doorway outside an impressive and historical looking building.

A brilliant few days attending the 'Visual Representations of Parliamentarism' conference at the German Historical Institute in Paris.

Great to co-present a paper with @sclapperton.bsky.social on 1929 election posters appealing to women voters and be on a panel with @satisfactory20.bsky.social

Nick Thomas-Symonds stands in the middle of the image speaking into a microphone.

A packed room for @histparl.bsky.social’s annual lecture!

A great evening and lecture given by Rt Hon. Nick Thomas-Symonds on ‘Clement Attlee’s Labour Governments of 1945-51: A Reappraisal'.

Conference building exterior, red brick with many white framed windows and paved courtyard in front

Conference room, wood panelled, me behind lectern, panel members at table and big screen behind

I have had a great few days at the Visual Representations of Parliaments conference at the German Historical Institute in Paris - I spoke on 1920s flapper’ cartoons alongside @lisaberrywaite.bsky.social @sclapperton.bsky.social on party political posters at 1929 election - perfect synergy! 🗃️

It was a privilege to attend the President of Germany’s address in the Royal Gallery thanks to a staff ticket. An unforgettable experience.

Lisa stands to the left of Hope who is wearing a grey jacket and skirt, along with a Votes for Women sash.

Hope stands in the centre on the image wearing a grey jacket and skirt. She also has a dark hat on and sash which reads Votes for Women.

Very excited to finally meet Hope, the life-size Lego suffragette 💚💜

Last week was UK Parliament Week, an annual education event which explores what @ukparliament.parliament.uk does.

It was great to see so many schools getting involved and meet Hope in Westminster Hall!

‘She is an Outsider in Public Life’: women parliamentary candidates, 1918-1923 - The History of Parliament Ahead of tonight’s Parliaments, Politics and People seminar at the Institute of Historical Research, we hear from Lisa Berry-Waite, a Leverhulme-funded PhD

#OTD 1918 the Parliament (Qualification of Women) Act, giving women the right to stand for parliament, gained royal assent.

To find out more about early women parliamentary candidates, and the campaigns they ran, read @lisaberrywaite.bsky.social article. historyofparliament.com/2019/06/11/s...

Looking forward to the @histparl.bsky.social's Annual Lecture!

The Palace of Westminster seen from New Palace Yard, ringed with autumnal trees with orange leaves.

The Palace of Westminster seen from New Palace Yard, ringed with autumnal trees with orange leaves.

A close up of the façade of the Palace of Westminster, ringed with autumnal trees with orange leaves.

Autumn at the Palace of Westminster 🍂

MPs and the Second World War - The History of Parliament Ahead of Remembrance Day, and with 2025 marking 80 years since the end of the Second World War, Dr Kathryn Rix, Assistant Editor of our House of Commons,

In our latest article, Dr Kathryn Rix has looked at the 23 MPs commemorated in the Commons chamber who died during the Second World War.

Their biographies written by #HistParl are now accessible on Parliament's website, links to which you can find in Dr Rix's article below:

"We shape our buildings and afterwards our buildings shape us" (Sir Winston Churchill, 1943)

Fascinating seminar last night by @satisfactory20.bsky.social on ‘The Speaker’s and the Suffragettes’. I especially enjoyed hearing more about the ‘suffragette chain’ which was recently donated to the Parliamentary Art Collection @ihr.bsky.social @histparl.bsky.social

Rediscovering Josephine Fiddes and her forgotten Australian novel – Robyn Floyd Josephine Fiddes was an English actress, vocalist, author and playwright who graced stages across three continents during the 19th century. Her creative output extended beyond acting to directing, …

New on the blog!

Dr Robyn Floyd (rkfloyd.bsky.social) explores Josephine Fiddes' story, an English actress, vocalist, author and playwright #womenshistory

Read it here:
womenshistorynetwork.org/rediscoverin...

A great evening at the @histparl.bsky.social live podcast recording for ‘Tales from the Green Benches’ last night!

Really interesting to learn more about their oral history project and hear from two of the projects’s more recent interviewees, Anne Milton and Baroness Stuart of Edgbaston
#histparl

A night in Parliament: Militant Suffragettes and Parliament - The History of Parliament We are delighted to post this guest blog in our Women and Parliament series from one of the public historians who has been at the forefront of activities to

#OTD 1913 Emily Wilding Davison was hit by the King's horse at Epsom derby, dying 4 days later.

One of the most prolific Suffragettes to interact with Parliament, guest contributor Vicky Igliowski-Broad explored Davison's wide-ranging dealings with the House:

Beyond Formal and Informal: Giving Back Political Agency to Female Diplomats in Early Nineteenth Century Europe – Bart Mooibroek When researching diplomatic challenges in early nineteenth century Europe, such as the Eastern Question or the Congress of Vienna, the subject matter can appear male dominated. The former refers to…

New on the blog!

Bart Mooibroek explores the diplomatic career of Dorothea Lieven, and how female diplomats have been studied more broadly in history #womenshistory #diplomatichistory

womenshistorynetwork.org/beyond-forma...

You can find the online version of the display here: heritagecollections.parliament.uk/exhibits/war...

To mark #VE80, ‘Parliament’s War Effort’ display is now in Westminster Hall @ukparliament.parliament.uk

It tells the story of 12 individuals who contributed to Parliament’s war effort #WW2

It was great to write about Eleanor Rathbone MP, Edith Summerskill MP & Sir Geoffrey Blake for the display