We publish peer-reviewed research covering the history of parliamentary institutions in Britain and Ireland from the Middle Ages to the Twentieth Century, and the legislatures of British colonies before independence.
In our final article of this edition, Elizabeth Hallam Smith explores the sitting places, traditions, and symbolism of Parliament between the destruction of the House of Commons in the Blitz until its restoration in 1950. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.11…
onlinelibrary.wiley.comIn this free to read article, Stuart Ball makes a significant contribution to the historiography of the famous Norway Debate of May 1940 by analysing those Conservative MPs who rebelled to bring down Neville Chamberlain. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
The Rebel MPs in the ‘Norway Debate’ Division of 8 May 1940Reader environment loadedonlinelibrary.wiley.comIn this #OpenAccess article, Robert O'Kell of @umanitoba.bsky.social explores the Royal Titles Bill of 1876. O'Kell argues that that the bill roused William Gladstone out of retirement and reignited his decades-long rivalry with Benjamin Disraeli: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Disraeli, Gladstone, and the Royal Titles Bill, 1876: Part 1The Royal Titles Bill (1876) proved to be contentious because it raised fraught issues of royal prerogative, constitutional legality, political perspective, parliamentary strategy, journalistic pract...onlinelibrary.wiley.comDavid Pennington questions the revisionist argument that the pre-Civil War House of Commons practised 'consensual' politics. Procedural manuals, journals and diaries are used to analyse all divisions from 1552 to 1628. It can currently be read free here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
Divisions, Majority Rule and Political Culture in the Tudor and Early Stuart House of Commons*Reader environment loadedonlinelibrary.wiley.comOur latest issue features an article by @histparl.bsky.social’s S.J. Payling on social mobility and the impact on county representative identities in the reign of Henry VI. You can read it for free here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
A Fluid Elite? Social Mobility and County Representation in the Reign of Henry VI*Reader environment loadedonlinelibrary.wiley.comDon't forget to check out our special issue, edited by Naomi Lloyd-Jones of @victoriancommons.bsky.social, while it is free to read until the end of June. Meanwhile, we will continue to post about the wonderful articles from our current issue over the next few weeks.
History of ParliamentOur colleague Dr Naomi Lloyd-Jones has edited a special issue of the @parlhistjournal.bsky.social, which is free to read until the end of June. Find out more about the issue and how to access pieces written by current and former @victoriancommons.bsky.social colleagues below.
Our editor's choice article for our current issue is by Gunilla Carlander Reuterfelt, formerly of @eduskunta.fi. The article explores the exchange of parliamentary delegations between Finland and the United Kingdom during the Cold War: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
Finland and the United Kingdom – Parliamentary Contacts during the Cold War*Reader environment loadedonlinelibrary.wiley.comWe are delighted to publish our latest issue with a number of Open and Free Access articles from leading scholars, covering topics as diverse as social mobility in the reign of Henry VI, the 1876 Royal Titles Bill, and the May 1940 Norway Debate. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/toc/17500206...
Parliamentary History: Vol 45, No 2Click on the title to browse this issueonlinelibrary.wiley.comAs a new session of @ukparliament.parliament.uk is opened today, why not take a look at some of our articles examining the pageantry, ritual and politics of this ancient ceremony 🧵1/5
UK ParliamentToday is the State Opening of Parliament. 👑 We’re covering the whole event live, starting with the ceremonial search. This is when the cellars are searched by the Yeomen of the Guard before the King’s arrival. 🔴 Watch the ceremonial search: www.youtube.com/watch?v=QLXG...
The afterword complements Naomi Lloyd-Jones's introduction. Together the pieces suggest how the recent revival in 19th-century political history can be sustained and taken in new directions. Lloyd-Jones's introduction can be read here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
Introduction: Political Organising, Practical Politics and Histories of Politics in the Long 19th Century*Reader environment loadedonlinelibrary.wiley.comParliamentary History Journal@richardhuzzey.bsky.social and @katrinanavickas.bsky.social offer some suggestions about how historians can reinvigorate and realign the study of politics at all levels in Britain and Ireland in the long nineteenth century. Read their #OpenAcess article here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
@richardhuzzey.bsky.social and @katrinanavickas.bsky.social offer some suggestions about how historians can reinvigorate and realign the study of politics at all levels in Britain and Ireland in the long nineteenth century. Read their #OpenAcess article here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
From Repertoires to Recipes: Rethinking Political Organisation in the Long 19th Century*This article examines approaches to the history of 19th-century politics in Britain and Ireland in order to propose fruitful directions for further debate. It argues that historians should return to ...onlinelibrary.wiley.comIn this free to read article, Erin Geraghty analyses English women’s interventions in the Irish suffrage movement and how far it helped or was a hindrance. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
English Feminists, Imperialism and the Politics of Organisation in the Irish Suffrage Movement, 1900–14*This article explores how English women's intervention in the Irish suffrage movement was both a help and a hindrance to Irish women. On the one hand, it caused political animosity and division, beca...onlinelibrary.wiley.comIn this free to read article, @lauracforster.bsky.social explores socialist political lecture tours in the late 19th century and how these produced everyday, intimate experiences that could powerfully embody socialist ideas for new audiences. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
Travelling Activists, Radical Hospitality and the Intimate History of Socialist Organising in Britain, c.1880–1914*Reader environment loadedonlinelibrary.wiley.com@kathrynrix.bsky.social examines the professional constituency agents of the Liberal and Conservative Parties between elections in English constituencies between 1880 and 1914. The article can currently be read for free here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Living Politics: The Professional Agents and Party Organisation, 1880–1914*Reader environment loadedonlinelibrary.wiley.comGraeme Morton’s article uses the 1854 Edinburgh Pollbook and organisational subscription lists to demonstrate how Conservative political hegemony was channelled through civil society. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
The Conservative Hold over Scottish Civil Society: Evidence from the 1854 Edinburgh Pollbook*As a carrier of influence and governance that stands distinct from parliamentary and municipal representation, civil society has been ascribed a particular layer of criticality in the Scottish exampl...onlinelibrary.wiley.comCaitlin Kitchener approaches the practice of political decision-making from an historical archaeological perspective. Using St Peter’s Field as a case study, the article views landscape as an ‘active organising agent’. Read the article for free here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
Political Palimpsests: Landscape as an Organising Agent in 19th‐Century Radicalism*Reader environment loadedonlinelibrary.wiley.comIn this Open Access article, @drdavesteele.bsky.social explores bodily and sensory experiences in the crowds formed by the reform movement from 1816-1848, offering new perspectives on the lived experience of popular politics and the mass platform. onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
The Somatic Crowd: The Bodily and Sensory Experience of Reform Crowds in Britain, c.1816–48*This article considers the roles that the body and the senses played in shaping the dynamics of 19th-century reform crowds in Britain. Acoustics, terrain, timing, weather and corporeal issues of hung...onlinelibrary.wiley.comIn her article for our 2026 special issue, Mary O'Connor explores the concept of 'forum selection' when organising political meetings during the 1820s campaign against the corn laws in London and Lancashire. The article can currently be read for free here: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
How to Organise in the 1820s: Forum Selection and the Anti‐Corn Law Campaign in London and Lancashire*onlinelibrary.wiley.comIsaiah Silvers's (@durhamhistory.bsky.social) article on associational politics in Barbados during the early nineteenth century is currently free to read online! onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10....
Voluntarism and Political Conflict in Barbados, 1814–33*Reader environment loadedonlinelibrary.wiley.comIn his #OpenAcess article for our 2026 special issue, @henryjmiller.bsky.social explores petitions and the material culture of political organisation: onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Petitions and the Material Culture of Political Organisation*This article examines surviving manuscript petitions to reveal the material culture of political organisation. Conceptually, the article frames the material culture of petitions and the practices ass....onlinelibrary.wiley.com