Category Archives: party labels

Reappraising England’s reformed electoral map, 1832-1868: the impact of the 1832 Reform Act

Posted on May 23, 2023 by Martin Spychal

As part of our series reflecting on the recent ‘Politics before Democracy’ conference, Dr Martin Spychal, a Senior Research Fellow on the 1832-1868 Commons project, discusses the impact of the 1832 reform legislation on English electoral politics. At the 2023 Politics … Continue reading →

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‘Standing between two extremes’: James Wentworth Buller MP and the politics of moderation

Posted on March 3, 2022 by salmonphilip

The development of a more rigid party system has been a recurrent theme in many of our blogs about Victorian politics, including this one about ‘Defying the Whip‘. Few MPs, however, had their political careers destroyed and then resurrected quite … Continue reading →

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‘Restless, turbulent, and bold’: Radical MPs and the opening of the reformed Parliament in 1833

Posted on October 13, 2021 by sball1832

In this post which first appeared on the main History of Parliament blog, our research fellow Dr. Stephen Ball looks at the inaugural session of the reformed Parliament, a theme also explored in our previous blog on Harriet Grote. When … Continue reading →

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Harriet Grote (1792-1878) and the first reformed Parliament, 1833-34: a woman at Westminster

Posted on September 29, 2021 by Martin Spychal

Harriet Grote (1792-1878), our research fellow Dr Martin Spychal, looks at Harriet’s introduction to politics at Westminster during the first ‘reformed’ Parliament of 1833-34. Continue reading →

Posted in Harriet Grote, Harriet Grote, Legislation, Parliamentary life, party labels, Uncategorized, women | 5 Comments

‘The power of returning our members will henceforth be in our own hands’: parliamentary reform and its impact on Exeter, 1820-1868

Posted on May 30, 2020 by Martin Spychal

This week Dr Martin Spychal, research fellow for the Commons 1832-68, uses polling and voter registration data to explore the 1832 Reform Act’s impact on elections in Exeter. This blog was originally published on the History of Parliament blog as … Continue reading →

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The MP who founded a town: Sir Peter Hesketh-Fleetwood (1801-66)

Posted on April 15, 2020 by Kathryn Rix

Over the past few years, we have highlighted several MPs who, quite apart from their involvement in parliamentary debates and legislation, had a significant personal role in the development of the infrastructure of Victorian Britain. Previous MPs of the Month … Continue reading →

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From parliamentary reporter to Member of Parliament: Robert Spankie (1774-1842)

Posted on January 27, 2020 by Martin Spychal

January’s MP of the Month takes a look at the unusual pre-parliamentary career of Robert Spankie, who was returned for Finsbury in 1832. A ground-breaking parliamentary reporter during the 1790s, Spankie ascended to the editorship of the Morning Chronicle before re-training as a barrister and serving as a controversial advocate-general of Bengal. Continue reading →

Posted in Biographies, Elections, Empire, Images of MPs, MP of the Month, Parliamentary life, party labels, Scotland, Uncategorized | Tagged , , , , , , | 1 Comment

MP of the Month: William Tooke and the royal charters of the University of London

Posted on August 30, 2019 by Martin Spychal

Following our blogs on the creation of the University of London constituency in 1868 and its first MP, Robert Lowe, August’s MP of the Month is William Tooke. As MP for Truro from 1832, Tooke worked tirelessly to secure a royal charter for the London University (later University College London) in order that it could grant degrees to its students. Continue reading →

Posted in Biographies, Constituencies, Elections, Legislation, MP of the Month, party labels, religion | Tagged , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

The representation of Devon and Cornwall after reform, 1832-68

Posted on May 17, 2019 by Martin Spychal

Last week the History of Parliament and the Devon and Cornwall Record Society hosted a conference at Exeter on ‘The South West and Parliament’. Dr Martin Spychal of the Victorian Commons spoke at the event, and today provides an overview of … Continue reading →

Posted in Biographies, Conferences and seminars, Constituencies, Corruption, Elections, Parliamentary life, party labels, Uncategorized, Voting and Divisions, women, Working-class politics | 5 Comments