A reminder of our September article on the Victorian Commons site - we looked at the facilities provided for reporters (among them a young Charles Dickens) in the 19th century House of Commons: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2025/09/08/t...

William Tooke, MP for Truro, 1832-7, died #OnThisDay 1863. An active backbench MP, one of his major campaigns was to secure degree-awarding status for the University of London. Find out more here: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2019/08/30/m...

RIP Frank O'Gorman. He was a lovely man and a brilliant historian, and I was very fortunate that he was my PhD supervisor. I will miss him. www.theguardian.com/books/2025/a...

This month marks the birth of Lord Ronald Gower, MP for Sutherland 1867-74 & a prominent figure in British LGBTQ+ history. To mark this we are reposting a series of articles by ‪@martinspychal.bsky.social exploring Gower’s parliamentary career. historyofparliament.com/2025/08/11/l... 🧵 [1/4]

#OnThisDay 1831 Lord Melbourne asked Thomas Drummond to establish a boundary commission to undertake the process of redrawing constituency boundaries as part of the major electoral reforms of 1832. Our research fellow Dr Martin Spychal explains more: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2021/06/28/s...

🧵(5) While an authoritative and influential parliamentarian, much of O'Connell's strength was as a 'popular' politician among the masses, presenting himself as a 'people's champion' and embracing an early form of celebrity culture, as Dr Simon Morgan explores: buff.ly/YgsMFr4

Our latest Victorian Commons article looks at what is thought to have been England's last political duel, fought between Canterbury's MPs in the run-up to the 1852 general election. victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2025/07/10/a...

O in our #1832AtoZ is also for Ordnance Survey. Thomas Drummond had worked for the Ordnance Survey before using his map-making & scientific skills to oversee the drawing of new constituency boundaries in 1831-2. @martinspychal.bsky.social explores his work: historyofparliament.com/2015/02/24/t...

Today marks the anniversary of the birth of Harriet Grote in 1792. As @martinspychal.bsky.social has explored in his series, now available on the #HistParl site, she was able to establish herself as one of Westminster’s leading radical politicians. (1/8)🧵

@joecozens.bsky.social, one of our seminar convenors, has just had an article published by @histparl.bsky.social discussing his research into John Lewis, a Black sailor who was arrested during the 1828 Weymouth by-election. historyofparliament.com/2025/06/24/j...

New article today for the #HistParl site. @joecozens.bsky.social explores the records of John Lewis, a Black sailor arrested at the 1828 Weymouth by-election, and how his story serves as an example of Black political participation in the early 19th century: historyofparliament.com/2025/06/24/j...

Studying, researching or teaching a history topic and not sure where to start? Try a search using the Bibliography of British and Irish History (BBIH)

Excited to hear from Prof. Julian Hoppit on 17 June at the final IHR PPP seminar of term. He’ll be sharing new research into John Rickman’s career in Parliament during the early #19C. Join online for free! More info here: historyofparliament.com/2025/06/10/j... @victoriancommons.bsky.social

Excited to hear from Prof. Julian Hoppit on 17 June at the final IHR PPP seminar of term. He’ll be sharing new research into John Rickman’s career in Parliament during the early #19C. Join online for free! More info here: historyofparliament.com/2025/06/10/j... @victoriancommons.bsky.social

In the first of an important new series, drawing on sources ranging from photographs to parliamentary reports, @martinspychal.bsky.social looks at the life and career of Scotland's first Black MP, Peter McLagan, MP for Linlithgowshire, 1865-93. victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2025/06/12/p...

Looking forward to hearing next week about Rickman, who spent 12 years as the Speaker's Secretary and 26 years as a Clerk in the House of Commons. Come and join us online on Tuesday 17th June.

On 17 June Professor Julian Hoppit will be speaking at the next IHR Parliaments, Politics & People seminar, where he will be discussing John Rickman and his career in Parliament. Find out more about the paper and how to attend the seminar below: historyofparliament.com/2025/06/10/j...

Born #OnThisDay 1768 Matthew Wood represented London as a radical reformer, 1817-43. Early in his parliamentary career he played a leading role in the defence of Queen Caroline. Find out more in this post from @martinspychal.bsky.social : victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2021/06/02/t... #HistParl

On 3 June Professor Wendy Ugolini will be speaking at the IHR Parliaments, Politics & People seminar on 'The Recording Angel and the expression of English Welsh identities during the First World War'. Find out more about the paper and how to attend below: historyofparliament.com/2025/05/27/t...

Join us next Wednesday 28 May, in person at the IHR and online (17:30-19:30) to hear Annabelle Gilmore’s (Birmingham) paper “‘I shall describe no more’: Reconnecting Black Histories to the Beckford Collection at Charlecote Park” @ihr.bsky.social www.history.ac.uk/events/i-sha...

Come and join us online tomorrow - there is still time to sign up!

New article today from the @victoriancommons.bsky.social! Dr Kathryn Rix compares the 1835 and 1865 general elections and how the electoral system established by the 1832 Reform Act changed over the thirty years between them. historyofparliament.com/2025/05/15/1...

Sign up Sign up! @katrinanavickas.bsky.social will be discussing the evolution of political marches in London at our free online IHR seminar next week. For sign up details, more info and a link to her brilliant (evolving) historical protest route map see here: historyofparliament.com/2025/05/13/h...

Sign up Sign up! @katrinanavickas.bsky.social will be discussing the evolution of political marches in London at our free online IHR seminar next week. For sign up details, more info and a link to her brilliant (evolving) historical protest route map see here: historyofparliament.com/2025/05/13/h...

Our #1832AtoZ has reached M for Mirror of Parliament. This was a rival publication to Hansard, reporting on parliamentary debates between 1828 and 1841. Find out more, including Charles Dickens’s connection, here: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2017/11/17/r...

Great 2nd day of @qmcbs.bsky.social British History Now conference. Starting with awesome panel inc Jean Smith, @freddyfoks.bsky.social and @historianhelen.bsky.social on emigration, race and Empire post 1945 - loved these pics from Helen of expat retirees in Europe #QMCBS 🗃️

A brilliant first article for the @victoriancommons.bsky.social by Dr Naomi Lloyd-Jones uncovers amazing detail about the corrupt and murky world of election petition pairing between the prototypical Conservative and Liberal parties in mid-19C...

For #Archive30 #ArchiveCollections we have our collection of blogs on Harriet Grote, a leading figure in radical politics in the 1830s. Find out more about her activities, including election work for her husband and campaigning for the secret ballot: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/tag/harriet-...

This looks to be a really interesting project at Worcester with Anna Muggeridge. They're looking for a research fellow for 'Voices of Motherhood: A History of Maternal Activism from the Women's Co-operative Guild to Pregnant then Screwed': www.jobs.ac.uk/job/DMT220/r...

For #Archive30 #ArchivePlan we have to highlight the work of our research fellow @martinspychal.bsky.social on constituency boundaries, featuring the maps drawn up by the boundary commissioners in 1831-2. Find out more about this process & these plans: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2021/06/28/s...

Charlotte Brontë died #OnThisDay 1855. She took a keen interest in parliamentary proceedings when she visited the ladies’ gallery of the temporary House of Commons in 1850, as our post explains: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2024/03/08/t...

The Pickwick Papers feature the corrupt borough of Eatanswill, for which Dickens drew on his own experiences of 19thC elections. Find out more here: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2017/02/07/f...

And for Gower's first-hand account of the fire at the Italian Opera House in December 1867 (he was an avid firewatcher!) see here: #WorldTheatreDay @histparl.bsky.social historyofparliament.com/2021/05/26/h...

And for Gower's first-hand account of the fire at the Italian Opera House in December 1867 (he was an avid firewatcher!) see here: #WorldTheatreDay @histparl.bsky.social historyofparliament.com/2021/05/26/h...

For #WorldTheatreDay we are sharing our colleague @martinspychal.bsky.social's research on Lord Ronald Gower, MP for Sutherland and a keen frequenter of London's theatres. victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2020/10/21/l...

New blogpost! Lucy McCormick writes about emotion and space in the mid-Victorian Women's Suffrage Movement. She explores how anti-suffragists weaponised emotion in relation to politicised spaces, and how suffragists renegotiated these links. Read here: womenshistorynetwork.org/emotion-and-...

'Institutions and Communities in the Modern British World since c.1700': Two-day symposium in honour of Arthur Burns. At KCL 10-11 April. Come join us to celebrate Arthur and to shape the volume of essays we're producing in his memory.

Historians of the modern British world! Sign up and spread the word about this excellent FREE conference in honour of Professor Arthur Burns at King’s College, London on 10 & 11 April www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/institutio... @ihr.bsky.social @victoriancommons.bsky.social @histassoc.bsky.social

Historians of the modern British world! Sign up and spread the word about this excellent FREE conference in honour of Professor Arthur Burns at King’s College, London on 10 & 11 April www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/institutio... @ihr.bsky.social @victoriancommons.bsky.social @histassoc.bsky.social

Really pleased to be able to share Martin's podcast with @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social about his brilliant book, Mapping the State! His book is #OpenAccess and can be read online or downloaded for free from our website: uolpress.co.uk/book/mapping... #History @ihr.bsky.social #AcademicSky

Posting with a slight sense of trepidation! I recorded a podcast with Mark Klobas on the New Books Network exploring my new book, Mapping the State. Available on all podcast providers lnkfi.re/5pbizs @victoriancommons.bsky.social @uolpress.bsky.social press.bsky.social @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social

In our latest 'explainer' article our editor Dr Philip Salmon looks at the development of the post of chairman of ways and means, a key role in the Commons, responsible - among other things - for chairing debates on the budget. victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2025/03/19/t...

Posting with a slight sense of trepidation! I recorded a podcast with Mark Klobas on the New Books Network exploring my new book, Mapping the State. Available on all podcast providers lnkfi.re/5pbizs @victoriancommons.bsky.social @uolpress.bsky.social press.bsky.social @newbooksnetwork.bsky.social

Thanks to all involved, especially @chloechallender.bsky.social and @brendantam.bsky.social, also @martinspychal.bsky.social Great conference all round but really enjoyed speaking with @lisaberrywaite.bsky.social and @satisfactory20.bsky.social on various aspects of women's experiences

Fantastic conference on Lived Experiences of the Westminster Parliament at Warwick today - great to speak on Vanda Salmon papers @chuarchives.bsky.social on panel with @lisaberrywaite.bsky.social and @emmapeplow.bsky.social. Thanks @chloechallender.bsky.social @brendantam.bsky.social for organising

We would like to share details of a symposium being held in honour of Professor Arthur Burns at @kingscollegelondon.bsky.social next month. The sign-up details are below: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/institutio... #skystorians #HistParl

This plan of Exeter by Lieutenant Robert Kearsley Dawson dates back to c 1832. It shows the existing boundaries of the city (in green), and the proposed boundary changes (in red). 📷 Townsend Maps T18f; digitised by @dhlabexeter.bsky.social #MapMonday #MappingOurExeter #Maps #Exeter #ExeterHistory

Ahead of #InternationalWomensDay tomorrow we are sharing some of our favourite blogs on women’s participation in 19thC politics. Last year our assistant editor @kathrynrix.bsky.social researched the facilities provided for women to view Commons debates: victoriancommons.wordpress.com/2024/03/08/t...

Looking forward to hearing Dr Ellen Paterson discuss her research on petitioning during the Long Parliament @ the IHR on Tuesday 11 March. More details, and info about how to join online or in-person in London, here: historyofparliament.com/2025/03/04/p... @histparl.bsky.social @ihr.bsky.social

Looking forward to hearing Dr Ellen Paterson discuss her research on petitioning during the Long Parliament @ the IHR on Tuesday 11 March. More details, and info about how to join online or in-person in London, here: historyofparliament.com/2025/03/04/p... @histparl.bsky.social @ihr.bsky.social