Tag: Tony Benn

The First Elizabethan Age, 16th Century history, Legal history, Tudor

Poison and the Tudor nobility: the De La Warr peerage case

With House of Lords membership once again on the political agenda, Dr Ben Coates of our Lords 1558-1603 section explores how one aristocratic family’s murderous internal struggles played out in Parliament in the sixteenth century… On 26 Feb. 1549 a private bill ‘to dis[in]herit William West, [for] attempting to poison’ his uncle Thomas West, 9th Lord De La Warr, received a first reading in the … Continue reading Poison and the Tudor nobility: the De La Warr peerage case

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Contemporary History, 20th century history, Factions, Harold Wilson, James Callaghan, Modern, Oral history

Arthur Latham and the rise of the Labour Left

On this day, 1930, Arthur Latham was born. Labour MP for Paddington North (later Paddington) from 1969 to 1979, his career both inside and outside the Commons reflected the ebb and flow of the Labour Party’s ‘hard left’. Alfie Steer explores the significance of Latham’s career, and what it reveals about the history of left-wing politics in late Twentieth Century Britain. Arthur Latham’s journey to … Continue reading Arthur Latham and the rise of the Labour Left

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Contemporary History, 20th century history, History of Parliament Trust, Modern, Oral history, Parties

A tribute to Joe Ashton, MP for Bassetlaw 1968-2001

This is our third blogpost paying tribute to former MPs and interviewees of our Oral History Project who have sadly passed away during the current crisis. Here project lead Dr Emma Peplow remembers Joe Ashton, MP for Bassetlaw October 1968-2001. Born in Attercliffe, Sheffield in 1933, Joe Ashton told us during his 2012 interview for our oral history project that he came second in a … Continue reading A tribute to Joe Ashton, MP for Bassetlaw 1968-2001

Emma Peplow1 Comment
Modern, 20th century history, Military history, Parliamentary Life

Parliament and the Gulf War in 1991

In today’s guest blog, Teemu Hakkinen (University of Jyvaskyla, Finland), who has researched the royal prerogative in decisions to go to war in the UK, looks back on the debates about the First Gulf War twenty-five years ago this month… Naturally, the 2003 Iraq War has received an enormous amount of attention because of its impact on so many areas, from life in, and the … Continue reading Parliament and the Gulf War in 1991

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20th century history, Contemporary History, Factions, Modern, Oral history, Parties

Labour leadership elections through the years

The Labour party’s leadership contest comes to a close this week, with the winner announced at a special conference on Saturday. Our oral history project features many former Labour MPs’ recollections of leadership contests, and the consequences of them, particularly in the 1980s as the party grappled with life in opposition and internal divisions between left and right. Former MP for Ipswich, Ken Weetch, described … Continue reading Labour leadership elections through the years

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