"English Historical Documents is the most comprehensive, annotated collection of documents on British (not in reality just English) history ever compiled. Conceived during the Second World War with a view to ensuring the most important historical documents remained available and accessible in perpetuity, the first volume came out in 1953, and the most recent volume almost sixty years later. The print series, edited by David C. Douglas, is a magisterial survey of British history, covering the years 500 to 1914 and including around 5,500 primary sources, all selected by leading historians Editors. It has over the years become an indispensable resource for generations of students, researchers and lecturers. EHD is now available in its entirety online. Bringing EHD into the digital age has been a long and complex process. To provide you with first-rate, intelligent searchability, Routledge have teamed up with the Institute of Historical Research (one of the research institutes that make up the School of Advanced Study, University of London http://www.history.ac.uk) to produce EHD Online. The IHR's team of experts have fully indexed the documents, using an exhaustive historical thesaurus developed by the Royal Historical Society for its Bibliography of British and Irish History. The sources include treaties, statutes, declarations, government and cabinet proceedings, military dispatches, orders, acts, sermons, newspaper articles, pamphlets, personal and official letters, diaries and more. Each section of documents and many of the documents themselves are accompanied by editorial commentary. The sources cover a wide spectrum of topics, from political and constitutional issues to social, economic, religious as well as cultural history."--[Résumé de l'éditeur].

The abolition of the Scottish and Irish Parliaments in 1707 and 1800 created a United Kingdom centred upon the Westminster legislature. This text discusses what this meant for the four nations involved, and how conceptions of English, Irish, Scottish and Welsh identities were affected.

This wide-ranging study, by one of the UK's leading scholars of British politics, presents a fascinating picture of the role of the MP during the last 150 years. The author examines the various roles of Members of Parliament since the middle of last century. Backbench MPs have three major roles-a partisan role, a constituency role, and a scrutiny role. They increasingly expect and are expected to support their parties; to help constituents with individual problems and look after their collective interests; and they are expected to keep a check on the government and its policies. These roles existed 150 years ago, but the balance between them has changed. The partisan role now dominates at Westminster, the constituency role has expanded beyond all recognition, and the scrutiny role is widely seen as the poor relation. Moreover, while constituency work has been virtually hived-off as a non-partisan role, the conflict between the partisan and the scrutiny role creates a dilemma at the heart of parliamentary government.

A comprehensive history of the Georgians, comparing past views of these exciting, turbulent, and controversial times with our attitudes today The Georgian era is often seen as a time of innovations. It saw the end of monarchical absolutism, global exploration and settlements overseas, the world’s first industrial revolution, deep transformations in religious and cultural life, and Britain’s role in the international trade in enslaved Africans. But how were these changes perceived by people at the time? And how do their viewpoints compare with attitudes today? In this wide-ranging history, Penelope J. Corfield explores every aspect of Georgian life—politics and empire, culture and society, love and violence, religion and science, industry and towns. People’s responses at the time were often divided. Pessimists saw loss and decline, while optimists saw improvements and light. Out of such tensions came the Georgian culture of both experiment and resistance. Corfield emphasizes those elements of deep continuity that persisted even within major changes, and shows how new developments were challenged if their human consequences proved dire.

What was the role of elected legislators? Was it to represent the opinions of constituents or to vote according to their informed opinions reflecting the needs of the kingdom? Most authorities have accepted Edmund Burke's depiction of 18th-century MPs, insisting it was their right to form their opinions without reference to the instructions of constituents. This study provides answers to these important questions and, in doing so, reveals that Burke's vision does not represent how the House of Commons functioned during the last two decades of the 18th century. Rather than focusing on specific issues or demographic groups, English MPs brings to the fore the legislative activity of a broad segment of late 18th-century English MPs. This book shows they were diligent legislators who attended to the needs of constituents, in the process developing strong connections with them. It demonstrates that these connections did not rest on shared beliefs in reformist ideologies except in, and around, the metropolis. Instead, they grew out of the members' timely and effective tending, session after session, to the host of measures brought forward by constituents and neighbours. McCahill explores, in fascinating detail, the consequences of this bond. In this book, McCahill draws from an impressive array of primary sources and secondary literature to combine a structural analysis with broad surveys and detailed case-studies. The result is an illuminating and a comprehensive account of the House of Commons between 1760 and 1790.

Written by members of the Study of Parliament Group, this collection of essays on the law and parliament deals with subjects such as the Nolan Report, devolution and an examination of the historical relationship between Parliament and European Human Rights law.

The relationship between parliament and government is fundamental to a political system. In this volume, a distinguished team of specialists explore that relationship and consider to what extent parliaments have the capacity to constrain governments. Are there particular institutional features, such as specialisation through committees, that enhance their capacity to influence public policy?