Marginalizing the Lords Journals: 1640-1649

Description

As the official record of the House of Lords, the 1640s Lords Journals are an essential resource for historians of the Long Parliament. They offer an unparalleled glimpse into the proceedings of the Upper House and their role in the tumultuous years of the British Civil Wars. However, although well-thumbed, there has been vanishingly little attention to the history of the journals themselves. Based on extensive work into the journals and the other records kept by the clerks of the Lords’ House, this paper will investigate how contemporaries used the Lords Journals and what was understood to be the House’s official record. As will be shown, the Journals were considered by contemporaries to be only a constituent part of the upper House’s official record, not its totality.

Alex Beeton is a Research Fellow at the History of Parliament Trust. He is a member of the House of Lords, 1640-1660 section, focusing on the peerage of eastern England.

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All welcome- this seminar is free to attend, but advance booking is required.