At a time that it feels that we’re reminded that history has been written by the winners of the past, and in a viewpoint of their favour, Debbie Killroy weaves a narrative through 17th to 20th century Britain reiterating there is many a side to history, and what better web than British parliamentary history.
An unexpected pick off the review shelf, this does come across as a specialist read which would suit anyone with an interest in British history or politics. Taking us through a journey when politicians could buy their seat on the bench or be rewarded for deeds (or misdeeds), through and beyond The Reform Acts of the 19th century, each section is written to a period of time with a crop of rogues, generally framed with their association or rivalry to each other.
You can see the academic background of the writer with the references available, thankfully as endnotes so it doesn’t interrupt the read, but they are accompanied with description, that this doesn’t come across as a stuffy scholarly experience.
For the more casual reader, interest can wax and wane, but this reader found their interest peaked by the more outlandish villains or the names you find yourself surprised to see; General George Monck, for example, was a name I was very familiar with growing up due to a local association and the legacy of the Coldstream Guards. I don’t recall however, my school lessons mentioning the campaigns in Ireland and Scotland that slaughtered the lives of thousands or the disappearance of his wife’s first husband.
It’s a broad topic that does make you wonder what would be written if a sequel was produced in another 400 years’ time – who would make the cut and what will be the bad behaviours of our time.
An ideal gift or self-purchase for a reader of this interest, or a coffee table book – with substance.
About the Book
Over the centuries, the House of Commons has been full of MPs standing up against tyranny; remarkable people doing remarkable things for the good of all. Yet there have been just as many cheats and liars who have played games, played the markets and played the people who put their trust in them.
Members Behaving Badly tells the story of our nation from 1603 to 1945 through 52 of these parliamentary villains: abusers, kidnappers and murderers, violent men doing violent deeds, often using parliament as a front and excuse. These are the MPs who made history – for all the wrong reasons.
There’s rake and poet Sir Charles Sedley, whose illicit partying while sozzled and stark naked on a tavern balcony caused a sensation even in Restoration London; the stock-jobbing, flip-flopping chancellor of the Exchequer, Charles Townshend, who proposed taxes that sparked a revolution; David Lloyd George, Britain’s saviour during the First World War, but whose avarice, corruption and abuse of honours ruined his political party forever; and many more.
About The Author
Debbie Kilroy is a writer and historian. Having read history at the University of Birmingham as an undergraduate, where she won the Kenrick Prize, she founded the award-winning ‘Get History’ platform in 2014 with the aim of bringing accessible yet high quality history-telling and debate to a wide audience. Since then, she has completed a Masters in Historical Studies at the University of Oxford, receiving a distinction and the Kellogg College Community Engagement and Impact Award. An Associate Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, she has worked with Histories of the Unexpected and Inside History.
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