House of Lords

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Lords, House of. The Lords came into being as a separate house of the Irish parliament in the late 14th century when prelates and lay lords were hived off from the privy council. Since the Irish parliament represented only those parts of the country under English control, and since the Irish peerage was small and ill‐defined, the Lords did not make a major impact in either the 14th or 15th centuries. Despite this, the House gradually acquired a distinct identity, as the elaboration of voting by proxy attests.

For most of the 17th century the increasingly Protestant character of the House did not prevent the development of an aristocratic identity which transcended ethnic differences. After the revolution of 1688, however, the Lords, which met biannually or annually between 1692 and 1800, became emphatically Protestant in outlook as well as composition. Its membership comprised 22 spiritual peers, all bishops of the Church of Ireland, and an increasing number of temporal peers. Since many of those ennobled in the 18th century were Englishmen or absentees, the bishops, as more faithful attenders, exercised an influence disproportionate to their numbers and ensured that the House caused the government few problems. By the 1750s the era of the political prelate, exemplified by Archbishop King and Primate Boulter, had come to a close, and control of the Lords passed into lay hands. Because so many peers were former MPs who had supported government policies in the Commons, however, Dublin Castle continued to have few problems securing a working majority, despite the efforts of the small patriot rump led by Charlemont.

The House of Lords was not without power. All legislation had to be ratified there, and it could initiate heads of bills. The restoration after 1782 of the appellate jurisdiction taken away by the Declaratory Act contributed to the increase in the standing of the Lords in the final two decades of the 18th century, though it would be an exaggeration to claim that this signalled the commencement of a new vital era. The House of Lords journals and standing orders amply attest to the efforts of members to maintain the dignity of the upper house. But, in practice, the real power and influence of Irish peers rested in their ability to influence the returns to the House of Commons and in their membership of the privy council.

Bibliography

James, F. G. , Lords of the Ascendancy: The Irish House of Lords and its Members 1600–1800 (1995)

James Kelly

Lords, House of The upper chamber of the British Parliament. Originally part of the great council or the king's council of the Norman and Plantagenet monarchs, the Lords became separated from the Commons in the reign of Edward III. It has been in continuous existence since, except between 1649, at the end of the English Civil War, when it was abolished by a unanimous vote of the Commons, and 1660. Before the Reformation the spiritual lords (who then included abbots and priors) were in a majority. After 1529, when the abbots and priors were removed, the House was dominated by the lay peers, whose numbers expanded enormously. Life peerages were introduced in 1958, and the Labour government of 1997 removed the right of hereditary peers to attend, while postponing a comprehensive review of the composition of any second chamber.

The House of Lords is the highest court of appeal, a function developed since the late 13th cent. when Parliament was regarded as the highest court of royal justice. The appeals were heard by the whole House and any member could take part. An increased work‐load led to the problem of finding judicial personnel, and eventually led to the creation in 1876 by the Appellate Jurisdiction Act of the modern judicial powers and practice of the House. These included salaried ‘lords of appeal in ordinary’, who were to hold peerages only during their terms of office. A further Act of 1887 allowed the lords of appeal to retain their peerages for life.

Over the years the powers of the House of Lords vis‐à‐vis the House of Commons have been severely curtailed. This process probably began in 1407 when Henry IV agreed that money grants were to be initiated in the Commons. The rejection by the Lords of the Finance Bill in 1909, which contained Lloyd George's ‘People's Budget’, led to a major constitutional crisis which was resolved by two general elections and the promise of a massive creation of peers given by King George V to Asquith. The Lords backed down and the resulting Parliament Act of 1911 drastically reduced the powers of the Lords to those of limited delay. A money bill could receive the royal assent after one month even though the consent of the Lords had been withheld, while other public bills could only be delayed by two years (reduced to one year by the Parliament Act of 1949).

House of Lords (UK) The upper chamber of the British PARLIAMENT. It derived from the medieval kings' Great Council. In the 13th and 14th centuries, as the councils gave way to parliaments, the Lords evolved into a separate body which, together with the HOUSE OF COMMONS, presented bills to the crown for enactment as statutes. The immense individual importance of many peers did not prevent them gradually losing to the Commons the right to levy taxes on the king's behalf. The House of Lords was abolished in 1649 and revived in 1660. It was put on what is still its constitutional basis vis-à-vis the crown and the House of Commons by the GLORIOUS REVOLUTION (1688–89). Following the 1832 REFORM ACT, its influence gradually declined as that of the House of Commons increased. The Parliament Act of 1911 reduced the Lords' powers to a “suspensory veto” of two years (further reduced to one year in 1949). By it bills can be delayed, but if passed again by the Commons, become law. The House of Lords has no power to revise or delay money bills. It still performs several useful parliamentary roles. These include the revision of bills from the Commons, the initiation of non-controversial legislation, scrutiny of the executive, and enquiry by select committee. Debate in the Lords is less raucously partisan and sometimes better informed than in the Commons. The House of Lords is the highest court of appeal in the UK legal system, but only the Law Lords take part when it acts in this capacity.

Members of the House of Lords include the Lords Spiritual (26 archbishops and bishops in order of seniority), the Lords Temporal (approximately 1000 hereditary and life peers), and the Lords of Appeal in Ordinary (Law Lords), the most senior members of the judiciary. Non-hereditary peers have been created since the Life Peerage Act of 1958; they tend to be more active members of the Lords than many hereditary peers. In 1999 new legislation led to the removal of voting powers from all but 92 hereditary peers.

House of Lords Upper House of the British Parliament. In its legislative capacity, the Lords is completely subordinate to the House of Commons. The Parliament Acts of 1911 and 1949 checked virtually all its power, except to delay passage of a bill for one year. Members of the House of Lords include the Lords Spiritual (26 archbishops and bishops), Lords Temporal (c.1000 hereditary and life peers) and the Lords of Appeal (Law Lords). The Law Lords form Britain's highest court of appeal. In 1999, the number of hereditary peers was reduced to 92 as a first step in the major reform of the House.

Lords, House of (UK), see Parliament (UK)

House of Lords see Parliament .

House of Lords see Parliament .

Lords, House of See HOUSE OF LORDS.