Wednesday Edwardian: Parliament Act 1911

Why on earth is a Parliament Act of  1911 interesting to a romance writer? Because it's the basis for my Edwardian series. There's a lot of background to it; wasn't like suddenly in 1911 everyone decided that the House of Lords needed to reduce their power!

Suffice to say, there were 2 factions: Those who thought it a good idea to reduce their power and allow the elected House of Commons more say in the government and those who thought this a terrible idea.

Now I don't know for certain that people killed to secure their power, but not only is it totally plausible, but it makes for great fiction!

History of The House of Lords and a slightly longer Wiki article:

This clash came in 1909. The Lords refused to pass the budget prepared by David Lloyd George, Liberal Chancellor of the Exchequer. This so-called ‘People’s Budget’ had been touted as a mainstay of what was to become the Welfare State. There were many in the Liberal Party – who had won an overwhelming victory in the 1906 General Election – who saw the Lords as peers who simply abused their power and privilege. Over the next two years a campaign was started to reduce the power of the Lords. This culminated with the 1911 Parliament Act. The Lords still had the right to scrutinise bills passed by the Commons but they could no longer kill off a bill. The Lords could only reject a bill three times within one year. After this it became law