Lord Lexden

The end of the Great War ushered in a new era of mass democracy, as millions of newly enfranchised working men and women voted for the first time. As we mark 100 years since the Armistice, historian Lord Lexden reflects on how it helped shape our politics 

Queen Victoria was an early and strong supporter. Harold Macmillan referred to them as ‘the day boys’. Hugh Gaitskell feared they would be used to block a reforming Labour government and preserve the privilege of the House of Lords. Sixty years on from the Act which finally created Life Peers, historian Lord Lexden looks back at how Parliament’s Upper Chamber was transformed