Contact
Biography
I work on late eighteenth and early nineteenth century British history, with a particular specialism in the political and electoral history of the age. My research interests have encompassed work on national political figures such as Sir Robert Peel, the Duke of Wellington and Benjamin Disraeli as well as individuals with a strong Nottinghamshire connection, such as the 4th Duke of Newcastle (of Clumber Park) and William Edward and Godfrey Tallents (solicitors, land stewards and political agents of Newark). I have specialist research interests in the use of biographies, diaries and autobiographies and maintain scholarly interests in the political cartoons and caricatures of the age. These have given rise to publications in a range of academic and general readership outlets, to reviews and review articles and to exhibitions. I have also developed a number of web-based applications, drawing on my research in the manuscripts and special collections held at Nottingham, in particular, a website exploring political themes from the time of the 4th Duke of Newcastle including working class unrest, electioneering and issues relating to Ireland.
Expertise Summary
British political and electoral history between 1790 and 1850 with a particular interest in national figures on the political right (Wellington, Peel, Disraeli), and local aristocrats with a strong impact on their county (4th Duke of Newcastle). I am interested in political biography, diaries and memoirs and maintain research interests in political culture including caricature, cartoons and songs.
Teaching Summary
The modules I teach reflect my broad interest in eighteenth and nineteenth century British history. Both my second year undergraduate option (Consumers and Citizens: Society and Culture in Eighteenth… read more
Research Summary
Research Specialism
My principal research interests are late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth century British political history (1790-1850) with a particular interest in the development of the Conservative party, the nature and use of political diaries and political biography in the history of this period and the evolution of political caricature.
I have published a number of articles and editions arising from my work on Henry, 4th duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne. Newcastle was a leading Ultra-Tory politician and electoral borough monger of the period. His diaries, which I have edited in two volumes, reveal the hopes, fears and strategies of those who resisted 'the triumph of reform' during these years. I have considered a number of aspects of Newcastle's political activities and opinions; in particular, his attempt to exercise influence, both in Nottinghamshire and on the national stage, through a combination of personal status, electoral influence, property ownership and parliamentary manoeuvre.
My interest in the role which biography plays in the formation of a public (and historical) reputation has led to an edited collection of texts exploring contemporary perceptions of Benjamin Disraeli. I have also published a monograph exploring the statecraft and political legacy of Sir Robert Peel and its relationship to the evolution of conservative thought and practice in the period.
Local History
Since 2012, I have been the Chairman of the Friends of Nottinghamshire Archives (www.fona.org.uk), and member of the council and publications committee of the Thoroton Society of Nottinghamshire. I also represent the Thoroton Society on the Nottingham Heritage Strategy Panel and serve on the Boards of the Nottingham Civic Society, the Victoria County History Trust for Derbyshire, the Derbyshire Record Society and the Peel Society of Tamworth. Between 2012 and 2015, I served on the Council of the Historical Association and as a member of its Public History Committee.
In 2013-14 I was Principal Investigator on the AHRC-funded Connected Communities projects, 'Writing Our History, Digging Our Past (Phase 2)' and 'Trade and Transport on the River Trent'.
See the online resources at:
https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/history/research/projects/connected-communities.aspx
https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/history/research/projects/trade-and-traffic-on-the-river-trent.aspx
Journal Editing
Between 2005 and 2008, I was Reviews editor of the East Midland Historian. From 2008-2011, I was History and Managing editor of Transactions of the Thoroton Society, the Journal for Nottinghamshire History and Archaeology. Since 2013, I have been co-editor (with David Hayton) of the journal Parliamentary History. Anyone interested in submitting to the journal is invited to e-mail me and/or to consult our 'Notes for Contributors' available at
http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1750-0206/homepage/ForAuthors.html
Curator of Rebellion - Academic Residency at Nottingham Castle
Between April 2015 and April 2018 I am on partial secondment from the University to Nottingham City Museums and Galleries as the 'Curator of Rebellion' at Nottingham Castle. This role, funded by Arts Council England, is designed to support Nottingham Castle in its £24m Heritage Lottery Fund re-development, particularly in respect of the Robin Hood and Rebellion Galleries.
For my blogs about the role, see: https://blogs.nottingham.ac.uk/arts/tag/curator-of-rebellion-and-social-justice/
Exhibitions
I have curated two exhibitions, based on holdings in the University's Manuscripts and Special Collections, hosted at the Weston Gallery, Nottingham Lakeside Arts. The first, in 2009-10, commemorated the bicentenary of William Ewart Gladstone's birth. See the resources at:
http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/history/research/projects/gladstone.aspx
The second, in 2015, marked the bicentenary of the Battle of Waterloo. See the resources at:
https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/manuscriptsandspecialcollections/exhibitions/online/chargingagainstnapoleon/index.aspx
Media Work
For a summary of my media expertise, see: http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/news/expertiseguide/humanities/dr-richard-gaunt-.aspx
Recent media work for the University of Nottingham can be viewed on you-tube: 'Interrogating Interdisciplinarity' at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIpLLDQrc1c and my six-part series 'Charging Against Napoleon. Wellington's Campaigns in the Peninsular Wars and at Waterloo' at https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLpRE0Zu_k-BzyszASVVLazTy2QBTfw50z
I appeared in two episodes of the BBC East Midlands Today series 'Criminal Histories', on the 1831 Nottingham Reform Bill Riots (https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=LOQRkwLTCCU) and the 1865 Election Riot in Nottingham (http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p02p8cb2)
I also appeared in the first episode of 'Nottingham Now and Then' broadcast on Notts TV in 2014: http://blogs.nottingham.ac.uk/newsroom/2014/05/26/nottingham-historian-on-new-notts-tv/
In 2015, to commemorate the bicentenary of the Battle of Waterloo, I featured in a BBC-2 programme on the Duke of Wellington: http://blogs.nottingham.ac.uk/newsroom/2015/05/07/richard-e-grant-the-iron-duke-and-me/
As well as speaking about Wellington's treatment at the hands of caricaturists at the Houses of Parliament: https://www.parliament.uk/about/art-in-parliament/news/2015/june1/wellington-after-waterloo/
In addition, I have appeared as an interviewee on various BBC Radio Nottingham shows.
Postgraduate Supervision
I would be interested to hear from anyone wishing to undertake research on late-eighteenth and early-nineteenth century British history. I particularly welcome enquiries from those with an interest in political history.
At present, I am co-supervising three PGR students: Michael Crane is studying the Industrial Enlightenment in nineteenth century Derby; Hannah Nicholson is exploring the relationship between print and politics in the East Midlands between 1790 and 1832 and Mike Taylor is re-examining the Act of Union with Scotland in 1707. From September 2018, I am lead-supervisor on the Collaborative Doctoral Award (CDA), 'Reconstructing Wollaton Hall', in partnership with Nottingham City Museums and Galleries.
Successfully supervised PhD theses: Neil Howe, 'The Politician in Caricature. The Case of Charles James Fox' (2011); James Phillips, 'The Eastern Question in the British and Russian Press, 1875-1878' (2012); Stephen Lamont, 'Sir Robert Wilmot Horton and Liberal Toryism' (2015); Rosemary Muge, 'Politics, Sport and Protest. The Game Laws in the East Midlands' (2018).