House of Lords

Epic card · No. 9055

The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. Its origins lie in the early 11th century and the emergence of bicameralism in the 14th century. Unlike the House of Commons, membership of the Lords is not acquired by election. Most members are appointed for life as peers, on either a political or non-political basis. The House of Lords also includes up to 26 archbishops and bishops of the Church of England, known as Lords Spiritual. Since 2014, membership may be voluntarily relinquished or terminated upon expulsion. For much of its history, hereditary peers were members of the House of Lords, and indeed made up the majority of the body's membership. Between 1999 and 2026, hereditary membership was limited to 92 excepted hereditary peers, then abolished altogether in 2026. As the upper house of Parliament, the House of Lords has many similar functions to the...

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