Mother of Parliaments

British  

noun

1. the British Parliament: the model and creator of many other Parliaments

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Etymology

Origin of Mother of Parliaments

C19: first used of England in 1865 by John Bright (1811–89), British Liberal statesman

Example Sentences

Nor are stable and effective minority governments unknown in Commonwealth countries that can trace their parliamentary and governance systems back to "the Mother of Parliaments" in Westminster.

From BBC • Apr. 28, 2015

This reverence for heritage is amplified by that often mis-applied phrase, The Mother of Parliaments.

From BBC • Mar. 29, 2015

The Mother of Parliaments, majestic but not stuffy, had one of her stormiest, most boisterous weeks in recent history.

From Time Magazine Archive

In the form set centuries ago by the Mother of Parliaments, the M.P.s trooped into the Senate Chamber.

From Time Magazine Archive

In one stormy decade he tore the cloak from the Mother of Parliaments, reducing her to a plain-speaking democratic machine.

From The Glories of Ireland by Lennox, P. J.