below the gangway
Preserved but no longer current.
In the House of Com- mons, on the farther side of the passage-way between the seats which separate the Ministry from the rest of the Members. To sit "below the gangway" is to sit amongst the general members, and not among the Ministers or ex- Ministers and leaders of the Opposition.
Era: ca. 1898 (Victorian)
Sources & notes
Reproduced from Brewer’s Dictionary of Phrase and Fable (1898 edition, public domain; archive.org, retrieved 2026-07-31; OCR text, minor errors possible). Reflects the scholarship and attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “below the gangway” mean?
In the House of Com- mons, on the farther side of the passage-way between the seats which separate the Ministry from the rest of the Members. To sit "below the gangway" is to sit amongst the general members, and not among the Ministers or ex- Ministers and leaders of the Opposition.
Is “below the gangway” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.