British general election, 1715

The British general election of 1715 returned members to serve in the House of Commons

House of Commons of Great Britain

The House of Commons of Great Britain was the lower house of the Parliament of Great Britain between 1707 and 1801. In 1707, as a result of the Acts of Union of that year, it replaced the House of Commons of England and the third estate of the Parliament of Scotland, as one of the most significant...

 of the 5th Parliament of Great Britain

Parliament of Great Britain

The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and Parliament of Scotland...

 to be held, after the merger of the Parliament of England

Parliament of England

The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England. In 1066, William of Normandy introduced a feudal system, by which he sought the advice of a council of tenants-in-chief and ecclesiastics before making laws...

 and the Parliament of Scotland

Parliament of Scotland

The Parliament of Scotland, officially the Estates of Parliament, was the legislature of the Kingdom of Scotland. The unicameral parliament of Scotland is first found on record during the early 13th century, with the first meeting for which a primary source survives at...

 in 1707. When George I

George I

George I may refer to:* Patriarch George I of Constantinople * George I of Georgia * George I of Russia, * George I of Bulgaria * George I of Halych George I may refer to:* Patriarch George I of Constantinople (d. 686)* George I of Georgia (1014–1027)* George I of Russia, (c. 1099–1157)* George I...

 ascended to the throne, he dismissed the Tory cabinet and replaced it with one almost entirely composed of Whigs, as they were responsible for securing his succession. The election saw the Whigs win an overwhelming majority in the House of Commons, and afterwards virtually all Tories in central or local government were purged, leading to a period of Whig oligarchy lasting almost 50 years during which Tories were almost entirely excluded from office.

Constituencies

See British general election, 1796

British general election, 1796

The British general election, 1796 returned members to serve in the 18th and last House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain to be held before the formation of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland on 1 January 1801...

 for details. The constituencies used were the same throughout the existence of the Parliament of Great Britain.

Dates of the election

The general election was held between 22 January 1715 and 9 March 1715. At this period elections did not take place at the same time in every constituency. The returning officer in each county or parliamentary borough

Parliamentary borough

Parliamentary boroughs are a type of administrative division, usually covering urban areas, that are entitled to representation in a Parliament...

 fixed the precise date (see hustings for details of the conduct of the elections).

See also

• List of Parliaments of Great Britain
• MPs elected in the British general election, 1715