East Retford (UK Parliament constituency)
Encyclopedia
East Retford was a parliamentary constituency in Nottinghamshire
, which elected two Members of Parliament
(MPs) to the House of Commons
for the first time in 1316, and continuously from 1571 until 1885, when the constituency was abolished. Although East Retford was technically a parliamentary borough
for the whole of its existence, in 1830 its franchise had been widened and its boundaries had been extended to include the whole Wapentake of Bassetlaw
as a remedy for corruption among the voters, and from that point onward it resembled a county constituency in most respects.
. Certainly, he considered himself entitled to influence its choice of members, and 1586 wrote to the borough asking for the nomination of one or both of the representatives; the borough authorities replied respectfully that "Having considered the matter" they felt themselves "bound to satisfy you in that and any other much weightier thing. May it please you, therefore, to make choice and nominate and we will ratify it." However, they went on to note that they would be particularly happy to oblige if the Earl were to renominate the sitting member, Denzil Holles (who may well have been his nominee at the previous election), and since Rutland proved happy to do so, the proprieties were observed without any hardship. The Earls of Rutland retained their influence in Retford for several decades, often holding the municipal post of High Steward.
The borough consisted initially of the parish of East Retford, a market town which by 1830 had a population of around 2,500. By the end of the 17th century, the right to vote was restricted to the resident freemen
of the town, but there was some dispute over who had a right to claim the freedom. (The House of Commons debated the borough's franchise seven times in a few years following 1700, coming to a different resolution each time, and never definitively settling all the details.) East Retford was not subject to the abuses common in many other freeman boroughs, where non-resident freemen could often vote and outnumbered the residents, but as elsewhere the town corporation was able to exert considerable control by deciding who to admit as freemen. In the second half of the 18th century, the qualified electorate amounted to about 150.
However, the borough was no more independent than it had been in Elizabethan times, and by 1800 had been under the influence of the main local landowner, the Duke of Newcastle
, for well over a century. Although it was not quite an entirely safe pocket borough, the Duke could generally be confident of seeing his chosen candidates returned. This influence was strongest in the second half of the 18th century when the borough was managed for the Duke by one of the sitting MPs, John White
: there were no contested elections between 1741 and 1796. But even then it was necessary to work to maintain the Duke's popularity among the freemen, and after 1765 the then Duke
(who had been Prime Minister until 1761) found his hold on Retford challenged by his nephew, the Earl of Lincoln
. As Lincoln was also Newcastle's heir, it might have seemed that the dispute could not permanently weaken the family's control, but in the event the voters had been so stirred up that by the time Lincoln inherited the Dukedom in 1768 that they were unwilling to renounce their independence, and henceforth the Dukes of Newcastle could only count on one of the two seats. When the Corporation candidate was beaten by the Duke's two choices in 1796, the bailiffs and aldermen of the Corporation created 38 honorary freemen to ensure they had a majority once more at the next election; but the Court of King's Bench ruled the manoeuvre illegal (though it was common practice in many other boroughs).
waxed (though he himself and his Whig allies were apparently unconvinced of their own power), and the borough eventually became notorious for bribery. Retford's corruption took an unusual form: unlike the voters in most corrupt boroughs, the freemen tried to prevent contested elections, demanding instead that hopeful candidates should buy enough votes to secure a safe majority and avoid the need for a poll. At the elections of 1818 and 1820, the going tariff was 20 guineas for a vote, and the freemen (having two votes each) received 40 guineas for votes they never needed to cast.
But the stability of the system depended on the electors being able to reach a consensus over two candidates who could meet their demands, and a balance had developed whereby the Fitzwilliam interest chose one candidate and the leading members of the Corporation the other. Late in 1825, the prospective Corporation candidate for the next election withdrew through ill health, and Lord Fitzwilliam provocatively brought forward a second candidate of his own. The Corporation found another candidate, secured the support of the Tory Duke of Newcastle
, and the election of 1826 was fought with no holds barred. Both sides bought up all the votes they could at the usual rate, and several pubs were kept open for months before the election, serving free beer from six in the morning until midnight. The Tory stood on a "no popery" platform, with his supporters openly boycotting tradesmen who opposed them, and election day ended in a riot. The two Fitzwilliam candidates won, but the loser petitioned against the result and the extent of East Retford's corruption was displayed to the world.
Parliament was united in being determined to find a remedy for East Retford's misbehaviour, but less clear as to what the most appropriate remedy would be. In the last years of the 18th century, several other boroughs found guilty of similar offences had been "thrown into the hundred" (had their boundaries extended to include the freeholders from the whole surrounding division of the county, so as to ensure that the corrupt townsmen could no longer sway the vote). But demands for a wider Parliamentary reform and a redistribution of seats to the more populous parts of the country were now widespread, and in the most recent corruption case (that of Grampound
), the offending borough had been abolished altogether and its seats transferred elsewhere.
There were therefore vigorous debates as to whether Retford's franchise should not be transferred to one of the larger unrepresented towns such as Manchester
or Birmingham
. But both the Tory government and Whig opposition were split on the issue - the harder-line anti-Reform Tories did not want to set a precedent for establishing new boroughs, while many of the Whigs were reluctant to weaken the case for wholesale Reform by making piecemeal improvements. The Whigs were further embarrassed because a leading Whig had been implicated in vote-buying, and the Tories aware that throwing the borough into the hundred (or in Retford's case, the Wapentake) might well re-establish the lost influence of the Tory Duke of Newcastle
over the constituency.
The people of Retford themselves were by no means unanimous in wanting to retain the franchise. During the House of Lords debates on the Disfranchisement Bill, it emerged that the town had an active committee, led by a couple of attorneys and meeting at the Turk's Head Inn, who were trying to make the borough seem even more corrupt than it was and ensure its extinction. One of its members was later seen wearing a handsome gold watch, apparently presented in gratitude by well-wishers in Birmingham!
The first compromise reached by the House of Commons was to put East Retford into the wapentake while transferring the seats of another guilty borough, Penryn
, to Manchester, but the latter bill was defeated in the House of Lords
. The question dragged on through the whole of the 1826-30 Parliament, and the Whig amendment to transfer Retford's seats to Birmingham was eventually defeated by 126 votes to 99. The Act that was passed in 1830 therefore reverted to the earlier practice, and the borough's boundaries were extended to encompass the Wapentake of Bassetlaw
(which included the whole of the northern end of Nottinghamshire, including the town of Worksop
): all those within this area who were qualified to vote in the county elections being also given votes for East Retford.
.
Notes
Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire is a county in the East Midlands of England, bordering South Yorkshire to the north-west, Lincolnshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south, and Derbyshire to the west...
, which elected two Members of Parliament
Member of Parliament
A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...
(MPs) to the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...
for the first time in 1316, and continuously from 1571 until 1885, when the constituency was abolished. Although East Retford was technically a parliamentary borough
Parliamentary borough
Parliamentary boroughs are a type of administrative division, usually covering urban areas, that are entitled to representation in a Parliament...
for the whole of its existence, in 1830 its franchise had been widened and its boundaries had been extended to include the whole Wapentake of Bassetlaw
Bassetlaw (wapentake)
Bassetlaw was a wapentake in the English county of Nottinghamshire. The wapentake covered an area in the north of the county, roughly equivalent to the modern Bassetlaw local government district. The wapentake was divided into the divisions of Hatfield, North Clay and South Clay.The place name...
as a remedy for corruption among the voters, and from that point onward it resembled a county constituency in most respects.
The original borough
East Retford first sent members to Parliament in 1316, but thereafter the privilege lapsed until the borough was once more summoned to do so in 1571, probably at the instigation of the Earl of RutlandEdward Manners, 3rd Earl of Rutland
Edward Manners, 3rd Earl of Rutland, 15th Baron de Ros of Helmsley, KG was the son of Henry Manners, 2nd Earl of Rutland, whose titles he inherited in 1563....
. Certainly, he considered himself entitled to influence its choice of members, and 1586 wrote to the borough asking for the nomination of one or both of the representatives; the borough authorities replied respectfully that "Having considered the matter" they felt themselves "bound to satisfy you in that and any other much weightier thing. May it please you, therefore, to make choice and nominate and we will ratify it." However, they went on to note that they would be particularly happy to oblige if the Earl were to renominate the sitting member, Denzil Holles (who may well have been his nominee at the previous election), and since Rutland proved happy to do so, the proprieties were observed without any hardship. The Earls of Rutland retained their influence in Retford for several decades, often holding the municipal post of High Steward.
The borough consisted initially of the parish of East Retford, a market town which by 1830 had a population of around 2,500. By the end of the 17th century, the right to vote was restricted to the resident freemen
Freedom of the City
Freedom of the City is an honour bestowed by some municipalities in Australia, Canada, Ireland, France, Italy, New Zealand, South Africa, Spain, the United Kingdom, Gibraltar and Rhodesia to esteemed members of its community and to organisations to be honoured, often for service to the community;...
of the town, but there was some dispute over who had a right to claim the freedom. (The House of Commons debated the borough's franchise seven times in a few years following 1700, coming to a different resolution each time, and never definitively settling all the details.) East Retford was not subject to the abuses common in many other freeman boroughs, where non-resident freemen could often vote and outnumbered the residents, but as elsewhere the town corporation was able to exert considerable control by deciding who to admit as freemen. In the second half of the 18th century, the qualified electorate amounted to about 150.
However, the borough was no more independent than it had been in Elizabethan times, and by 1800 had been under the influence of the main local landowner, the Duke of Newcastle
Duke of Newcastle
Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne is a title which has been created three times in British history while the title of Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne has been created once. The title was created for the first time in the Peerage of England in 1664 when William Cavendish, 1st Marquess of Newcastle-upon-Tyne...
, for well over a century. Although it was not quite an entirely safe pocket borough, the Duke could generally be confident of seeing his chosen candidates returned. This influence was strongest in the second half of the 18th century when the borough was managed for the Duke by one of the sitting MPs, John White
John White (1699-1769)
John White was an English politician.-Life:John White was the son and heir of Thomas White of Tuxford and Wallingwells and his wife Bridget. He succeeded to his father’s estates at the age of 33 in 1732...
: there were no contested elections between 1741 and 1796. But even then it was necessary to work to maintain the Duke's popularity among the freemen, and after 1765 the then Duke
Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne
Thomas Pelham-Holles, 1st Duke of Newcastle-upon-Tyne and 1st Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne, KG, PC was a British Whig statesman, whose official life extended throughout the Whig supremacy of the 18th century. He is commonly known as the Duke of Newcastle.A protégé of Sir Robert Walpole, he served...
(who had been Prime Minister until 1761) found his hold on Retford challenged by his nephew, the Earl of Lincoln
Henry Pelham-Clinton, 2nd Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne
thumb|right|"The Return From Shooting" by [[Francis Wheatley |Sir Francis Wheatley]] depicting The Duke of Newcastle, his friend Colonel Litchfield and the Duke's gamekeeper, Mansell along with four Clumber Spaniels....
. As Lincoln was also Newcastle's heir, it might have seemed that the dispute could not permanently weaken the family's control, but in the event the voters had been so stirred up that by the time Lincoln inherited the Dukedom in 1768 that they were unwilling to renounce their independence, and henceforth the Dukes of Newcastle could only count on one of the two seats. When the Corporation candidate was beaten by the Duke's two choices in 1796, the bailiffs and aldermen of the Corporation created 38 honorary freemen to ensure they had a majority once more at the next election; but the Court of King's Bench ruled the manoeuvre illegal (though it was common practice in many other boroughs).
Corruption and its consequences
With the election results in Retford no longer a foregone conclusion, it became worthwhile for candidates to take some pains to secure victory, and Retford's voters began to exploit the commercial value of their votes. The Newcastle influence became very limited while that of Earl FitzwilliamWilliam FitzWilliam, 4th Earl FitzWilliam
William Wentworth-Fitzwilliam, 4th Earl Fitzwilliam PC , styled Viscount Milton until 1756, was a British Whig statesman of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1782 he inherited his uncle Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham's estates, making him one of the richest people in...
waxed (though he himself and his Whig allies were apparently unconvinced of their own power), and the borough eventually became notorious for bribery. Retford's corruption took an unusual form: unlike the voters in most corrupt boroughs, the freemen tried to prevent contested elections, demanding instead that hopeful candidates should buy enough votes to secure a safe majority and avoid the need for a poll. At the elections of 1818 and 1820, the going tariff was 20 guineas for a vote, and the freemen (having two votes each) received 40 guineas for votes they never needed to cast.
But the stability of the system depended on the electors being able to reach a consensus over two candidates who could meet their demands, and a balance had developed whereby the Fitzwilliam interest chose one candidate and the leading members of the Corporation the other. Late in 1825, the prospective Corporation candidate for the next election withdrew through ill health, and Lord Fitzwilliam provocatively brought forward a second candidate of his own. The Corporation found another candidate, secured the support of the Tory Duke of Newcastle
Henry Pelham-Clinton, 4th Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne
Henry Pelham Fiennes Pelham-Clinton, 4th Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne KG was a British nobleman and politician who played a leading part in British politics in the late 1820s and early 1830s.-Early life:...
, and the election of 1826 was fought with no holds barred. Both sides bought up all the votes they could at the usual rate, and several pubs were kept open for months before the election, serving free beer from six in the morning until midnight. The Tory stood on a "no popery" platform, with his supporters openly boycotting tradesmen who opposed them, and election day ended in a riot. The two Fitzwilliam candidates won, but the loser petitioned against the result and the extent of East Retford's corruption was displayed to the world.
Parliament was united in being determined to find a remedy for East Retford's misbehaviour, but less clear as to what the most appropriate remedy would be. In the last years of the 18th century, several other boroughs found guilty of similar offences had been "thrown into the hundred" (had their boundaries extended to include the freeholders from the whole surrounding division of the county, so as to ensure that the corrupt townsmen could no longer sway the vote). But demands for a wider Parliamentary reform and a redistribution of seats to the more populous parts of the country were now widespread, and in the most recent corruption case (that of Grampound
Grampound (UK Parliament constituency)
Grampound in Cornwall, was a borough constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England, then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1821. It was represented by two Members of Parliament.-History:Grampound's...
), the offending borough had been abolished altogether and its seats transferred elsewhere.
There were therefore vigorous debates as to whether Retford's franchise should not be transferred to one of the larger unrepresented towns such as Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
or Birmingham
Birmingham
Birmingham is a city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands of England. It is the most populous British city outside the capital London, with a population of 1,036,900 , and lies at the heart of the West Midlands conurbation, the second most populous urban area in the United Kingdom with a...
. But both the Tory government and Whig opposition were split on the issue - the harder-line anti-Reform Tories did not want to set a precedent for establishing new boroughs, while many of the Whigs were reluctant to weaken the case for wholesale Reform by making piecemeal improvements. The Whigs were further embarrassed because a leading Whig had been implicated in vote-buying, and the Tories aware that throwing the borough into the hundred (or in Retford's case, the Wapentake) might well re-establish the lost influence of the Tory Duke of Newcastle
Henry Pelham-Clinton, 4th Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne
Henry Pelham Fiennes Pelham-Clinton, 4th Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne KG was a British nobleman and politician who played a leading part in British politics in the late 1820s and early 1830s.-Early life:...
over the constituency.
The people of Retford themselves were by no means unanimous in wanting to retain the franchise. During the House of Lords debates on the Disfranchisement Bill, it emerged that the town had an active committee, led by a couple of attorneys and meeting at the Turk's Head Inn, who were trying to make the borough seem even more corrupt than it was and ensure its extinction. One of its members was later seen wearing a handsome gold watch, apparently presented in gratitude by well-wishers in Birmingham!
The first compromise reached by the House of Commons was to put East Retford into the wapentake while transferring the seats of another guilty borough, Penryn
Penryn (UK Parliament constituency)
Penryn was a parliamentary borough in Cornwall, which elected two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of England from 1553 until 1707, to the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800, and finally to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom from 1801 to until 1832...
, to Manchester, but the latter bill was defeated in the House of Lords
House of Lords
The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster....
. The question dragged on through the whole of the 1826-30 Parliament, and the Whig amendment to transfer Retford's seats to Birmingham was eventually defeated by 126 votes to 99. The Act that was passed in 1830 therefore reverted to the earlier practice, and the borough's boundaries were extended to encompass the Wapentake of Bassetlaw
Bassetlaw (wapentake)
Bassetlaw was a wapentake in the English county of Nottinghamshire. The wapentake covered an area in the north of the county, roughly equivalent to the modern Bassetlaw local government district. The wapentake was divided into the divisions of Hatfield, North Clay and South Clay.The place name...
(which included the whole of the northern end of Nottinghamshire, including the town of Worksop
Worksop
Worksop is the largest town in the Bassetlaw district of Nottinghamshire, England on the River Ryton at the northern edge of Sherwood Forest. It is about east-south-east of the City of Sheffield and its population is estimated to be 39,800...
): all those within this area who were qualified to vote in the county elections being also given votes for East Retford.
After 1830
Ironically, this punishment saved East Retford's representation, in name at least. Within a year, Parliament was debating the Great Reform Bill, and the old borough's population was so small that it would have lost one of its seats. But the newly extended borough had a population of more than 37,000, and the Reform Act therefore left it untouched. It had 2,312 registered voters at the first reformed election, and around 7,500 after the second extension of the franchise in 1868. It retained its two members until 1885, when the constituency was replaced by an identically delineated single-member county constituency, BassetlawBassetlaw (UK Parliament constituency)
Bassetlaw is a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election.-Boundaries:...
.
1571-1640
| Parliament | First member | Second member |
|---|---|---|
| 1571 | Henry Draycot | Thomas Broxholme |
| 1572 | Job Throckmorton | George Delves |
| 1584 (Nov)-1587 | Denzil Holles | Thomas Waad |
| 1586 | Denzil Holles | John Conyers |
| 1588 | George Chaworth George Chaworth, 1st Viscount Chaworth George Chaworth, 1st Viscount Chaworth of Armagh was an English Parliamentarian.-Family:He was the son of John Chaworth and Jane Vincent. His main residence was Wiverton Hall in Nottinghamshire. He married Mary Knyveton, daughter of William Knyveton and Jane Leeche... |
Alexander Radcliffe |
| 1593 | Roger Portington | Anthony Cooke |
| 1597 | Roger Portington | John Roos |
| 1601 | Roger Manners | Robert Kydman |
| 1604 | Sir John Thornhagh | Sir Thomas Darrel |
| 1614 | Sir William Cavendish | Sir Walter Chute |
| 1621 | Sir Nathaniel Rich | Edward Wortley |
| 1624 | John Holles John Holles, 2nd Earl of Clare -Family:He was born in Haughton, Nottinghamshire, the eldest son of John Holles, 1st Earl of Clare and Anne Stanhope, and the brother of Denzil Holles, 1st Baron Holles.... |
Sir Francis Wortley Sir Francis Wortley, 1st Baronet Sir Francis Wortley, 1st Baronet , poet who supported the Royalist cause in the English Civil War.In 1610 Wortley was a commoner of Magdalen College, Oxford. He was created a baronet in 1611. He was Member of Parliament for East Retford in the 1624 and the 1625 Parliaments. He supported Charles II... |
| 1625 | John, Lord Haughton John Holles, 2nd Earl of Clare -Family:He was born in Haughton, Nottinghamshire, the eldest son of John Holles, 1st Earl of Clare and Anne Stanhope, and the brother of Denzil Holles, 1st Baron Holles.... |
Sir Francis Wortley |
| 1626 | John, Lord Haughton John Holles, 2nd Earl of Clare -Family:He was born in Haughton, Nottinghamshire, the eldest son of John Holles, 1st Earl of Clare and Anne Stanhope, and the brother of Denzil Holles, 1st Baron Holles.... |
Sir Edward Wortley |
| 1628 | Sir Edward Osborne Sir Edward Osborne, 1st Baronet Sir Edward Osborne, 1st Baronet, of Kiveton was an English politician, the son of Sir Hewett Osborne Sir Edward Osborne, 1st Baronet, of Kiveton (bap. 12 December 1596 – 9 September 1647) was an English politician, the son of Sir Hewett Osborne Sir Edward Osborne, 1st Baronet, of Kiveton... |
Henry Stanhope, Lord Stanhope Henry Stanhope, Lord Stanhope Henry Stanhope, Lord Stanhope KB , known as Sir Henry Stanhope until 1628, was an English noble and politician.He was the second and next surviving son of Philip Stanhope, 1st Earl of Chesterfield and his wife first Catherine, daughter of Francis Hastings, Lord Hastings, oldest son of George... |
| 1629–1640 | No Parliaments convened | |
1640-1885
| Year | First member | First party | Second member | Second party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| November 1640 Long Parliament The Long Parliament was made on 3 November 1640, following the Bishops' Wars. It received its name from the fact that through an Act of Parliament, it could only be dissolved with the agreement of the members, and those members did not agree to its dissolution until after the English Civil War and... |
Viscount Mansfield Charles Cavendish, Viscount Mansfield Charles Cavendish, Viscount Mansfield was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1640 to 1644. He supported the Royalist cause in the English Civil War.... |
Royalist | Sir Gervase Clifton Sir Gervase Clifton, 1st Baronet Sir Gervase Clifton, 1st Baronet , K.B. was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1614 and 1666. He supported the Royalist cause in the English Civil War.-Political career:... |
Royalist | ||
| 1644 | Mansfield and Clifton disabled from sitting - both seats vacant | |||||
| 1646 | Francis Thornhagh Francis Thornhagh Sir Francis Thornhagh or Thornhaugh was an English soldier, High Sheriff and MP.He was born the son of the East Retford MP and High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire Sir Francis Thornhagh of Fenton, Lincolnshire and educated at Lincoln school and Magdalen College, Cambridge, before entering the Inner... |
Sir William Lister | ||||
| November 1648 | Thornhaugh killed at Battle of Preston - seat vacant | |||||
| December 1648 | Edward Neville | Lister excluded in Pride's Purge Pride's Purge Pride’s Purge is an event in December 1648, during the Second English Civil War, when troops under the command of Colonel Thomas Pride forcibly removed from the Long Parliament all those who were not supporters of the Grandees in the New Model Army and the Independents... - seat vacant |
||||
| 1653 | East Retford was unrepresented in the Barebones Parliament Barebones Parliament Barebone's Parliament, also known as the Little Parliament, the Nominated Assembly and the Parliament of Saints, came into being on 4 July 1653, and was the last attempt of the English Commonwealth to find a stable political form before the installation of Oliver Cromwell as Lord Protector... and the First First Protectorate Parliament The First Protectorate Parliament was summoned by the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell under the terms of the Instrument of Government. It sat for one term from 3 September 1654 until 22 January 1655 with William Lenthall as the Speaker of the House.... and Second Second Protectorate Parliament The Second Protectorate Parliament in England sat for two sessions from 17 September 1656 until 4 February 1658, with Thomas Widdrington as the Speaker of the House of Commons... Parliaments of the Protectorate |
|||||
| January 1659 Third Protectorate Parliament The Third Protectorate Parliament sat for one session, from 27 January 1659 until 22 April 1659, with Chaloner Chute and Thomas Bampfylde as the Speakers of the House of Commons... |
Clifford Clifton Clifford Clifton Sir Clifford Clifton was an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1659.Clifford was the son of Sir Gervase Clifton, 1st Baronet and his second wife Lady Frances Clifford, daughter of Francis Clifford, 4th Earl of Cumberland, and was baptised on 22 June 1626. He was... |
William Cartwright William Cartwright (MP) William Cartwright was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1659.Cartwright was the son of John Cartwright of Bloxam, Oxfordshire and was baptised at Aynho on 29 March 1634. He matriculated at Brasenose College, Oxford on 5 April 1650. In 1659, he was elected Member of... |
||||
| May 1659 Rump Parliament The Rump Parliament is the name of the English Parliament after Colonel Pride purged the Long Parliament on 6 December 1648 of those members hostile to the Grandees' intention to try King Charles I for high treason.... |
Edward Neville | |||||
| 1660 | Sir William Hickman Sir William Hickman, 2nd Baronet Sir William Hickman. 2nd Baronet was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1660 to 1682.... |
The Earl of Kildare Wentworth FitzGerald, 17th Earl of Kildare Wentworth FitzGerald, 17th Earl of Kildare PC , styled Lord Offaly until 1660, was an Irish peer.-Background:... |
||||
| 1661 | Clifford Clifton Clifford Clifton Sir Clifford Clifton was an English landowner and politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1659.Clifford was the son of Sir Gervase Clifton, 1st Baronet and his second wife Lady Frances Clifford, daughter of Francis Clifford, 4th Earl of Cumberland, and was baptised on 22 June 1626. He was... |
|||||
| 1670 | Sir Edward Dering Sir Edward Dering, 2nd Baronet Sir Edward Dering, 2nd Baronet was an English politician.He was the eldest surviving son and heir of Sir Edward Dering, 1st Baronet of Pluckley, Kent by his second marriage to Anne, sister of John Ashburnham. He was admitted as a fellow-commoner to Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge... |
|||||
| 1679 | Sir Edward Nevill | |||||
| 1685 | John Millington | |||||
| 1689 | Hon. Evelyn Pierrepont | John Thornhagh | ||||
| 1690 | Richard Taylor | |||||
| 1698 | Sir Willoughby Hickman | |||||
| January 1701 | Thomas White Thomas White (1667-1732) Thomas White of Tuxford was the son of John White of Tuxford and Jane, daughter of Sir Thomas Williamson, Bt.. He was a substantial landowner in Nottinghamshire, owning the Manor of Tuxford, which had been in the family for several generations by this time.He was the man responsible for the family... |
|||||
| April 1701 | Sir Willoughby Hickman | |||||
| December 1701 | Thomas White Thomas White (1667-1732) Thomas White of Tuxford was the son of John White of Tuxford and Jane, daughter of Sir Thomas Williamson, Bt.. He was a substantial landowner in Nottinghamshire, owning the Manor of Tuxford, which had been in the family for several generations by this time.He was the man responsible for the family... |
|||||
| 1702 | Sir Willoughby Hickman | William Levinz William Levinz William Levinz, doctor of medicine and Regius Professor of Greek at Oxford University, was President of St John's College, Oxford from 1673 until 1698.-References:... |
||||
| 1706 | Sir Hardolph Wastneys | Robert Molesworth Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth PC came of an old Northamptonshire family. He married Letitia Coote, daughter of Richard Coote, 1st Lord Coote of Coloony and Mary St. George.His father Robert Robert Molesworth, 1st Viscount Molesworth PC (7 September 1656 – 22 May 1725) came of an old... |
||||
| 1708 | William Levinz William Levinz William Levinz, doctor of medicine and Regius Professor of Greek at Oxford University, was President of St John's College, Oxford from 1673 until 1698.-References:... |
Thomas White Thomas White (1667-1732) Thomas White of Tuxford was the son of John White of Tuxford and Jane, daughter of Sir Thomas Williamson, Bt.. He was a substantial landowner in Nottinghamshire, owning the Manor of Tuxford, which had been in the family for several generations by this time.He was the man responsible for the family... |
||||
| 1710 | Thomas Westby | |||||
| 1711 | Willoughby Hickman | Bryan Cooke | ||||
| April 1713 | Francis Lewis | |||||
| August 1713 | John Digby | |||||
| 1715 | Thomas White Thomas White (1667-1732) Thomas White of Tuxford was the son of John White of Tuxford and Jane, daughter of Sir Thomas Williamson, Bt.. He was a substantial landowner in Nottinghamshire, owning the Manor of Tuxford, which had been in the family for several generations by this time.He was the man responsible for the family... |
|||||
| 1722 | Patrick Chaworth | |||||
| 1727 | Sir Robert Clifton Sir Robert Clifton, 5th Baronet Sir Robert Clifton KB was 5th Baronet Clifton of Clifton, Nottinghamshire.-Family:Robert was the eldest son of Sir Gervase Clifton, 4th Baronet, and his wife Anne... |
|||||
| 1733 | John White John White (1699-1769) John White was an English politician.-Life:John White was the son and heir of Thomas White of Tuxford and Wallingwells and his wife Bridget. He succeeded to his father’s estates at the age of 33 in 1732... |
|||||
| 1741 | William Mellish | |||||
| 1751 | John Shelley Sir John Shelley, 5th Baronet Sir John Shelley, 5th Baronet , of Michelgrove in Sussex, was an English Member of Parliament.He was the eldest son of Sir John Shelley, 4th Baronet and Margaret Pelham, two of whose brothers served as British Prime Minister... |
|||||
| 1768 | Sir Cecil Wray | Whig | John Offley | |||
| 1774 | Lord Thomas Pelham-Clinton Thomas Pelham-Clinton, 3rd Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne Major-General Thomas Pelham-Clinton, 3rd Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne , known as Lord Thomas Pelham-Clinton until 1779 and as Earl of Lincoln from 1779 to 1794, was a British soldier and politician.... |
|||||
| 1775 | William Hanger | |||||
| 1778 | Lord John Pelham-Clinton | |||||
| 1780 | Wharton Amcotts | |||||
| 1781 | Earl of Lincoln Thomas Pelham-Clinton, 3rd Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne Major-General Thomas Pelham-Clinton, 3rd Duke of Newcastle-under-Lyne , known as Lord Thomas Pelham-Clinton until 1779 and as Earl of Lincoln from 1779 to 1794, was a British soldier and politician.... |
|||||
| 1790 | Sir John Ingilby | |||||
| 1794 | Lt Colonel William Henry Clinton William Henry Clinton General Sir William Henry Clinton GCB was a British general during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars as well as the First Miguelist War... |
|||||
| 1796 | William Petrie | Sir Wharton Amcotts | ||||
| 1802 | Lt Colonel Robert Craufurd Robert Craufurd Major-General Robert Craufurd was a Scottish soldier and Member of Parliament . After a military career which took him from India to the Netherlands, he was given command of the Light Division in the Napoleonic Peninsular War under the Duke of Wellington... |
John Jaffray | ||||
| 1806 | Major General Charles Craufurd Charles Craufurd Lieutenant-General Sir Charles Gregan Craufurd GCB was a Scottish soldier.Craufurd was the second son of Sir Alexander Crauford, 1st Baronet , and the elder brother of Robert Craufurd. He entered the 1st Dragoon Guards in 1778. Made captain in the Queen's Bays in 1785, he became the equerry and... |
Thomas Hughan | ||||
| 1807 | William Ingilby Sir William Amcotts-Ingilby, 2nd Baronet Sir William Amcotts-Ingilby, 2nd Baronet was a British politician.The son of Sir John Ingilby, 1st Baronet and his wife Elizabeth Amcotts, he entered the House of Commons as Member of Parliament for East Retford in 1807... |
|||||
| 1812 | George Osbaldeston George Osbaldeston "Squire" George Osbaldeston was an English sportsman and politician.Osbaldeston spent his childhood at Hutton Buscel, the family estate in Yorkshire... |
Charles Marsh | ||||
| 1818 | William Evans | Samuel Crompton Sir Samuel Crompton, 1st Baronet Sir Samuel Crompton, 1st Baronet was a politician in the United Kingdom. He served as a Member for Parliament for East Retford, Derby and Thirsk. He also served as Deputy Lieutenant for the North Riding of Yorkshire.... |
||||
| 1826 | William Battie-Wrightson | Whig | Sir Robert Dundas | Whig | ||
| 1830 | Viscount Newark | Whig | Arthur Duncombe | Tory | ||
| 1831 | Granville Harcourt-Vernon Granville Harcourt-Vernon (1792–1879) -Background:Harcourt-Vernon was the sixth son of the Most Reverend Edward Venables-Vernon-Harcourt, Archbishop of York, third son of George Venables-Vernon, 1st Baron Vernon. His mother was Lady Anne, daughter of Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Marquess of Stafford... |
Whig | ||||
| 1835 | Arthur Duncombe | Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
||||
| 1837 | Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
|||||
| 1847 | The Viscount Galway George Monckton-Arundell, 6th Viscount Galway George Edward Arundell Monckton-Arundell, 6th Viscount Galway , was an Anglo-Irish Conservative politician.... |
Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
||||
| 1852 | Hon. William Duncombe William Duncombe, 1st Earl of Feversham William Ernest Duncombe, 1st Earl of Feversham , known as The Lord Feversham between 1867 and 1868, was a British Conservative politician.... |
Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
||||
| 1857 | Francis John Savile Foljambe Francis John Savile Foljambe Francis John Savile Foljambe was a British Liberal member of parliament.Born at Osberton in 1830, Foljambe was the eldest son of George Savile Foljambe and Lady Selina Jenkinson , and the older brother of Cecil Foljambe, a fellow Liberal politician... |
Liberal Liberal Party (UK) The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day... |
||||
| 1876 | William Beckett Denison | Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House... |
||||
| 1880 | Frederick Thorpe Mappin | Liberal Liberal Party (UK) The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day... |
||||
| 1885 United Kingdom general election, 1885 -Seats summary:-See also:*List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1885*Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885–1918*Representation of the People Act 1884*Redistribution of Seats Act 1885-References:... |
Constituency abolished | |||||
Notes