Liskeard |
---|
Former Borough constituency for the House of Commons |
1295–1885 |
---|
Number of members |
two (1295–1832); one (1832–1885) |
---|
Replaced by |
Bodmin |
---|
Liskeard was a parliamentary borough in Cornwall, which elected two Members of Parliament (MPs) to the House of Commons from 1295 until 1832, and then one member from 1832 until 1885, when the borough was abolished.
History
The parliamentary borough was based upon the community of Liskeard in the south-eastern part of Cornwall.
Sedgwick estimated the electorate at 30 in 1740. Namier and Brooke considered it was about 50 in the 1754–1790 period. The right of election before 1832 was in the freemen of the borough. This constituency was under the patronage of the Eliot family, which acquired the preponderent interest by 1722.
There were no contested elections between at least 1715 and 1802. In the early 19th century the Whigs attempted to expand the electorate to include householders. During the 1802 general election, 48 householders claimed the right to vote but their ballots were rejected by the Mayor (see the note to the 1802 election result below). The Eliot family continued to control the borough in the Tory interest, for another thirty years.
The Reform Act 1832 augmented the freemen voters (who retained their ancient right votes), with the beneficiaries of a new householder franchise. The number of voters registered in 1832 was 218. The political effect of the change was that a Whig was elected unopposed to the one remaining seat in 1832, whereas the two Tory candidates had been elected unopposed at the previous seven general elections. Only Whig or Liberal candidates were returned from 1832 until the constituency was abolished.
The Reform Act 1867 preserved the borough constituency but slightly expanded the electorate (from 434 in 1865 to 881 in 1868). Liskeard was one of the smallest boroughs to retain individual representation in the 1868–1885 period. However the constituency was finally abolished by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, when the borough became part of the Bodmin or South East division of Cornwall.
Members of Parliament
1295–1629
- Constituency created (1295)
Parliament | First member | Second member |
1355 | John Hamely[1] | |
1386 | John Bodilly | Stephen Bant[2] |
1388 (Feb) | Simon Lowys | John Helligan[2] |
1388 (Sep) | Simon Lowys | Walter Bloyowe[2] |
1390 (Jan) | Simon Lowys | John Cokeworthy I[2] |
1390 (Nov) | | |
1391 | Robert Brewys | John Goly[2] |
1393 | Simon Lowys | Robert Combe[2] |
1394 | | |
1395 | Ralph Cokeworthy | Ralph Trenewith II[2] |
1397 (Jan) | Simon Lowys | John Tregoose[2] |
1397 (Sep) | John Gryk | Robert Syteston[2] |
1399 | Walter Gosham | Thomas Forster[2] |
1401 | | |
1402 | Simon Lowys | John Price[2] |
1404 (Jan) | | |
1404 (Oct) | | |
1406 | John Treffridowe | Williard Hamond[2] |
1407 | William Aston | Thomas Gybbe[2] |
1410 | Simon (Lowys)] | John Clink[2] |
1411 | Simon Lowys | John Penrose[2] |
1413 (Feb) | | |
1413 (May) | Simon Lowys | Walter Lowys[2] |
1414 (Apr) | | |
1414 (Nov) | Simon Lowys | William Bodrugan[2] |
1415 | | |
1416 (Mar) | Oto Trenewith | John Trewoofe[2] |
1416 (Oct) | | |
1417 | John But | Robert Treage[2] |
1419 | Philip Motty | John Calwe[2] |
1420 | John Fursdon | John Cork[2] |
1421 (May) | Nicholas Aysshton | Richard Tredinney[2] |
1421 (Dec) | John Trelawny III | Robert Trenerth[2] |
1510–1523 | No names known[3] |
1529 | James Trewynnard | Henry Pyne[3] |
1536 | ? | |
1539 | ? | |
1542 | ? | |
1545 | John Roscarrock | Richard Halfacre[3] |
1547 | Robert Becket | Ambrose Gilberd[3] |
First Parliament of 1553 |
John Trelawny |
John Gayer |
Second Parliament of 1553 |
William Morice |
Thomas Roscarrock |
First Parliament of 1554 |
James Kemp |
Francis Roscarrock |
Second Parliament of 1554 |
John Connock |
John Pethbridge |
Parliament of 1555 |
John Cruys |
William Lower (MP for Liskeard) |
Parliament of 1558 |
William Coryton |
John Gayer |
Parliament of 1559 |
George Bromley |
Renald Muschamp |
Parliament of 1563–1567 |
Reginald Mohun |
Parliament of 1571 |
John Connock |
Basil Johnson |
Parliament of 1572–1581 |
Henry Macwilliam |
Paul Wentworth |
Parliament of 1584–1585 |
Peter Edgcumbe |
Edward Denny |
Parliament of 1586–1587 |
Richard Edgecumbe |
Jonathan Trelawny |
Parliament of 1588–1589 |
John Jackson |
Parliament of 1593 |
George Wray |
Parliament of 1597–1598 |
Henry Neville |
Edward Trelawny |
Parliament of 1601 |
Thomas Edmunds |
Sampson Lennard |
Parliament of 1604–1611 |
Sir William Killigrew |
Reginald Nicholas |
Addled Parliament (1614) |
Richard Connock |
John Glanville |
Parliament of 1621–1622 |
Sir Edward Coke |
Nicholas Hele |
Happy Parliament (1624–1625) |
William Wrey (later 2nd Wrey Baronet)[4] |
Useless Parliament (1625) |
William Coryton |
Parliament of 1625–1626 |
Sir Francis Steward |
Joseph Jane |
Parliament of 1628–1629 |
John Harris |
No Parliament summoned 1629–1640 |
1640–1832
1832–1885
Notes
- ↑ "HAMELY (HAMYLYN), Sir John (aft.1324-1399), of Wimborne St. Giles, Dorset.". History of Parliament Online. Retrieved 30 May 2013.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13 2.14 2.15 2.16 2.17 2.18 2.19 2.20 2.21 2.22 "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 3 November 2011.
- ↑ http://www.historyofparliamentonline.org/volume/1604-1629/member/wrey-william-1601-1645
- ↑ Prideaux was also elected for Honiton, which he chose to represent, and never sat for Liskeard
Election results
Note on sources: The information for the election results given below is taken from Sedgwick 1715–1754, Namier and Brooke 1754–1790 and Stooks Smith 1790–1832. From 1832 the principal source was Craig, with additional or different information from Stooks Smith included. Candidates classified by Craig as Liberal before 1859, are labeled as Whig or Radical (following Stooks Smith) or Liberal if their exact allegiance is uncertain. Similarly candidates classified by Craig as Conservative but by Stooks Smith as Tory are listed below as Tory.
Note on percentage change calculations: Where there was only one candidate of a party in successive elections, for the same number of seats, change is calculated on the party percentage vote. Where there was more than one candidate for a party, in one or both successive contested elections for the same number of seats, then change is calculated on the individual candidates percentage vote.
Note on party allegiance of candidates: A party label is only used when the source used quotes one. Other candidates are labelled Non Partisan, but may have associated themselves with a tendency or faction in Parliament.
Elections before 1715
Dates of Parliaments 1660–1715
Summoned |
Elected |
Opened |
Dismissed |
16 March 1660 |
1660 |
25 April 1660 |
29 December 1660 |
18 February 1661 |
1661 |
8 May 1661 |
24 January 1679 |
25 January 1679 |
1679 |
6 March 1679 |
12 July 1679 |
24 July 1679 |
1679–1680 |
21 October 1680 |
18 January 1681 |
20 January 1681 |
1681 |
21 March 1681 |
28 March 1681 |
14 February 1685 |
1685 |
19 May 1685 |
2 July 1687 |
29 December 1688 |
1688–1689 |
22 January 1689 |
6 February 1690 |
6 February 1690 |
1690 |
20 March 1690 |
11 October 1695 |
12 October 1695 |
1695 |
22 November 1695 |
6 July 1698 |
13 July 1698 |
1698 |
24 August 1698 |
19 December 1700 |
26 December 1700 |
1700–1701 |
6 February 1701 |
11 November 1701 |
3 November 1701 |
1701 |
30 December 1701 |
2 July 1702 |
2 July 1702 |
1702 |
20 August 1702 |
5 April 1705 |
1705 |
7 May – 6 June 1705 |
14 June 1705 |
see Note |
1707 |
see Note |
23 October 1707 |
3 April 1708 |
1708 |
30 April – 7 July 1708 |
8 July 1708 |
21 September 1710 |
1710 |
2 October – 16 November 1710 |
25 November 1710 |
8 August 1713 |
1713 |
22 August – 12 November 1713 |
12 November 1713 |
15 January 1715 |
Note:-
- The MPs of the Parliament of England (elected 1705) and 45 members co-opted from the former Parliament of Scotland, became the House of Commons of the 1st Parliament of Great Britain in 1707.
Index to Election results 1715–1799
Index to Election results 1800–1885
Elections in the 1710s
Elections in the 1720s
- Trelawny became a Baronet in 1721
General Election 12 April 1722: Liskeard (2 seats) |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Non Partisan |
Edward Eliot |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Non Partisan |
John Lansdell |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
By-Election 2 November 1722: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Non Partisan |
Thomas Clutterbuck |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Non Partisan hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
Elections in the 1730s
- Seat vacated on Clutterbuck being appointed a Lord of the Admiralty
By-Election 15 June 1732: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Non Partisan |
Thomas Clutterbuck |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Non Partisan hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
By-Election 25 March 1739: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Non Partisan |
Charles Trelawny |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Non Partisan hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
Elections in the 1740s
Elections in the 1750s
- Seat vacated on the appointment of Trelawny as Assay-Master of Tin for the Duchy of Cornwall
By-Election 2 July 1751: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Non Partisan |
Charles Trelawny |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Non Partisan hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
General Election 17 April 1754: Liskeard (2 seats) |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Non Partisan |
Edmund Nugent |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Non Partisan |
Philip Stanhope |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
- Seat vacated on the appointment of Nugent to an office
By-Election 1 December 1759: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Non Partisan |
Philip Stephens |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Non Partisan hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
Elections in the 1760s
Elections in the 1770s
- Seat vacated on the appointment of Gibbon to an office
By-Election 12 July 1779: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Non Partisan |
Philip Stephens |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Non Partisan hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
Elections in the 1780s
- Seat vacated on the appointment of E.J. Eliot as Remembrancer of the Court of Exchequer
By-Election 6 February 1786: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Non Partisan |
Hon. Edward James Eliot |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Non Partisan hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
Elections in the 1790s
- Seat vacated on the appointment of E.J. Eliot as a Commissioner for India
- Inchiquin was a peer of Ireland
Elections in the 1800s
By-Election 1800: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Non Partisan |
Lord Fincastle |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Non Partisan hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
- Note (1800): Stooks Smith recorded that William Huskisson was returned unopposed at this by-election, but this appears to be an error.
- Note (1802): 48 householders claimed the right to vote. The ballots they tendered were rejected by the Mayor. 44 wanted to vote for Sheridan and Ogilvie, 3 for the Eliots and 1 for John Eliot and Sheridan.
- Succession of John Eliot as the 2nd Lord Eliot
By-Election March 1804: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Tory |
William Huskisson |
21 |
87.50 |
N/A |
|
Whig |
Thomas Sheridan |
3 |
12.50 |
N/A |
Majority |
18 |
75.00 |
N/A |
Turnout |
24 |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Tory hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
- Note (1806): Stooks Smith does not give the votes for the elected candidates.
Elections in the 1810s
Elections in the 1820s
Elections in the 1830s
- Electorate expanded and constituency reduced to one seat, by the Reform Act 1832
- Note (1835): Stooks Smith recorded 211 registered electors, but the turnout is calculated on Craig's figure above
- Note (1837): Stooks Smith recorded 250 registered electors, but the turnout is calculated on Craig's figure above
Elections in the 1840s
- Note (1841): Stooks Smith recorded 285 registered electors, but the turnout is calculated on Craig's figure above
- Seat vacated on the appointment of Buller as Judge-Advocate General
By-Election 15 July 1846: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Whig |
Charles Buller |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Whig hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
- Note (1847): Stooks Smith recorded 333 registered electors, but the turnout is calculated on Craig's figure above
- Seat vacated on the appointment of Buller as President of the Poor Law Board
By-Election 3 January 1849: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Whig |
Richard Budden Crowder |
Unopposed |
N/A |
N/A |
|
Whig hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
Elections in the 1850s
By-Election 29 March 1854: Liskeard |
Party |
Candidate |
Votes |
% |
±% |
|
Whig |
Ralph William Grey |
138 |
51.49 |
N/A |
|
Liberal |
John Salusbury Trelawny |
119 |
44.40 |
N/A |
|
Liberal |
J.H. Reed |
11 |
4.10 |
N/A |
Majority |
19 |
7.09 |
N/A |
Turnout |
268 |
76.14 |
N/A |
Registered electors |
352 |
|
|
|
Whig hold |
Swing |
N/A |
|
- Trelawny and Reed are classified as Liberals (following Craig), as it is undetermined which wing of liberalism they belonged to. The list of MPs above refers to Grey as a Whig, so he is classified as such in this result.
- Gordon is classified as Liberal (following Craig), as it is undetermined which wing of liberalism he belonged to. The list of MPs above refers to Grey as a Whig, so he is classified as such in this result.
- The Whig Party is regarded as having merged into a new Liberal Party, which was formed at a meeting of the supporters of Lord Palmerston on 6 July 1859; although Whigs and Radicals had been informally referred to collectively as Liberals for decades.
- Seat vacated on the appointment of Grey as a Collector of Customs
Elections in the 1860s
Elections in the 1870s
Elections in the 1880s
References
- D Brunton & D H Pennington, Members of the Long Parliament (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1954)
- Cobbett's Parliamentary history of England, from the Norman Conquest in 1066 to the year 1803 (London: Thomas Hansard, 1808)
- F W S Craig, "British Parliamentary Election Results 1832–1885" (2nd edition, Aldershot: Parliamentary Research Services, 1989)
- J Holladay Philbin, Parliamentary Representation 1832 – England and Wales (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1965)
- Boundaries of Parliamentary Constituencies 1885–1972, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Parliamentary Reference Publications 1972)
- The House of Commons 1715–1754, by Romney Sedgwick (HMSO 1970)
- The House of Commons 1754–1790, by Sir Lewis Namier and John Brooke (HMSO 1964)
- The Parliaments of England by Henry Stooks Smith (1st edition published in three volumes 1844–50), second edition edited (in one volume) by F.W.S. Craig (Political Reference Publications 1973)) out of copyright
- Who's Who of British Members of Parliament: Volume I 1832–1885, edited by M. Stenton (The Harvester Press 1976)
- Who's Who of British Members of Parliament, Volume II 1886–1918, edited by M. Stenton and S. Lees (Harvester Press 1978)
- Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "L" (part 3)