William Borthwick (Dorset politician)

Hon. William Borthwick in 1929

Hon. William Borthwick (14 June 1879 - 16 December 1956)[1] was a British Liberal Party politician, Army Captain and Barrister.[2]

Background

He was the son of Sir Thomas Borthwick [3] and Letitia Mary Banks.[4] He was a younger brother of Lord Whitburgh.[5]In 1909 he married Ruth Margery Rigby of Putney, the only daughter of Jason Rigby. They had four children, including a son William Jason Maxwell Borthwick.[6] She died in 1971. In 1913 he was granted the rank of a baron's son.[7]

Career

He gained the rank of Temporary Captain in the service of the King's Royal Rifle Corps. He fought in the First World War between 1914 and 1918, where he was wounded twice and became a Prisoner of war.[8] In 1919 he was called to the Bar.[9] At parliamentary elections he contested, as a Liberal party candidate North Dorset four times;

General Election 1929: North Dorset [10]

Electorate 31,684

Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Cecil Hanbury 12,203 47.3 -6.0
Liberal Hon. William Borthwick 11,281 43.8 -2.9
Labour Colin Grant Clark 2,298 8.9 n/a
Majority 922 3.5
Turnout 25,782 81.4
Conservative hold Swing -1.5
General Election 1931: North Dorset [10]

Electorate 31,898

Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Cecil Hanbury 15,499 59.2 +11.9
Liberal Hon. William Borthwick 10,682 40.8 -3.0
Majority 4,817 18.4 +14.9
Turnout 82.1 +0.7
Conservative hold Swing +7.5
General Election 1935: North Dorset [10]

Electorate 32,714

Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Sir Cecil Hanbury 13,055 50.1 -9.1
Liberal Hon. William Borthwick 9,871 37.9 -2.9
Agriculture George Henry Lane Fox Pitt-Rivers 1,771 6.8 n/a
Labour Miss M M Whitehead 1,360 5.2 n/a
Majority 3,184 12.2 -6.2
Turnout 79.7 -2.4
Conservative hold Swing -3.1
North Dorset by-election, 1937 [10]

Electorate

Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Angus Valdemar Hambro 12,247 51.1 +1.0
Liberal Hon. William Borthwick 11,704 48.9 +11.0
Majority 543 2.2 -10.0
Turnout 23,951 73.4 -6.3
Conservative hold Swing -5.0

He did not stand for parliament again.[10]

References

  1. ↑ "The Peerage". The Peerage. 2014-01-26. Retrieved 2014-02-03.
  2. ↑ "National Portrait Gallery - Home". Npg.org.uk. Retrieved 2014-02-03.
  3. ↑ The Times Guide to the House of Commons 1929
  4. ↑ "The Peerage". The Peerage. 2014-01-26. Retrieved 2014-02-03.
  5. ↑ The Times Guide to the House of Commons 1931
  6. ↑ ‘BORTHWICK, (William) Jason (Maxwell)’, Who Was Who, A & C Black, an imprint of Bloomsbury Publishing plc, 1920–2007; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2007 accessed 3 Feb 2014
  7. ↑ "The Peerage". The Peerage. 2014-01-26. Retrieved 2014-02-03.
  8. ↑ "The Peerage". The Peerage. 2014-01-26. Retrieved 2014-02-03.
  9. ↑ The Times Guide to the House of Commons 1929
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 10.2 10.3 10.4 British parliamentary election results 1818-1949, Craig, F. W. S.