Dunbartonshire (UK Parliament constituency)

Dunbartonshire
Former County constituency
for the House of Commons
Subdivisions of Scotland County of Dumbarton
1708–1950
Number of members One
Replaced by East Dunbartonshire
West Dunbartonshire

Dunbartonshire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of Great Britain (at Westminster) from 1708 to 1801 and of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom (also Westminster) from 1801 to 1950. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) using the first-past-the-post voting system.

Boundaries

The constituency was created to cover the county of Dumbarton (later Dunbarton) minus any parliamentary burgh or part thereof within the county. From 1832 to 1918, however, under the Representation of the People (Scotland) Act 1832, the Representation of the People (Scotland) Act 1868 and the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, the boundaries of counties and burghs for purposes of parliamentary representation were not necessarily those for other purposes.

The Representation of the People Act 1918 brought constituency boundaries generally into alignment with local government boundaries established under the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1889 and subsequent related legislation, but there were later changes to local government boundaries which were not reflected in new constituency boundaries until 1950, the same year that the Dunbartonshire constituency was abolished, under the House of Commons (Redistribution of Seats) Act 1949.

For the period 1832 to 1918 boundary details below are nominal, and for the period 1918 to 1950 they are those applicable in 1918.

For the 1708 (first) general election and every subsequent election of the Parliament of Great Britain the Dumbartonshire constituency consisted of the county of Dumbarton minus the burgh of Dumbarton, which was a component of the Clyde Burghs constituency.

In 1801 the Parliament of Great Britain was merged with the Parliament of Ireland to form the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The Dumbartonshire constituency retained its boundaries as a constituency of the Parliament of Great Britain for the 1802 (first) general election of the new parliament and for the general elections of 1806, 1807, 1812, 1818, 1820, 1826, 1830 and 1831.

Nominally, the constituency had the same boundaries for the 1832 general election, but the burgh of Dumbarton was now a component of Kilmarnock Burghs. 1832 boundaries were used also in the general elections of 1835, 1837, 1841, 1847, 1852, 1857, 1859, 1865, 1868, 1874, 1880, 1885, 1886, 1892, 1895, 1900, 1906, January 1910, and December 1910.

For the 1918 general election the constituency was defined as covering the county of Dunbarton minus the burghs of Dumbarton and Clydebank, which comprised Dumbarton Burghs. 1918 boundaries were used also in the general elections of 1922, 1923, 1924, 1929, 1931, 1935 and 1945.[1]

For the 1950 general election new constituency boundaries divided the county of Dunbarton between the East Dunbartonshire and West Dunbartonshire constituencies, both entirely within the county.[1]

Members of Parliament

MPs 1708–1832

Election Member Party
1708 John Campbell
1710
1713
1715
1722 Mungo Haldane
1725 John Campbell
1727 John Campbell, later Duke of Argyll Whig
1734
1741
1747
1754
1761 Archibald Edmonstone Tory
1768
1774
1780 Lord Frederick Campbell
1781 George Keith Elphinstone
1784
1790 Archibald Edmonstone Tory
1796 William Cunninghame Bontine
1797 Alexander Telfer Smollett
1799 Sir James Colquhoun, 3rd Bt
1801
1802
1806 Henry Glassford
1806 Charles Edmonstone Tory
1807 Henry Glassford
1810 Archibald Campbell-Colquhoun
1812
1818
1820
1821 John Buchanan
1826 John Campbell Tory
1830 Lord Montagu William Graham Tory
1831

MPs 1832–1950

Election Member Party[2][3][4]
1832 John Campbell Colquhoun Whig
1835 Alexander Dennistoun Whig
1837 Sir James Colquhoun, 4th Bt Whig
1841 Alexander Smollett Conservative
1847
1852
1857
1859 Patrick Boyle Smollett Conservative
1865
1868 Archibald Orr-Ewing Conservative
1874
1880
1885
1886
1892 John Sinclair Liberal
1895 Alexander Wylie Conservative
1900
1906 James Dundas White Liberal
1910 (January)
1910 (December) Arthur Acland Allen Liberal
1918 Sir William Hannay Raeburn Coalition Conservative
1922 Conservative
1923 William Henry Porteous Martin Labour
1924 David Pinkerton Fleming Conservative
1926 by-election John Gibb Thom Conservative
1929 Willie Brooke Labour
1931 John Gibb Thom Conservative
1932 by-election Archibald Cochrane Conservative
1935
1936 by-election Thomas Cassells Labour
1941 by-election Adam McKinlay Labour
1945
1950 constituency divided: see East Dunbartonshire and West Dunbartonshire

Election results

At the General election 1868 Sir Archibald Orr-Ewing was returned unopposed.[5]

Elections in the 1880s

General election 1885: Dunbartonshire [6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Sir Archibald Orr-Ewing 4,514 50.9
Liberal Robert Threshie Reid 4,357 48.1
Majority 157 1.8
Turnout 88.2
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1886: Dunbartonshire [6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Sir Archibald Orr-Ewing 4,249 50.2 -0.7
Liberal Ronald Craufurd Munro Ferguson 4,217 49.8 +0.7
Majority 32 0.4 -1.4
Turnout 84.1
Conservative hold Swing -0.7

Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Dunbartonshire [7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal John Sinclair 5,249 51.4
Conservative Alexander Wylie 4,956 48.6
Majority 293 2.8
Turnout
Liberal gain from Conservative Swing
General election 1895: Dunbartonshire [8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Alexander Wylie 5,375 50.2 +1.6
Liberal John Sinclair 5,342 49.8 -1.6
Majority 33 0.4 3.2
Turnout 87.2
Conservative gain from Liberal Swing +1.6

Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Dunbartonshire [8]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Conservative Alexander Wylie 6,083 53.0
Liberal P.R. Buchanan 5,393 47.0
Majority 690 6.0
Turnout 83.6
Conservative hold Swing
General election 1906: Dunbartonshire [9]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal James Dundas White 7,404 51.6 +4.6
Conservative Henry Brock 6,937 48.4 -4.6
Majority 467 3.2 9.2
Turnout 87.8 +4.2
Liberal gain from Conservative Swing +4.6

Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Dunbartonshire [10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal James Dundas White 8,640 53.2
Conservative Henry Brock 7,607 46.8
Majority 1,033 6.4
Turnout 88.3
Liberal hold Swing
A.A. Allen
General election December 1910: Dunbartonshire [10]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Arthur Acland Allen 8,579 54.1 +0.9
Conservative William Thomas Shaw 7,267 45.9 -0.9
Majority 1,312 8.2 +1.8
Turnout 84.5 -3.8
Liberal hold Swing +0.9
General election 1918: Dunbartonshire [11]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist 12,765 55.8
Labour William Henry Porteous Martin 7,072 30.9 n/a
Liberal Arthur Acland Allen 3,048 13.3
Majority 5,693 24.9
Turnout 66.8
Unionist gain from Liberal Swing

Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: Dunbartonshire [12]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Sir William Hannay Raeburn 13,407 50.4 -5.4
Labour William Henry Porteous Martin 13,216 49.6 +18.7
Majority 191 0.8 -24.1
Turnout 69.0 +2.2
Unionist hold Swing -12.0
General election 1923: Dunbartonshire [13]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour William Henry Porteous Martin 11,705 43.0 -6.6
Unionist David Pinkerton Fleming 9,802 36.0 -14.4
Liberal Joseph Stanley Holmes 5,726 21.0 n/a
Majority 1,903 7.0 7.8
Turnout 70.7 +1.7
Labour gain from Unionist Swing +3.9
General election 1924: Dunbartonshire [14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist David Pinkerton Fleming 16,223 55.8
Labour William Henry Porteous Martin 12,872 44.2
Majority 3,351 11.6
Turnout 75.6
Unionist gain from Labour Swing
Dunbartonshire by-election, 1926[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist John Gibb Thom 12,680 48.0 -7.8
Labour William Henry Porteous Martin 11,610 43.9 -0.3
Liberal William Reid 2,146 8.1 n/a
Majority 1,070 4.1 -15.0
Turnout 75.0 -0.6
Unionist hold Swing -7.5
General election 1929: Dunbartonshire [15]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Willie Brooke 18,153 45.7 +1.5
Unionist John Gibb Thom 16,576 41.6 -14.2
Liberal Thomas Maule Guthrie 5,071 12.7 n/a
Majority 1,577 4.1 15.7
Turnout 81.0 +5.4
Labour gain from Unionist Swing +7.8

Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Dunbartonshire
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist John Gibb Thom 28,762 63.6
Labour Willie Brooke 16,474 36.4
Majority 12,288 27.2
Turnout 45,236 82.8
Unionist gain from Labour Swing
Dunbartonshire by-election, 1932[16]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Hon. Archibald Douglas Cochrane 16,749
Labour Rt Hon. Thomas Johnston 13,704 35.6
National (Scotland) Robert Gray 5,178 13.4 n/a
Communist H. McIntyre 2,870 7.5 n/a
Majority 3,045 7.9
Turnout
Unionist hold Swing
General election 1935: Dunbartonshire [17]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Unionist Hon. Archibald Douglas Cochrane 24,776 50.3
Labour Thomas Cassells 20,679 41.9 +6.3
SNP Robert Gray 3,841 7.8
Majority 4,097 8.4
Turnout 80.5
Unionist hold Swing
Dunbartonshire by-election, 1936[18]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Thomas Cassells 20,187 48.1
Unionist Arthur Paterson Duffes 19,203 45.7
SNP Robert Gray 2,599 6.2 -1.6
Majority 984 2.4
Turnout 68.6 -
Labour gain from Unionist Swing

Elections in the 1940s

Dunbartonshire by-election, 1941[18]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Adam Storey McKinlay 21,900 85.0
Communist Malcolm MacEwen 3,862 15.0
Majority 18,038 70.0
Turnout 38.7
Labour hold Swing
General Election 1945: Dunbartonshire[19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Labour Adam Storey McKinlay 28,383 50.7
Unionist Robert Allan 27,636 49.3
Majority 747 1.3
Turnout 71.7 +33.0
Labour hold Swing

Notes and references

  1. 1 2 Boundaries of Parliamentary Constituencies 1885-1972 (ISBN 0-900178-09-4), F. W. S. Craig, 1972
  2. ↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1989) [1977]. British parliamentary election results 1832–1885 (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 582. ISBN 0-900178-26-4.
  3. ↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1989) [1974]. British parliamentary election results 1885–1918 (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 536. ISBN 0-900178-27-2.
  4. ↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1983) [1969]. British parliamentary election results 1918–1949 (3rd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 622. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
  5. ↑ Debrett's House of Commons, 1870
  6. 1 2 Debrett's House of Commons and the Judicial Bench, 1889
  7. ↑ Whitaker's Almanack, 1893
  8. 1 2 Debrett's House of Commons and the Judicial Bench, 1901
  9. ↑ Whitaker's Almanack, 1907
  10. 1 2 Debrett's House of Commons and the Judicial Bench, 1916
  11. ↑ Whitaker's Almanack, 1920
  12. ↑ The Times, 17 November 1922
  13. ↑ The Times, 8 December 1923
  14. 1 2 Oliver & Boyd's Edinburgh Almanac, 1927
  15. ↑ The Times, 1 June 1929
  16. ↑ Whitaker's Almanack, 1934
  17. ↑ The Times, 16 November 1935
  18. 1 2 Whitaker's Almanack, 1939
  19. ↑ Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
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