Kensington South (UK Parliament constituency)
Kensington South | |
---|---|
Former Borough constituency for the House of Commons | |
1885–February 1974 | |
Number of members | one |
Replaced by | Kensington |
Created from | Chelsea |
Kensington South was a parliamentary constituency centred on the Kensington district of west London. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.
The constituency was created for the 1885 general election, and abolished for the February 1974 general election. In every postwar election until its abolition, it was the safest Conservative seat (excluding Northern Irish constituencies) in the country.
Members of Parliament
Election | Member | Party | |
---|---|---|---|
1885 | Sir Algernon Borthwick | Conservative | |
1895 by-election | Lord Warkworth (known as Earl Percy from 1899) | Conservative | |
1910 | Lord Claud Hamilton | Conservative | |
1918 | Sir William Davison | Conservative | |
1945 by-election | Richard Law | Conservative | |
1950 | Sir Patrick Spens | Conservative | |
1959 | William Roots | Conservative | |
1968 by-election | Sir Brandon Rhys-Williams | Conservative | |
Feb 1974 | constituency abolished |
Boundaries
The constituency was originally part of the Chelsea constituency. Following the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, the seat was a single-member division consisting of all of the Parliamentary borough of Kensington lying south of the Uxbridge Road.
Following the Representation of the People Act 1918, the constituency was defined as consisting of the Brompton, Earls Court, Holland, Queen's Gate, and Redcliffe wards of the Royal Borough of Kensington.
In the 1950 redistribution, the Brompton ward was moved into the Chelsea division. The seat remained unchanged until its abolition in 1974.
In 1965, the London County Council area was absorbed by the new Greater London Council. The constituency was included in a new London Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, although the Parliamentary boundaries were not altered immediately.
In the redistribution that took effect in 1974, the constituency was abolished. Earl's Court and Redcliffe wards became part of the Chelsea constituency. Holland and Queen's Gate became part of the Kensington constituency.
Election results
Elections in the 1880s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Algernon Borthwick | 4,602 | 68.3 | ||
Liberal | Montagu Hughes Cookson | 2,138 | 31.7 | ||
Majority | 2,464 | 36.6 | |||
Turnout | 8,859 | 76.1 | |||
Conservative win | |||||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Algernon Borthwick | 4,156 | 80.3 | 12.0 | |
Liberal | Henry Fearnside Speed | 1,022 | 19.7 | -12.0 | |
Majority | 3,134 | 60.6 | |||
Turnout | 8,859 | 58.4 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 1890s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Algernon Borthwick | unopposed | n/a | n/a | |
Conservative hold | Swing | n/a | |||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Algernon Borthwick | unopposed | n/a | n/a | |
Conservative hold | Swing | n/a | |||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Henry Percy | unopposed | n/a | n/a | |
Conservative hold | Swing | n/a | |||
Elections in the 1900s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Henry Percy | unopposed | n/a | n/a | |
Conservative hold | Swing | n/a | |||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Henry Percy | 4,835 | 74.9 | n/a | |
Liberal | Edward O'Malley | 1,624 | 25.1 | n/a | |
Majority | 3,211 | 49.8 | n/a | ||
Turnout | 9,223 | 70.0 | n/a | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | n/a | |||
Elections in the 1910s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Claud Hamilton | 5,771 | 81.6 | 6.7 | |
Liberal | G.S. MacIlwaine | 1,301 | 18.4 | -6.7 | |
Majority | 4,470 | 63.2 | |||
Turnout | 9,159 | 77.2 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Claud Hamilton | 5,093 | 83.1 | 1.5 | |
Liberal | George Rodhouse Reid | 1,033 | 16.9 | -1.5 | |
Majority | 4,060 | 66.2 | |||
Turnout | 9,159 | 66.9 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | 10,693 | 66.8 | |||
National Party | Ernest Makins | 5,306 | 33.2 | n/a | |
Majority | 5,387 | 33.6 | |||
Turnout | 30,888 | 51.8 | |||
Unionist hold | Swing | ||||
- endorsed by the Coalition Government
Elections in the 1920s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | William Davison | 15,760 | 76.0 | ||
Independent | Ferdinand Cavendish-Bentinck | 4,964 | 24.0 | n/a | |
Majority | 10,796 | 52.0 | |||
Turnout | 35,684 | 58.1 | |||
Unionist hold | Swing | ||||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | William Davison | unopposed | n/a | n/a | |
Unionist hold | Swing | n/a | |||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | William Davison | unopposed | n/a | n/a | |
Unionist hold | Swing | n/a | |||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | William Davison | 28,049 | 66.9 | n/a | |
Liberal | Hugh Seely | 7,570 | 18.0 | n/a | |
Independent Conservative | Rayner Goddard | 6,354 | 15.1 | n/a | |
Majority | 20,479 | 48.9 | n/a | ||
Turnout | 70,593 | 59.5 | n/a | ||
Unionist hold | Swing | n/a | |||
Elections in the 1930s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Davison | unopposed | n/a | n/a | |
Conservative hold | Swing | n/a | |||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Davison | 38,297 | 88.9 | n/a | |
Labour | Charles Henry Hartwell | 4,779 | 11.1 | n/a | |
Majority | 33,518 | 77.8 | n/a | ||
Turnout | 69,520 | 62.0 | n/a | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | n/a | |||
Elections in the 1940s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Davison | 22,166 | 69.8 | ||
Labour | Patricia Frances Strauss | 6,014 | 18.9 | ||
Liberal | Francis N Beaufort-Palmer | 3,586 | 11.3 | ||
Majority | 16,152 | 50.9 | |||
Turnout | 46,727 | 67.9 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Richard Law | 15,846 | 81.7 | +11.9 | |
Liberal | Lancelot Spicer | 3,559 | 18.3 | +7.0 | |
Majority | 12,287 | 68.4 | |||
Turnout | 52,750 | 36.8 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 1950s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Patrick Spens | 32,870 | 73.1 | ||
Labour | Marcel Philip Picard | 8,002 | 17.8 | ||
Liberal | John Frankenburg | 4,079 | 9.1 | ||
Majority | 24,868 | 55.3 | |||
Turnout | 63,319 | 71.0 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Patrick Spens | 34,592 | 79.5 | ||
Labour | Michael Clynes Parker | 8,894 | 20.5 | ||
Majority | 25,698 | 59.0 | |||
Turnout | 63,419 | 68.6 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Patrick Spens | 32,051 | 82.5 | ||
Labour | Marjorie Macrae Crane | 6,804 | 17.5 | ||
Majority | 25,247 | 65.0 | |||
Turnout | 62,724 | 62.0 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Roots | 26,606 | 74.3 | ||
Liberal | Gurth Hoyer-Millar | 4,666 | 13.0 | ||
Labour | Ivor Richard | 4,525 | 12.6 | ||
Majority | 21,940 | 61.3 | |||
Turnout | 58,023 | 61.7 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 1960s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Roots | 21,668 | 68.0 | ||
Labour | Barrington J Stead | 5,300 | 16.6 | ||
Liberal | Anthony A W Dix | 4,916 | 15.4 | ||
Majority | 16,368 | 51.3 | |||
Turnout | 56,157 | 56.8 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | William Roots | 21,050 | 65.1 | ||
Labour | Jonathan V Rosenhead | 6,419 | 19.8 | ||
Liberal | Thomas Kellock | 4,871 | 15.1 | ||
Majority | 14,631 | 45.2 | |||
Turnout | 55,660 | 58.1 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Brandon Rhys-Williams | 16,489 | 75.5 | +10.4 | |
Liberal | Thomas Kellock | 2,742 | 12.6 | -2.5 | |
Labour | Clive Bradley | 1,874 | 8.6 | -11.2 | |
Independent | Sinclair Eustace | 675 | 3.1 | N/A | |
Independent | William Gold | 59 | 0.3 | N/A | |
Majority | 13,747 | 63.0 | +17.8 | ||
Turnout | 40.0 | ||||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
Elections in the 1970s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Brandon Rhys-Williams | 21,591 | 75.7 | ||
Labour | Faith M Bridges | 6,928 | 24.3 | ||
Majority | 14,663 | 51.4 | |||
Turnout | 57,182 | 49.9 | |||
Conservative hold | Swing | ||||
References
- Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "K" (part 1)
- British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Macmillan Press 1974)
- Debrett’s Illustrated Heraldic and Biographical House of Commons and the Judicial Bench 1886
- Debrett’s House of Commons and the Judicial Bench 1901
- Debrett’s House of Commons and the Judicial Bench 1918