Cricklade (UK Parliament constituency) explained
| Wiltshire, North or Cricklade Division |
| Type: | County |
| Parliament: | uk |
| Year: | 1885 |
| Abolished: | 1918 |
| Elects Howmany: | one |
| Next: | Swindon and partly Chippenham |
| Cricklade |
| Type: | Borough |
| Parliament: | uk |
| Year: | 1295 |
| Abolished: | 1885 |
| Elects Howmany: | two |
Cricklade was a parliamentary constituency named after the town of Cricklade in Wiltshire.
From 1295 until the general election of 1885, Cricklade was a parliamentary borough, returning two members of parliament (MPs) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, previously to the House of Commons of England and House of Commons of Great Britain.
Initially this consisted of only the town of Cricklade, but from 1782 the vote was extended to the surrounding countryside as a punishment for the borough's corruption. The extended area came to include the village of Swindon, which later grew into a large town with the coming of the railways in the 19th century.
From the 1885 general election the borough was abolished, but the name was transferred to a county division of Wiltshire covering much the same area, and electing a single MP. This constituency was abolished for the 1918 general election: Cricklade joined the Chippenham constituency and a new Swindon constituency was created.
Boundaries
1832–1885: The hundreds of Highworth, Cricklade, Staple, Kingsbridge and Malmesbury, except the parliamentary borough of Malmesbury.[1]
1885–1918: The Sessional Divisions of Cricklade and Swindon.
Members of Parliament
1295-1640
- Constituency created 1295
1640-1885
1885-1918
Elections
Elections in the 1830s
Gordon was appointed a Commissioner for the Affairs of India, causing a by-election.
Elections in the 1880s
- Costelloe contested previous general election as Conservative
Elections in the 1910s
General Election 1914–15:
Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;
References
- Robert Beatson, A Chronological Register of Both Houses of Parliament (London: Longman, Hurst, Res & Orme, 1807) https://books.google.com/books?id=Gh2wKY2rkDUC&q=Return+of+Members+of+Parliament
- 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) https://web.archive.org/web/20150904125310/http://www2.odl.ox.ac.uk/gsdl/cgi-bin/library?e=p-000-00---0modhis06--00-0-0-0prompt-10---4------0-1l--1-en-50---20-about---00001-001-1-1isoZz-8859Zz-1-0&a=d&cl=CL1
- F W S Craig, "British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885" (2nd edition, Aldershot: Parliamentary Research Services, 1989)
- J E Neale, The Elizabethan House of Commons (London: Jonathan Cape, 1949)
- Edward Porritt and Annie G Porritt, The Unreformed House of Commons (Cambridge University Press, 1903)
- Frederic A Youngs, jr, Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England, Vol I (London: Royal Historical Society, 1979)
Notes and References
- Web site: The statutes of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. 2 & 3 William IV. Cap. XLV: An Act to amend the Representation of the People in England and Wales.. London . His Majesty's statute and law printers . 1832 . 154–206 . 4 March 2023.
- Web site: History of Parliament. History of Parliament Trust. 1 November 2011.
- Web site: BAILEY, John (d.1436), of Cricklade, Wilts. - History of Parliament Online. www.historyofparliamentonline.org. 22 April 2018.
- Web site: History of Parliament. History of Parliament Trust. 1 November 2011.
- Web site: History of Parliament. History of Parliament Trust. 1 November 2011.
- Brydges, Grey.
- 14173. Hungerford, Sir Edward. John. Wroughton.
- Gore was also elected for Colchester, which he chose to represent, and never sat for Cricklade
- Sawbridge was expelled from the House for his role in the South Sea Bubble
- A by-election was held in December 1774 after the death of William Earle, but the result was disputed and the Returning Officer made a double return, naming both Samuel Peach and John Dewar. The Commons declared the election void, and a second election was held; Peach was initially declared elected but on petition the result was reversed and Dewar took his seat.
- On petition, Macpherson's election in 1779 was declared void and a new writ issued, but he was re-elected in the by-election. At the general election of 1780 he was again elected and his opponent again entered a petition. On investigation the Committee reported that "instances of the most notorious bribery had occurred"; the House voted that neither Macpherson nor his opponent Samuel Petrie were duly elected, and shortly afterwards passed an Act to extend the right of voting in Cricklade to the surrounding hundreds.
- On petition the result of the election of 1784 was reversed, Coxe and Adamson being declared not duly elected and Heneage and Nicholas being seated in their place
- Book: Stooks Smith . Henry . The Parliaments of England, from 1st George I., to the Present Time. Vol II: Oxfordshire to Wales Inclusive . 1845 . Simpkin, Marshall, & Co. . London . 110–112.
- Book: Edward. Churton. Edward Churton. The Assembled Commons or Parliamentary Biographer: 1838. 1838. 101.
- News: Elections Decided . 1 November 2018 . Manchester Courier and Lancashire General Advertiser . 10 July 1841 . 6 . British Newspaper Archive. subscription .
- News: General Election . 1 November 2018 . Western Times . 3 July 1841 . 3 . British Newspaper Archive. subscription .
- Book: Dod's Parliamentary Companion. 1847. Dod's Parliamentary Companion, Limited. 172.
