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Bridport was a parliamentary borough in Dorset, England, which elected two Members of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons from 1295 until 1868, and then one member from 1868 until 1885, when the borough was abolished.
Bridport | |
---|---|
Former borough constituency for the House of Commons | |
1295–1885 | |
Seats | two (1295-1868); one (1868-1885) |
Replaced by | West Dorset |
Bridport was continuously represented in Parliament from the first. The medieval borough consisted of the parish of Bridport, a small port and market town, where the main economic interests were sailcloth and rope-making, as well as some fishing. (For some time in the 16th century, the town had a monopoly of making all cordage for the navy.) By 1831, the population of the borough was 4,242, and the town contained 678 houses.
The right to vote was at one period reserved to the town corporation (consisting of two bailiffs and 13 "capital burgesses"), but from 1628 it was exercised by all inhabitant householders paying scot and lot. This was a relatively liberal franchise for the period but nevertheless meant that only a fraction of the townsmen could vote: in 1806, the general election at which Bridport had the highest turnout in the last few years before the Reform Act, a total of 260 residents voted.
Bridport never reached the status of a pocket borough with an openly recognised "patron": the voters retained their freedom of choice and generally expected to extort a price for their votes, so much so that Oldfield recorded of one election in the early 19th century that "several candidates left them at the last election, in consequence of their demanding payment beforehand". Nevertheless, at various periods the borough came under the influence of local grandees and would usually return at least one of their nominees as MPs: the Russells (Dukes of Bedford) in the Elizabethan period and the Sturts in the latter half of the 18th century could normally rely on choosing one member. In 1572 the then Earl of Bedford made use of this influence to have his oldest son elected in defiance of the convention that the heirs of peers could not be members of the House of Commons; the only previous instance had been that of the Earl himself, who had remained an MP when he became heir to the Earldom in 1555. By vote of the House, the young Lord Russell was allowed to keep his seat for Bridport, and the precedent allowed other peers' heirs to sit from that point onwards.
Bridport retained both its seats under the Reform Act, the boundaries being extended to give it the requisite population - parts of the neighbouring parishes of Bradpole, Allington and Waldich, as well as Bridport Harbour, were brought in, increasing the population to about 6,000; in the election of 1832, the first after Reform, the registered electorate was 425. However, the constituency was too small to survive for long. One of its members was removed after the election of 1868 by the Second Reform Act; and the borough was abolished altogether in 1885, the town being incorporated into the Western Dorset county division.
MPs 1295-1640 — MPs 1640-1868 — MPs 1868-1885 — Elections — References — Sources |
Parliament | First member | Second member | |
---|---|---|---|
1386 | John Hayward | John Tracy[1] | |
1388 (Feb.) | John Hayward | John Tracy[1] | |
1388 (Sep) | John Tracy | William Cordell[1] | |
1390 (Jan) | John Tracy | John Hayward[1] | |
1390 (Nov) | |||
1391 | |||
1393 | John Tracy | John Hayward[1] | |
1394 | John Tracy | Gilbert Draper[1] | |
1395 | John Roger | John Hayward[1] | |
1397 (Jan) | John Palmer | John Crouk[1] | |
1397 (Sep) | John Hayward | John Crouk[1] | |
1399 | John Hayward | John Tracy[1] | |
1401 | |||
1402 | Simon atte Ford | Nicholas Tracy[1] | |
1404 (Jan) | |||
1404 (Oct) | |||
1406 | Henry Rauf | Roger Stikelane[1] | |
1407 | Henry Rauf | Walter Batcok[1] | |
1410 | Thomas Lovell | John Roger I[1] | |
1411 | |||
1413 (Feb) | |||
1413 (May) | William Mountfort II | John Roger I[1] | |
1414 (Apr) | Simon atte Ford | John Stampe[1] | |
1414 (Nov) | Simon atte Ford | Andrew Forshey[1] | |
1415 | |||
1416 (Mar) | |||
1416 (Oct) | |||
1417 | Simon atte Ford | Edward Stikelane[1] | |
1419 | Walter Tracy | William Mountfort II[1] | |
1420 | Simon atte Ford | John Stampe[1] | |
1421 (May) | Simon atte Ford | John Hore[1] | |
1421 (Dec) | Simon atte Ford | William Pernham[1] | |
1422 | Simon atte Ford | [2] | |
1423 | Simon atte Ford | [2] | |
1425 | Simon atte Ford | [2] | |
1426 | John Hore | Simon atte Ford[3] | |
1437 | John Hore[3] | ||
1529 | William Chard | Richard Furloke | |
1545 | John Lympany | Richard Watkins | |
1547 | Sir Henry Gates | William Grimston | |
First Parliament of 1553 | ? | ? | |
Second Parliament of 1553 | Christopher Smith | William Pole | |
Parliament of 1554 | Robert Neyl | Edward Prout | |
Parliament of 1554-1555 | John Alferd | John Moyne or Moon | |
Parliament of 1555 | Robert Fowkes | Thomas Chard | |
Parliament of 1558 | John Hippisley | Thomas Welshe | |
Parliament of 1559 | William Page | Robert Moon | |
Parliament of 1563-1567 | John Hastings | Richard Inkpenne | |
Parliament of 1571 | Thomas Parry | George Trenchard | |
Parliament of 1572-1581 | Miles Sandys | Lord Russell (Summoned to the Lords) 1581: Hugh Vaughan | |
Parliament of 1584-1585 | Dr Peter Turner | Morgan Moon | |
Parliament of 1586-1587 | |||
Parliament of 1588-1589 | George Pawlet | Gregory Sprint | |
Parliament of 1593 | Christopher Lambert | John Fortescue | |
Parliament of 1597-1598 | Leweston Fitzjames | Adrian Gilbert | |
Parliament of 1601 | Sir Robert Napier | Richard Warburton | |
Parliament of 1604-1611 | Sir Robert Miller | John Pitt | |
Addled Parliament (1614) | Sir William Bampfield | John Jeffrey | |
Parliament of 1621-1622 | John Strode | John Browne | |
Happy Parliament (1624-1625) | William Muschamp | Robert Browne | |
Useless Parliament (1625) | Sir Lewis Dyve | Sir John Strode | |
Parliament of 1625-1626 | Sir Richard Strode | ||
Parliament of 1628-1629 | Thomas Pawlet | Bampfield Chafin | |
No Parliament summoned 1629-1640 | |||
Year | Member | Party | |
---|---|---|---|
1868 | Thomas Alexander Mitchell | Liberal | |
1875 by-election | Pandeli Ralli | Liberal | |
1880 | Charles Warton | Conservative | |
1885 | Constituency abolished |
1830s – 1840s – 1850s – 1860s – 1870s – 1880s – References – Sources |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Radical | Henry Warburton | Unopposed | |||
Tory | Sir Horace St Paul, 1st Baronet | Unopposed | |||
Radical hold | |||||
Tory hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Radical | Henry Warburton | Unopposed | |||
Tory | Sir Horace St Paul, 1st Baronet | Unopposed | |||
Radical hold | |||||
Tory hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Radical | Henry Warburton | 271 | 40.3 | N/A | |
Whig | John Romilly | 219 | 32.6 | N/A | |
Tory | Richard William Astell | 182 | 27.1 | N/A | |
Turnout | 400 | 94.1 | N/A | ||
Registered electors | 425 | ||||
Majority | 52 | 7.7 | N/A | ||
Radical hold | Swing | N/A | |||
Majority | 37 | 5.5 | N/A | ||
Whig gain from Tory | Swing | N/A |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Radical | Henry Warburton | 244 | 37.5 | −2.8 | |
Conservative | Horace Twiss | 207 | 31.8 | +4.7 | |
Whig | John Romilly | 199 | 30.6 | −2.0 | |
Turnout | 394 | 93.8 | −0.3 | ||
Registered electors | 420 | ||||
Majority | 37 | 5.7 | −2.0 | ||
Radical hold | Swing | −2.6 | |||
Majority | 8 | 1.2 | N/A | ||
Conservative gain from Whig | Swing | +3.4 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Radical | Henry Warburton | 283 | 38.9 | +20.2 | |
Radical | Swynfen Jervis | 232 | 31.9 | +13.2 | |
Conservative | Henry Baillie | 212 | 29.2 | −2.6 | |
Majority | 20 | 2.7 | −3.0 | ||
Turnout | 445 | 88.1 | −5.7 | ||
Registered electors | 505 | ||||
Radical hold | Swing | +10.8 | |||
Radical gain from Conservative | Swing | +7.3 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Radical | Henry Warburton | 304 | 36.6 | −2.3 | |
Radical | Thomas Alexander Mitchell | 282 | 34.0 | +2.1 | |
Conservative | Alexander Baillie-Cochrane | 244 | 29.4 | +0.2 | |
Majority | 38 | 4.6 | +1.9 | ||
Turnout | 506 | 90.8 | +2.7 | ||
Registered electors | 557 | ||||
Radical hold | Swing | −1.2 | |||
Radical hold | Swing | +1.0 |
Warburton resigned by accepting the office of Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds, causing a by-election.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Alexander Baillie-Cochrane | Unopposed | |||
Conservative gain from Radical |
Baillie-Cochrane resigned by accepting the office of Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds in order to seek re-election as a supporter of free trade.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Alexander Baillie-Cochrane | 240 | 50.1 | +20.7 | |
Whig | John Romilly | 239 | 49.9 | N/A | |
Majority | 1 | 0.2 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 479 | 83.9 | −6.9 | ||
Registered electors | 571 | ||||
Conservative gain from Radical | Swing | N/A |
After scrutiny, Baillie-Cochrane's election was declared void and Romilly was declared elected on 28 April 1846.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Alexander Baillie-Cochrane | 276 | 35.6 | +6.2 | |
Radical | Thomas Alexander Mitchell | 267 | 34.4 | −36.2 | |
Whig | Edward Richard Petre[29][30] | 222 | 28.6 | N/A | |
Conservative | Robert Montgomery Martin[31] | 11 | 1.4 | N/A | |
Turnout | 388 (est) | 58.5 (est) | −32.3 | ||
Registered electors | 663 | ||||
Majority | 9 | 1.2 | N/A | ||
Conservative gain from Radical | Swing | +21.2 | |||
Majority | 45 | 5.8 | +1.2 | ||
Radical hold | Swing | −21.2 |
Martin withdrew his name early into polling.[32]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Radical | Thomas Alexander Mitchell | 366 | 45.4 | +28.2 | |
Radical | John Patrick Murrough | 249 | 30.9 | +13.7 | |
Conservative | John Rolt[33] | 191 | 23.7 | −13.3 | |
Majority | 58 | 7.2 | +1.4 | ||
Turnout | 403 (est) | 76.9 (est) | +18.4 | ||
Registered electors | 524 | ||||
Radical hold | Swing | +17.4 | |||
Radical gain from Conservative | Swing | +10.2 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Radical | Thomas Alexander Mitchell | 330 | 45.3 | −0.1 | |
Whig | Kirkman Hodgson | 290 | 39.8 | N/A | |
Conservative | William Unwin Heygate | 109 | 15.0 | −8.7 | |
Turnout | 365 (est) | 76.4 (est) | −0.5 | ||
Registered electors | 478 | ||||
Majority | 40 | 5.5 | −1.7 | ||
Radical hold | Swing | +4.3 | |||
Majority | 181 | 24.8 | N/A | ||
Whig gain from Radical | Swing | N/A |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal | Thomas Alexander Mitchell | 334 | 42.1 | −3.2 | |
Liberal | Kirkman Hodgson | 290 | 36.5 | −3.3 | |
Conservative | Henry Hyde Nugent Bankes[34] | 170 | 21.4 | +6.4 | |
Majority | 120 | 15.1 | +9.6 | ||
Turnout | 397 (est) | 79.2 (est) | +2.8 | ||
Registered electors | 501 | ||||
Liberal hold | Swing | −3.2 | |||
Liberal hold | Swing | −3.2 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal | Thomas Alexander Mitchell | Unopposed | |||
Liberal | Kirkman Hodgson | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 472 | ||||
Liberal hold | |||||
Liberal hold |
The seat was reduced to one member.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal | Thomas Alexander Mitchell | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 1,027 | ||||
Liberal hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal | Thomas Alexander Mitchell | Unopposed | |||
Registered electors | 1,045 | ||||
Liberal hold |
Mitchell's death caused a by-election.
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Liberal | Pandeli Ralli | 620 | 76.6 | N/A | |
Conservative | Charles Whetham[35] | 189 | 23.4 | New | |
Majority | 431 | 53.2 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 809 | 80.0 | N/A | ||
Registered electors | 1,011 | ||||
Liberal hold | Swing | N/A |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Charles Warton | 468 | 50.5 | N/A | |
Liberal | Pandeli Ralli | 459 | 49.5 | N/A | |
Majority | 9 | 1.0 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 927 | 85.4 | N/A | ||
Registered electors | 1,085 | ||||
Conservative gain from Liberal | Swing | N/A |
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