Charles Edwards (Liberal politician)

Charles Edwards (1825 – 22 February 1889)^[1] was a British Liberal Party politician.

Charles Edwards
Member of Parliament for Windsor
In office 9 May 1866 – 17 November 1868 Serving with Roger Eykyn
Preceded by	Henry Hoare Henry Labouchère
Succeeded by	Roger Eykyn
Personal details
Born	1825
Died	22 February 1889 (aged 63)
Nationality	British
Political party	Liberal

Edwards inherited the Dolserau Hall estate in 1858. He was a Justice of the peace of Merionethshire, and the High Sheriff in 1871.^[2]

Political career

Edwards was elected MP for Windsor at a by-election in 1866—caused by Henry Hoare and Henry Labouchère being unseated when the 1865 general election was declared void on petition, due to bribery via election agents—and held the seat until 1868 when he did not seek re-election.^[3][4]

In 1879, he stood as the Liberal Party candidate in the 1879 Canterbury by-election. He lost narrowly to the Conservative candidate. After the election, it emerged that Edwards had spent about £140 (equivalent to £16,920 in 2023) on buying votes during the campaign. Although Edwards disclaimed knowledge of this and blamed his campaign manager, he did admit that the money was spent on bribery and he had personally repaid the amount to his manager.^[5]

In 1880, he stood again in Canterbury in the general election, and again narrowly lost the seat.^[6]