Jump to content

Aldeburgh (UK Parliament constituency)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Aldeburgh
Former borough constituency
for the House of Commons
CountySuffolk
BoroughAldeburgh
1571–1832
Seats2
Replaced byEast Suffolk

Aldeburgh in Suffolk, was a parliamentary borough represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom and its predecessor bodies.

History

[edit]

The town was enfranchised in 1571[1] as a borough constituency in the House of Commons of the Parliament of England and continued in the Parliaments of Great Britain and the United Kingdom until it was abolished in 1832 as a rotten borough.[2]

It was represented by two burgesses. The right to vote was vested in the town's freemen, although the electoral roll was controlled by the Corporation of Aldeburgh which consisted of two bailiffs (the returning officers), 12 aldermen, and 24 common councilmen.[3] Originally it had been strongly influenced by the Howard family and although the family lost some power due to their Catholicism the Arundel family were still nominating MPs in the seventeenth century.[4] It gradually fell under the control of the Tory Henry Johnson who with his brother represented it for 30 years from 1689[5] although Whig political influence was growing and after unsuccessful challenges in 1708 and 1713 the borough was captured after the brothers' death by the Whigs at a reputed cost of £9,000.[6] By the mid-18th century it had been "stolen" from being a Government influenced seat by a City of London merchant, Thomas Fonnereau:[7] and later came under the control of his cousin Philip Champion Crespigny who sold it for £39,000 and eventually it devolved to the control of the Marquess of Hertford.[8]

It was described as "a venal little borough in Suffolk".[9]

Boundaries

[edit]

The constituency comprised the parliamentary borough of Aldeburgh, in the county of Suffolk in Eastern England.

Members of Parliament

[edit]

MPs 1571–1640

[edit]
Parliament First member Second member
1571 Roger Woodhouse Robert Higford[1]
1572 Francis Beaumont Charles Seckford[1]
1584 Peter Osborne John Foxe[1]
1586 Peter Osborne Edmond Bell[1]
1588 Edward Coke William Bence[1]
1593 Thomas Knyvet William Bence[1]
1597 Francis Harvey Francis Johnson[1]
1601 Martin Stutteville Francis Corbet[1]
1604–1611 Sir William Woodhouse Thomas Ryvett
1614 Sir William Woodhouse Sir Henry Glemham
1621–1622 Sir Henry Glemham Charles Glemham
1624 Nicholas Ryvett John Bence
1625 Sir Thomas Glemham Charles Glemham
1626 Sir Thomas Glemham William Mason
1628 Sir Simon Steward Marmaduke Rawden
1629–1640 No Parliaments summoned

MPs 1640–1832

[edit]
Year First member First party Second member Second party
April 1640 William Rainsborough Parliamentarian Squire Bence Parliamentarian
November 1640 William Rainsborough Parliamentarian Alexander Bence Parliamentarian
1642 Squire Bence Parliamentarian
November 1648 Squire Bence died, November 1648 - seat vacant
December 1648 Alexander Bence excluded in Pride's Purge - seat vacant
1653 Aldeburgh was unrepresented in the Barebones Parliament and the First and Second Parliaments of the Protectorate
January 1659 Laurence Oxburgh John Bence
May 1659 Not represented in the restored Rump
April 1660 Sir Robert Brooke Thomas Bacon
1661 Sir John Holland, Bt
1669 John Bence
February 1679 Sir Richard Haddock Henry Johnson
August 1679 John Bence John Corrance
1685 Sir Henry Bedingfield Tory
1689 Sir Henry Johnson Tory William Johnson Tory
1718 by-election Samuel Lowe Whig
1719 by-election Walter Plumer
1727 William Windham
1730 by-election Sir John Williams Tory
1732 by-election Captain George Purvis Whig
1734 William Conolly Whig
March 1741 by-election Francis Gashry Whig
May 1741 Richard Plumer
1747 William Windham Zachary Philip Fonnereau
1761 Philip Fonnereau
1768 Nicholas Linwood
1773 by-election Thomas Fonnereau
1774 Richard Combe
1779 by-election Martyn Fonnereau
1780 Philip Champion Crespigny Whig
1784 Samuel Salt Whig
1790 Lord Grey of Groby Whig Thomas Grenville Whig
1796 Sir John Aubrey, Bt Whig Michael Angelo Taylor Whig
1800 by-election George Johnstone
1802 John McMahon Tory
April 1812 by-election Sandford Graham
October 1812 The Lord Dufferin & Claneboye Tory Andrew Strahan Tory
1818 Samuel Walker Tory Joshua Walker Tory[10]
1820 James Blair Tory
1826 John Wilson Croker Tory[11]
1827 by-election Wyndham Lewis Tory[12]
February 1829 by-election Marquess of Douro Tory[13]
May 1829 by-election Spencer Horsey Kilderbee Tory[14]
1830 John Wilson Croker Tory[11]
1832 Constituency abolished

Election results

[edit]

Elections in the 1830s

[edit]
General election 1831: Aldeburgh[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Tory Arthur Wellesley Unopposed
Tory John Wilson Croker Unopposed
Registered electors c. 65
Tory hold
Tory hold
General election 1830: Aldeburgh[2]
Party Candidate Votes %
Tory Arthur Wellesley Unopposed
Tory John Wilson Croker Unopposed
Tory hold
Tory hold

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Aldeburgh". History of Parliament Online (1558-1603). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  2. ^ a b c "Aldeburgh". History of Parliament Online (1820-1832). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  3. ^ "Aldeburgh". History of Parliament Online (1660-1690). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  4. ^ "Aldeburgh". History of Parliament Online (1604-1629). Retrieved 27 March 2019. (currently unavailable)
  5. ^ "Aldeburgh". History of Parliament Online (1690-1715). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  6. ^ "Aldeburgh". History of Parliament Online (1715-1754). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  7. ^ Lewis Namier, The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III (London 1929) I, pp. 70 and 180.
  8. ^ "Aldeburgh". History of Parliament Online (1790-1820). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
  9. ^ Crabbe, quoted in E. M. Forster, Two Cheers for Democracy (Penguin 1965) p. 178.
  10. ^ Escott, Margaret. "WALKER, Joshua (1786-1862), of Hendon Place, Mdx. and 9 Mansion House Street, London". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  11. ^ a b Fisher, David R. "CROKER, John Wilson (1780-1857), of Munster House, Fulham, Mdx. and West Molesey , Surr". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  12. ^ Escott, Margaret. "LEWIS, Wyndham (1780-1838), of Greenmeadow, Tongwynlais, Glam. and Grosvenor Gate, Mdx". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  13. ^ Escott, Margaret. "WELLESLEY, Arthur Richard, mq. of Douro (1807-1884)". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  14. ^ Escott, Margaret. "KILDERBEE (afterwards DE HORSEY), Spencer Horsey (1790-1860), of Great Glemham, Suff. and 8 Upper Grosvenor Street, Mdx". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
  • 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) [1]
  • Maija Jansson (ed.), Proceedings in Parliament, 1614 (House of Commons) (Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1988) [2]
  • Henry Stooks Smith, The Parliaments of England from 1715 to 1847 (2nd edition, edited by FWS Craig - Chichester: Parliamentary Reference Publications, 1973)
  • Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "A" (part 1)