Sheffield (UK Parliament constituency)

Sheffield was a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1832 to 1885. It elected two Members of Parliament (MPs) by the bloc vote system of elections.

Sheffield
Former borough constituency
for the House of Commons
Sheffield borough constituency in 1832
CountyWest Riding of Yorkshire
18321885
SeatsTwo
Created fromYorkshire
Replaced bySheffield Attercliffe, Sheffield Brightside, Sheffield Ecclesall, Sheffield Hallam, and Sheffield Central

The constituency encompassed the urban part of the town and parish (now city) of Sheffield, England, but not the western, rural, parts of Upper Hallam and Ecclesall Bierlow, which were incorporated into Sheffield Town Borough in 1843.

History

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Before 1832 Sheffield had been represented by the Yorkshire constituency. The Sheffield Borough constituency was created by the Reform Act of 1832, and was given two MPs, the first time that the town had been represented in the House of Commons. Four candidates stood at the first election contesting these two seats. Voting took place on 13 and 14 December 1832, with the results declared on 15 December (see below). The election sparked a riot on 14 December, which resulted in the military being called out. The soldiers fired on the crowd, killing six people and injuring several others.[1] Following the Redistribution of Seats Act in 1885, which sought to eliminate constituencies with more than one MP and give greater representation to urban areas, the Borough of Sheffield was sub-divided. The five new divisions—Attercliffe, Brightside, Ecclesall, Hallam, and Sheffield Central—each returned a single MP.

Members of Parliament

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Two MPs were elected at each general election. The table below shows the election years in which one or both of the MPs changed.[2][3]

Election Member 1 Party Member 2 Party
1832 John Parker Whig[4][5][6][7][8] James Silk Buckingham Radical[6][8][9]
1837 Henry George Ward Radical[6][10][11][12]
1849 by-election John Arthur Roebuck Independent Whig[13][14]
1852 George Hadfield Radical[4][15][16][17][18]
1859 Liberal Independent Liberal[13]
1868 A. J. Mundella Liberal
1874 John Arthur Roebuck Independent Liberal
1879 by-election Samuel Danks Waddy Liberal
1880 Charles Stuart-Wortley Conservative
1885 Constituency divided

The constituency was sub-divided in 1885. The sitting MPs, A. J. Mundella and Charles Stuart-Wortley subsequently stood for and won seats in one of the new constituencies (Sheffield Brightside and Sheffield Hallam respectively).

Election results

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Elections in the 1880s

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By-election, 8 May 1880: Sheffield[19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal A. J. Mundella Unopposed
Liberal hold
1880 general election: Sheffield[2][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal A. J. Mundella 17,217 34.2 +1.0
Conservative Charles Stuart-Wortley 16,546 32.9 N/A
Liberal Samuel Danks Waddy 16,506 32.8 +3.3
Turnout 33,408 (est) 78.1 (est) +15.3
Registered electors 42,794
Majority 671 1.3 N/A
Liberal hold Swing N/A
Majority 40 0.1 N/A
Conservative gain from Independent Liberal Swing N/A

Elections in the 1870s

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By-election, 21 Dec 1879: Sheffield[2][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Samuel Danks Waddy 14,062 50.9 −12.4
Conservative Charles Stuart-Wortley 13,584 49.1 New
Majority 478 1.8 N/A
Turnout 27,646 70.4 +17.6
Registered electors 39,270
Liberal gain from Independent Liberal Swing
  • Caused by Roebuck's death.
1874 general election: Sheffield[2][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Liberal John Arthur Roebuck[20] 14,193 36.7 +13.8
Liberal A. J. Mundella 12,858 33.2 +4.0
Liberal Joseph Chamberlain 11,053 28.5 N/A
Liberal Alfred Allott 621 1.6 N/A
Majority 3,140 8.2 N/A
Turnout 19,363 (est) 52.8 (est) −17.1
Registered electors 36,701
Independent Liberal gain from Liberal Swing +4.9
Liberal hold Swing −4.9
  • Allott withdrew from the race before polling day.[21]

Elections in the 1860s

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1868 general election: Sheffield[2][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal George Hadfield 14,793 35.3 +4.8
Liberal A. J. Mundella 12,212 29.2 +14.8
Independent Liberal John Arthur Roebuck 9,571 22.9 −8.2
Conservative Edwin Plumer Price[22] 5,272 12.6 −11.4
Majority 2,641 6.3 N/A
Turnout 20,924 (est) 69.9 (est) +5.9
Registered electors 29,955
Liberal hold Swing +4.5
Liberal gain from Independent Liberal Swing +9.5
1865 general election: Sheffield[2][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Liberal John Arthur Roebuck 3,410 31.1 N/A
Liberal George Hadfield 3,348 30.5 N/A
Conservative James Stuart-Wortley 2,626 24.0 New
Independent Thomas Campbell Foster[23] 1,576 14.4 N/A
Turnout 5,480 (est) 64.0 (est) N/A
Registered electors 8,557
Majority 62 0.6 N/A
Independent Liberal hold Swing N/A
Majority 722 6.5 N/A
Liberal hold Swing N/A

Elections in the 1850s

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1859 general election: Sheffield[2][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Liberal John Arthur Roebuck Unopposed
Liberal George Hadfield Unopposed
Registered electors 7,381
Independent Liberal hold
Liberal hold
1857 general election: Sheffield[2][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Whig John Arthur Roebuck 3,200 39.4 +8.2
Radical George Hadfield 2,871 35.3 +7.7
Conservative William Overend[24] 2,059 25.3 +7.7
Turnout 5,095 (est) 74.1 (est) +11.1
Registered electors 6,874
Majority 329 4.1 +0.5
Independent Whig hold Swing +2.2
Majority 812 1.0 −3.0
Radical hold Swing +1.8
1852 general election: Sheffield[2][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Whig John Arthur Roebuck 2,092 31.2 N/A
Radical George Hadfield 1,853 27.6 −15.7
Whig John Parker 1,580 23.6 −20.3
Conservative William Overend[25] 1,180 17.6 New
Turnout 3,353 (est) 63.0 (est) +34.7
Registered electors 5,322
Majority 239 3.6 N/A
Ind. Whig gain from Whig Swing N/A
Majority 273 4.0 −26.6
Radical hold Swing +2.3

Elections in the 1840s

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By-election, 3 May 1849: Sheffield[2][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Independent Whig John Arthur Roebuck Unopposed
Ind. Whig gain from Radical
1847 general election: Sheffield[2][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Whig John Parker 1,125 43.9 +3.8
Radical Henry George Ward 1,110 43.3 +4.2
Chartist Thomas Clark 326 12.7 New
Turnout 1,444 (est) 29.3 (est) −23.8
Registered electors 4,934
Majority 15 0.6 −0.4
Whig hold Swing −0.2
Majority 784 30.6 +2.4
Radical hold Swing +0.2
1841 general election: Sheffield[2][6][19]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Whig John Parker 1,849 40.1 −5.3
Radical Henry George Ward 1,805 39.1 −1.9
Conservative David Urquhart 503 10.9 +4.1
Conservative William Sheppard 457 9.9 +3.1
Turnout 2,307 (est) 53.1 (est) c. −13.9
Registered electors 4,347
Majority 44 1.0 −3.4
Whig hold Swing −4.5
Majority 1,302 28.2 +0.8
Radical hold Swing −2.8

Elections in the 1830s

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1837 general election: Sheffield[2][19][6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Whig John Parker 2,186 45.4 −20.8
Radical Henry George Ward 1,976 41.0 +7.2
Conservative John Thorneley 655 13.6 New
Turnout 2,700 67.0 −16.2
Registered electors 4,028
Majority 210 4.4 +3.2
Whig hold Swing −14.0
Majority 1,321 27.4 +24.8
Radical hold Swing +14.0
By-election, 22 August 1836: Sheffield[2][19][6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Whig John Parker 414 100.0 +33.8
Radical John Bell 0 0.0 −33.8
Majority 414 100.0 +98.8
Turnout 414 10.6 −72.6
Registered electors 3,903
Whig hold Swing +33.8
  • Caused by Parker's appointment as a Lord Commissioner of the Treasury
1835 general election: Sheffield[1][2][19][6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Whig John Parker 1,607 35.0 +4.9
Radical James Silk Buckingham 1,554 33.8 −19.9
Whig Samuel Bailey 1,434 31.2 +15.1
Turnout 2,986 83.2 −9.2
Registered electors 3,587
Majority 53 1.2 +0.9
Whig hold Swing +7.4
Majority 120 2.6 −3.1
Radical hold Swing −20.0
1832 general election: Sheffield[1][2][19][6]
Party Candidate Votes %
Whig John Parker 1,515 30.1
Radical James Silk Buckingham 1,498 29.7
Radical Thomas Asline Ward 1,210 24.0
Whig Samuel Bailey 813 16.1
Turnout 3,056 92.4
Registered electors 3,308
Majority 17 0.4
Whig win (new seat)
Majority 288 5.7
Radical win (new seat)

References

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  1. ^ a b c The Poll Book; containing a correct list of the electors who polled; distinguishing the candidates for whom they voted; also the names of the registered voters who did not poll in the first election of members for the Borough of Sheffield, December 13 and 14, 1832. Sheffield: Whitaker & Co. 1833. pp. 36–37.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Craig, F. W. S. (1989). British electoral facts, 1832-1987. Dartmouth. ISBN 0-900178-30-2.
  3. ^ Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "S" (part 3)
  4. ^ a b "State of Polls". Carlisle Patriot. 10 July 1852. p. 2. Retrieved 8 July 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  5. ^ White, Alan (1988). "Class, culture and control: the Sheffield Athenaeum movement and the middle class". In Wolff, Janet; Seed, John (eds.). The Culture of Capital: Art, Power and the Nineteen-Century Middle Class. Manchester: Manchester University Press. p. 96. ISBN 0-7190-2460-9. LCCN 88-10982. Retrieved 8 July 2018 – via Google Books.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h Stooks Smith, Henry (1845). The Parliaments of England, from 1st George I., to the Present Time. Vol II: Oxfordshire to Wales Inclusive. London: Simpkin, Marshall, & Co. p. 169. Retrieved 1 December 2018 – via Google Books.
  7. ^ Dod, Charles Roger; Dod, Robert Phipps (1847). Dod's Parliamentary Companion, Volume 15. Dod's Parliamentary Companion. pp. 219–220. Retrieved 1 December 2018 – via Google Books.
  8. ^ a b Morrison, Tessa (2016) [2015]. Unbuilt Utopian Cities 1460 to 1900: Reconstructing their Architecture and Political Philosophy. Abingdon: Routledge. p. 123. ISBN 978-1-4724-5265-8. LCCN 2015008397. Retrieved 1 December 2018 – via Google Books.
  9. ^ Churton, Edward (1836). The Assembled Commons or Parliamentary Biographer: 1838. p. 29. Retrieved 1 December 2018 – via Google Books.
  10. ^ Fowler, Will (May 2018). "First Impressions: Henry George Ward's Mexico in 1827" (PDF). Journal of Latin American Studies. 50 (2): 265–289. doi:10.1017/S0022216X1700075X. hdl:10023/11703.
  11. ^ King, Andrew (2017). The London Journal, 1845-83: Periodicals, Production and Gender. Abingdon: Routledge. p. 78. ISBN 978-0-7546-3343-3. Retrieved 8 July 2018.
  12. ^ "Protestants of Great Britain". Nottingham Journal. 21 July 1837. p. 2. Retrieved 8 July 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  13. ^ a b Rae, William Fraser (1897). "Roebuck, John Arthur" . In Lee, Sidney (ed.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 49. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
  14. ^ "Mr. Roebuck, M.P. for Sheffield". Kendal Mercury. 12 May 1849. p. 2. Retrieved 8 July 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  15. ^ Boase, George Clement (1890). "Hadfield, George (1787-1879)" . In Stephen, Leslie; Lee, Sidney (eds.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 23. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
  16. ^ Steele, E. D. (1991). Palmerston and Liberalism, 1855–1865. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 343. ISBN 0-521-40045-7. LCCN 90-40491. Retrieved 8 July 2018 – via Google Books.
  17. ^ Fraser, Derek (1976). Urban Politics in Victorian England: The structure of politics in Victorian cities (eBook ed.). Leicester: Leicester University Press. pp. 38–39. doi:10.1007/978-1-349-05137-3. ISBN 978-1-349-05137-3 – via Google Books.
  18. ^ "Sheffield". Bell's Weekly Messenger. 10 July 1852. p. 3. Retrieved 8 July 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  19. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p Craig, F. W. S., ed. (1977). British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885 (e-book) (1st ed.). London: Macmillan Press. pp. 273–274. ISBN 978-1-349-02349-3.
  20. ^ "Letter from London". Cheltenham Chronicle. 10 February 1874. p. 5. Retrieved 19 January 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  21. ^ "Allott's Nomination". Sheffield Daily Telegraph. 3 February 1874. p. 8. Retrieved 19 January 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  22. ^ "The Sheffield Election". Bradford Observer. 9 October 1868. p. 2. Retrieved 17 March 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  23. ^ "Sheffield". Leeds Mercury. 13 July 1865. p. 4. Retrieved 17 March 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  24. ^ "Sheffield Election". Sheffield Independent. 4 April 1857. p. 10. Retrieved 8 July 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
  25. ^ "Morning Post". 9 July 1852. p. 4. Retrieved 8 July 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
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