Fife_(UK_Parliament_constituency)
Fife (UK Parliament constituency)
Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1801–1885
Fife was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1708 until 1885, when it was divided into East Fife and West Fife.
Quick Facts Major settlements, 1708–1885 ...
| Fife | |
|---|---|
| Former County constituency for the House of Commons | |
| Major settlements | Fife |
| 1708–1885 | |
| Seats | One |
| Created from | Fife |
| Replaced by | East Fife West Fife |
Close
The British parliamentary constituency was created in 1708 following the Acts of Union, 1707 and replaced the former Parliament of Scotland shire constituency of Fifeshire.
The constituency elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system until the seat was divided in 1885.[1] [2] [3] [4] [5]
The constituency covered the county of Fife.
More information Election, Member ...
| Election | Member | Party | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1708 | Patrick Moncreiff | |||
| 1709 | Sir Robert Anstruther | |||
| 1710 | Sir Alexander Erskine | |||
| 1715 | Sir John Anstruther, 1st Baronet | |||
| 1741 | David Scott | |||
| 1747 | James Oswald | |||
| 1754 | James St Clair | |||
| 1763 | James Wemyss | |||
| 1768 | John Scott | |||
| 1776 | James Townsend Oswald | |||
| 1779 | Robert Skene | |||
| 1780 | John Henderson | 5th Baronet from 1781 | ||
| 1780 | Robert Skene | |||
| 1787 | William Wemyss | |||
| 1796 | Sir William Erskine, Bt | British Army officer, died insane | ||
| 1806 | Robert Ferguson | |||
| 1807 | William Wemyss | |||
| 1820 | James Erskine Wemyss | Whig[6][7] | ||
| 1831 | James Lindsay | Tory[6] | ||
| 1832 | James Erskine Wemyss | Whig[6][7] | ||
| 1847 | John Fergus | Whig[8][6] | ||
| 1859 | James Hay Erskine Wemyss | Liberal | ||
| 1864 | Sir Robert Anstruther, 5th Baronet | Liberal | ||
| 1880 | Robert Preston Bruce | Liberal | ||
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Elections in the 1830s
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | James Erskine Wemyss | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 239 | ||||
| Whig hold | |||||
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More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tory | James Lindsay (1793-1855) | 85 | 55.6 | ||
| Whig | James Erskine Wemyss | 68 | 44.4 | ||
| Majority | 17 | 11.2 | |||
| Turnout | 153 | 64.0 | |||
| Registered electors | 239 | ||||
| Tory gain from Whig | |||||
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More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | James Erskine Wemyss | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 2,185 | ||||
| Whig gain from Tory | |||||
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More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | James Erskine Wemyss | 1,051 | 64.3 | ||
| Conservative | James Lindsay (1793-1855) | 584 | 35.7 | ||
| Majority | 467 | 28.6 | |||
| Turnout | 1,635 | 70.8 | |||
| Registered electors | 2,309 | ||||
| Whig hold | |||||
Close
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | James Erskine Wemyss | 1,086 | 65.7 | +1.4 | |
| Conservative | James Bruce | 567 | 34.3 | −1.4 | |
| Majority | 519 | 31.4 | +2.8 | ||
| Turnout | 1,653 | 60.8 | −10.0 | ||
| Registered electors | 2,720 | ||||
| Whig hold | Swing | +1.4 | |||
Close
Elections in the 1840s
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | James Erskine Wemyss | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 2,967 | ||||
| Whig hold | |||||
Close
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | John Fergus | 834 | 52.1 | N/A | |
| Conservative | John Balfour[11] | 768 | 47.9 | New | |
| Majority | 66 | 4.2 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 1,602 | 65.6 | N/A | ||
| Registered electors | 2,444 | ||||
| Whig hold | |||||
Close
Elections in the 1850s
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | John Fergus | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 3,211 | ||||
| Whig hold | |||||
Close
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | John Fergus | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 3,389 | ||||
| Whig hold | |||||
Close
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | James Hay Erskine Wemyss | 1,087 | 56.1 | N/A | |
| Conservative | Robert St Clair-Erskine | 850 | 43.9 | New | |
| Majority | 237 | 12.2 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 1,937 | 47.8 | N/A | ||
| Registered electors | 4,056 | ||||
| Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |||
Close
Elections in the 1860s
Wemyss's death caused a by-election.
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Robert Anstruther | Unopposed | |||
| Liberal hold | |||||
Close
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Robert Anstruther | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 2,725 | ||||
| Liberal hold | |||||
Close
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Robert Anstruther | 1,837 | 62.0 | N/A | |
| Liberal | John Boyd Kinnear | 1,127 | 38.0 | N/A | |
| Majority | 710 | 24.0 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 2,964 | 70.5 | N/A | ||
| Registered electors | 4,206 | ||||
| Liberal hold | Swing | 'N/A | |||
Close
Elections in the 1870s
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Robert Anstruther | 1,859 | 60.2 | −1.8 | |
| Conservative | Frederick William Hamilton[12] | 1,230 | 39.8 | New | |
| Majority | 629 | 20.4 | −3.6 | ||
| Turnout | 3,089 | 70.9 | +0.4 | ||
| Registered electors | 4,358 | ||||
| Liberal hold | Swing | 'N/A | |||
Close
Elections in the 1880s
More information Party, Candidate ...
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Robert Preston Bruce | 2,421 | 63.8 | +3.6 | |
| Conservative | James Townsend Oswald[13] | 1,373 | 36.2 | −3.6 | |
| Majority | 1,048 | 27.6 | +7.2 | ||
| Turnout | 3,794 | 79.6 | +8.7 | ||
| Registered electors | 4,767 | ||||
| Liberal hold | Swing | +3.6 | |||
Close
- "Fifeshire". History of Parliament Online (1690-1715). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
- "Fifeshire". History of Parliament Online (1715-1754). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
- "Fifeshire". History of Parliament Online (1754-1790). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
- "Fifeshire". History of Parliament Online (1790-1820). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
- "Fifeshire". History of Parliament Online (1820-1832). Retrieved 27 March 2019.
- Smith, Henry Stooks (1842). The Register of Parliamentary Contested Elections (Second ed.). Simpkin, Marshall & Company. pp. 202, 205. Retrieved 11 September 2018 – via Google Books.
- Churton, Edward (1838). The Assembled Commons or Parliamentary Biographer. p. 232. Retrieved 18 August 2019 – via Google Books.
- "Greenock Advertiser". 6 August 1847. p. 2. Retrieved 11 September 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- Escott, Margaret. "Fifeshire". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 8 May 2020.
- Craig, F. W. S., ed. (1977). British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885 (e-book) (1st ed.). London: Macmillan Press. ISBN 978-1-349-02349-3.
- "To the Electors of the County of Fife". Fife Herald. 29 July 1847. p. 1. Retrieved 18 August 2019 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "General Hamilton's Meetings". Fife Herald. 12 February 1874. p. 2. Retrieved 30 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.
- "Representation of Fife". Fifeshire Advertiser. 10 April 1880. p. 2. Retrieved 20 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.