Northumberland (UK Parliament constituency)

Northumberland
Former County constituency for the House of Commons
1290–1832
Number of members	two
Replaced by	North Northumberland, South Northumberland and Tynemouth and North Shields

Northumberland, was a County constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1832. It was represented by two Members of Parliament.

The constituency was split into two two-member divisions, for Parliamentary purposes, by the Reform Act of 1832. The county was then represented by the Northumberland North and Northumberland South constituencies.

Members of Parliament

MPs 1290–1640

Parliament	First member	Second member
1300	Sir Luke Tailboys
1311	Guischard de Charron
1311	Roger Mauduit
1314	Roger Mauduit
1331	Roger Mauduit
1334	Roger Mauduit
1371	William Heron
1372	Thomas Surteys	John de Mitford
1373	Sir Bertram (II) Montbourcher
1377	Sir Bertram (II) Montbourcher
1378	Sir John Fenwick
1379	Sir John Heron
1380	Walter de Swinhoe
1381	Adam de Athol (Sir Aymer de Strathbogie of Felton)
1382	Sir Robert Clifford
1386	Sir Bertram Montbourcher	Sir Robert Clavering[1]
1388 (Feb)	Sir Thomas Umfraville	John de Mitford[1]
1388 (Sep)	John de Mitford[1]
1390 (Jan)	Sir Thomas Umfraville	John de Mitford[1]
1390 (Nov)	Sir John Felton	John de Mitford[1]
1391	Sir Gerard Heron	John de Mitford[1]
1393	Sir Gerard Heron	John de Mitford[1]
1394	Sir Gerard Heron	John de Mitford[1]
1395	Sir William Swinburne	Sampson Hardyng[1]
1397 (Jan)	Sir Thomas Gray	John de Mitford[1]
1397 (Sep)	Sir Gerard Heron	Sir Robert Lisle[1]
1399	Sir Thomas Gray	Sampson Hardyng[1]
1401	Sir Gerard Heron	John de Mitford[1]
1402	Sir Gerard Heron	John de Mitford[1]
1404 (Jan)	Sir John Widdrington	Sampson Hardyng[1]
1404 (Oct)	Sir William Carnaby	Sir Robert Lisle[1]
1406	Sir John Clavering	Sir Robert Lisle[1]
1407	Sir Edmund Hastings	Robert Harbottle[1]
1410
1411
1413 (Feb)
1413 (May)	John Bertram	William Mitford[1]
1414 (Apr)	Sir John Middleton	Sir Robert Lisle[1]
1414 (Nov)	Sir John Widdrington	Sampson Hardyng[1]
1415
1416 (Mar)	Sir Robert Ogle	William Mitford[1]
1416 (Oct)
1417	Sir John Middleton	Sir Robert Lisle[1]
1417	John Strother
1419	Sir Robert Ogle	William Mitford[1]
1420	Sir Robert Ogle	Nicholas Turpin[1]
1421 (May)	John Manners	Sampson Hardyng[1]
1421 (Dec)	Sir Robert Ogle	William Mitford[1]
1434	Thomas Lilborn	John Cartyngton
1451	Sir John Ogle	William Bertram
1491	Sir William Tyler[2]
1510–1523	No Names Known[3]
1529	Cuthbert Radcliffe	Robert Collingwood[3]
1536
1539
1542
1545
1547	Sir Thomas Hilton	John Bednall[3]
1553 (Mar)
1553 (Oct)	Sir Thomas Grey	Cuthbert Horsley[3]
1554 (Apr)	John Swinburne	Robert Horsley[3]
1554 (Nov)	Sir Thomas Grey	Cuthbert Horsley[3]
1555	Sir Thomas Wharton	George Heron[3]
1558	Sir Thomas Wharton	Sir Robert Ellerker[3]
1558–1589	Sir Thomas Grey I	Cuthbert Horsley[4]
1562–1565	John Vaughan	Robert Lawdon (died 1665)[4]
1571	Sir Henry Percy	Sir William Hilton[4]
1572 (Apr)	Sir Francis Russell	Thomas Layton[4]
1584	Sir Francis Russell	Edward Talbot[4]
1586	Sir Thomas Grey II	Edward Talbot[4]
1588 (Oct)	William Carey	Robert Widdrington[4]
1593	Sir William Reade alias Kynnerd	Robert Widdrington[4]
1597	Sir Robert Carey	William Selby[4]
1601 (Oct)	Sir Robert Carey	William Selby[4]
1604–1611	Sir Ralph Grey	Sir Henry Widdrington
1614	Sir Henry Widdrington	Sir George Selby, declared inelig. and repl. by Sir William Selby
1621–1622	Sir William Grey	Sir Henry Widdrington
1624	Sir John Fenwick	Sir Francis Brandling
1625	Sir John Fenwick	Sir Francis Brandling
1626	Sir John Fenwick	Sir John Delaval
1628	Sir John Fenwick	Sir William Carnaby
1629–1640	No Parliaments convened

MPs 1640–1832

Year		First member	First party		Second member	Second party
April 1640		Sir John Fenwick			Sir William Widdrington	Royalist
November 1640		Henry Percy[5]	Royalist
1642		Sir John Fenwick[6]	Parliamentarian
August 1642				Widdrington disabled from sitting – seat vacant
1645					William Fenwick
December 1648	Both Fenwicks excluded in Pride's Purge – seats vacant
1653	Not separately represented in the Barebones Parliament[7]
Northumberland's representation was increased to three members in the First and Second Parliaments of the Protectorate
1654	William Fenwick, Robert Fenwick, Henry Ogle
1656	William Fenwick, Robert Fenwick, Sir Thomas Widdrington
Representation reverted to two members in the Third Protectorate Parliament
January 1659		Sir William Fenwick			(Sir) Ralph Delaval
May 1659	Not represented in the restored Rump
April 1660		Sir William Fenwick			(Sir) Ralph Delaval[8]
1661					Viscount Mansfield
1677		Sir John Fenwick			Sir Ralph Delaval
1685					William Ogle
1689		William Forster			Philip Bickerstaffe
1698					Sir Edward Blackett
January 1701		Ferdinando Forster			Hon. William Howard
December 1701		Sir Francis Blake			William Loraine
1702					Bertram Stote
1705		Thomas Forster			Sir John Delaval
1708		Thomas Forster, junior[9]	Tory		Earl of Hertford
1716		Francis Blake Delaval
1722		Sir William Middleton, Bt
1723					William Wrightson[10]
1724					Ralph Jenison
1741					John Fenwick
1748					Lord Ossulston[11]
1749					Lancelot Allgood
1754					Sir Henry Grey
1757		George Shafto Delaval
1768					Sir Edward Blackett
1774		Lord Algernon Percy			Sir William Middleton, Bt
1786		Hon. Charles Grey[12]
1795					Thomas Richard Beaumont	Tory
1807		Earl Percy
1812		Sir Charles Monck
1818					Thomas Wentworth Beaumont	Tory
1820		Charles John Brandling
February 1826		Matthew Bell	Tory
July 1826					Hon. Henry Liddell	Tory
1830					Thomas Wentworth Beaumont	Whig
1831		Viscount Howick	Whig
1832	Constituency abolished – see Northern Northumberland, Southern Northumberland

Notes

1. "History of Parliament". Retrieved 1 September 2011.
2. Cavill. The English Parliaments of Henry VII 1485-1504.
3. "History of Parliament". Retrieved 1 September 2011.
4. "History of Parliament". Retrieved 1 September 2011.
5. Expelled, December 1641, "for being concerned in a plot to bring up the King's army in the North, to over-awe the Parliament"
6. Fenwick was temporarily disabled from sitting in January 1644, but re-admitted in June 1646
7. Charles Howard, Robert Fenwick, Henry Dawson and Henry Ogle were collectively nominated for the Four Northern Counties (Northumberland, Durham, Westmorland and Cumberland]]
8. Created a baronet, June 1660
9. Expelled from the House of Commons for involvement in the Jacobite Rising
10. On petition, Wrightson was adjudged not to have been duly elected
11. On petition, Ossulston waived his return in favour of his opponent, Allgood
12. Styled Viscount Howick from 1806

Elections

The county franchise, from 1430, was held by the adult male owners of freehold land valued at 40 shillings or more. Each elector had as many votes as there were seats to be filled. Votes had to be cast by a spoken declaration, in public, at the hustings, which took place in the town of Alnwick. The expense and difficulty of voting at only one location in the county, together with the lack of a secret ballot contributed to the corruption and intimidation of electors, which was widespread in the unreformed British political system.

The expense, to candidates, of contested elections encouraged the leading families of the county to agree on the candidates to be returned unopposed whenever possible. Contested county elections were therefore unusual. The Tory Percys, led by the Duke of Northumberland, shared the county representation with the Whig Grey Family.

See also

• List of former United Kingdom Parliamentary constituencies
• Unreformed House of Commons

Sources

• Robert Beatson, A Chronological Register of Both Houses of Parliament (London: Longman, Hurst, Res & Orme, 1807)
• 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)
• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "N" (part 3)