This is a list of the counties and boroughs of the unreformed House of Commons.
In the following tables, the size of the electorate is shown as it was estimated to be in about 1800. These figures are estimates only, particularly in seats which were rarely contested. In England, Scotland and Wales, there were 29 general elections between 1700 and the Reform Act 1832. In Ireland, there were 11 elections between the Act of Union in 1801 and 1832. The figure under "Times contested" is the number of general elections at which the seat was contested during these periods. By-elections are not counted. The dominant families in the counties gradually changed over time. They are shown as they were around 1800. Monmouthshire was an English county from its formation in 1536, although it is in most respects Welsh and was formally made part of Wales in 1974.
English counties County Voters (1800) Times contested Dominant interests Comments Bedfordshire 2,000 14 Russell, St John Under the dominant influence of the Duke of Bedford, head of the Russell family, Bedfordshire was a Whig stronghold. Berkshire 3,000 11 Dundas, Neville, Vansittart There was no single dominant family. The seats were usually shared between Tories and Whigs. Buckinghamshire 4,000 10 Cavendish Bentinck, Grenville The Grenvilles, led after 1821 by the Duke of Buckingham, and the Cavendish-Bentincks, led by the Duke of Portland, shared the representation. There was only one contest between 1734 and 1831. Cambridgeshire 3,000 9 Manners, Yorke The Tory Manners family, led by the Duke of Rutland, dominated the county until 1830, when two Whigs were elected. Cheshire 5,000 8 Cholmondeley, Crewe, Egerton Uncontested between 1734 and 1831, Cheshire was a Tory stronghold, the representation shared among the leading families by agreement. Cornwall 2,700 5 Lemon, St Aubyn, Tremaine, Vyvyan Cornwall's 21 boroughs attracted candidates from all over the country, but the county seats were rarely contested, since the Whig Lemons and the Tory Tremaines usually shared the representation. Cumberland 4,000 6 Fletcher, Lowther The dominant northern family, the Tory Lowthers, always controlled one seat. The other usually went to a Whig family such as the Fletchers. Contests were rare. Derbyshire 3,000 4 Cavendish, Curzon, Mundy The Whig Cavendish family, led by the Duke of Devonshire, always nominated one member, leaving the other to the local Tory families. As a result of this arrangement contests were very rare. Devon 8,000 6 Acland, Bastard Despite the large electorate, the county was not contested between 1700 and 1790, being dominated by the Tory Aclands and Bastards. The Tories were dramatically overthrown in 1831 when Lord John Russell won a seat.Dorset 3,000 4 Chaffin, Pitt, Portman, Stangways There was no one dominant family, although one of the members was usually a Tory Pitt. There was no contest between 1727 and 1806.County Durham 3,500 6 Eden, Vane Most of the local families were Whigs, and usually shared the representation among themselves, making contests rare.Essex 6,000 12 Abdy, Bullock, Bramston Essex was a large and wealthy county, close to the metropolis, and saw regular contests, usually when the Whig Bullocks and the Tory Bramstons could not agree on candidates.Gloucestershire 6,000 9 Berkeley, Guise, Somerset The Tory Somersets, led by the Duke of Beaufort, and two Whig families, the Berkeleys and their cousins the Guises, conducted a long feud in the county, which ended in an agreement in 1783 to share the representation. Thereafter there were no contests until 1832. Hampshire 5,000 8 Heathcote, Jervoise, Thistlethwayte The Tory Heathcotes and the Whig Jervoises and Thistlethwaytes were regular rivals, with the Whig Duke of Bedford using his influence in the county to assist his allies. But the Tories usually controlled the representation until being overthrown in 1831.Herefordshire 3,500 8 Cornewall, Cotterell, Harley The Whig Cornewalls and the Tory Harleys dominated the county until 1802, when the Tory Cotterells entered the fray. Thereafter the Tories usually controlled the representation. Hertfordshire 4,000 13 Brand, Plumer, Seabright Being close to London, Hertfordshire saw regular contests. Despite the presence of the Tory magnate the Marquess of Salisbury, the county families were mostly Whigs and after 1803 they fended off the Tories at every election.Huntingdonshire 1,700 9 Montague The Tory Montague family, led by the Earl of Sandwich, was the dominant force in this small county, although sometimes rival members of the same family gave the Sandwich interest trouble. Only in 1831 did the Whigs manage to win a seat.Kent 9,000 14 Knatchbull The Tory Knatchbulls were the leading county family, but the county's size, wealth and proximity to London made it impossible to control and there were frequent contests, often between East Kent and West Kent interests. The government, through the Admiralty's influence in the Kent ports, also had a big say. Lancashire 8,000 5 Blackburn, Stanley The Stanleys, led by the Earl of Derby (at this time a Whig) dominated the county. One seat was nearly always held by a Stanley relative, the other by one of the leading Tory families.Leicestershire 6,000 7 Keck, Manners, Palmer The representation was divided between the Tory Manners family, led by the Duke of Rutland, and local families, who were also mostly Tories.Lincolnshire 7,000 4 Chaplin, Heathcote, Pelham A large agricultural county, Lincolnshire had no dominant interest, but the Pelhams, relatives of the Duke of Newcastle, usually held one seat for the Whigs. The Chaplins were the leading Tory family. There was no contest between 1710 and 1806.Middlesex 6,000 14 None By 1800 the Middlesex electorate was more than 70% urban as the London suburbs grew, and the remaining landed families lost their influence. The county was frequently and hotly contested, with radicals such as John Wilkes, Sir Francis Burdett, 5th Baronet and Joseph Hume being elected.Monmouthshire 1,500 4 Morgan, Somerset The Tory Somersets, led by the Duke of Beaufort, shared the representation with the leading local Whigs, the Morgans. There were no contests after 1727.Norfolk 7,000 8 Astley, Coke, Wodehouse Norfolk was a large county and expensive to contest, so the Whig Astleys and Cokes and the Tory Wodehouses usually shared the representation. Northamptonshire 3,000 5 Cartwright, Powys, Spencer The Whig relatives of Earl Spencer were the most prominent county family, but did not dominate county politics until after 1806, when Viscount Althorp was elected. The Tory Cartwrights usually held the other seat.Northumberland 2,000 6 Grey, Percy The Tory Percys, led by the Duke of Northumberland, shared the representation with the Whig Greys, led by Charles Grey, who sat for the county until he became Earl Grey in 1807.Nottinghamshire 3,000 4 Bentinck, Pierrepont The Duke of Newcastle and the Duke of Portland, both Whigs, dominated the county until well into the 19th century, which was why there was no contest after 1722. The Newcastle seat was usually held by a Pierrepont. Oxfordshire 4,000 4 Spencer The Tory Spencers, family of the Duke of Marlborough, dominated the county from their seat at Blenheim Palace. One seat was usually held by a Spencer, the other by a local family acceptable to the Duke. Between 1700 and 1826 there was only one contest.Rutland 800 7 Finch, Noel This small county was controlled, not by the Duke of Rutland, but by local Tory families. There was no contest after 1761.Shropshire 4,000 7 Cotes, Hill, Lyster, Powell Shropshire was a rural county dominated by local families, mostly Tories, although the Whig Coteses sometimes held a seat.Somerset 9,000 6 Acland, Coxe, Dickinson, Langton Local families shared the representation, usually in a way which meant that one member came from East Somerset and one from the West. The Tory Dickinsons and the Whig Langtons were prominent.Staffordshire 5,000 3 Leveson Gower, Littleton There were few contests in Staffordshire, despite the county's rapid industrialisation, because the representation was shared between two Whig families, the Leveson Gowers and the Littletons.Suffolk 5,000 7 Bunbury, Davers, Gooch There was no dominant interest, and local families such as the Whig Bunburys and the Tory Gooches usually shared the representation. Surrey 4,000 17 None Being close to London and densely settled, Surrey was not open to domination by landed interests, and saw frequent contests, with the Tories usually successful until their final overthrow in 1826. Sussex 5,000 12 Lennox, Pelham The Pelhams, Whig relatives of the Duke of Newcastle, and the Tory Lennoxes, led by the Duke of Richmond, dominated West and East Sussex respectively, but there were frequent contests. Prime Minister Henry Pelham represented the county from 1722 to 1747.Warwickshire 4,000 2 Dugdale, Lawley, Mordaunt Warwickshire was contested only in 1705 and 1774. This was because of an agreement that one member should always be a Whig from Birmingham (which had no representation) and the other a Tory from a county family, usually a Mordaunt.Westmorland 2,400 11 Lowther The Tory Lowther family was completely dominant in the county and usually nominated both members. After 1818 there were regular contests only because Henry Brougham insisted on running against the Lowthers.Wiltshire 5,000 5 Long, Wyndham There was no aristocratic influence in Wiltshire and the county families, mostly Tories, amicably shared the representation. Worcestershire 3,500 5 Foley, Lygon, Lyttleton, Ward There were few contests in Worcestershire, because the Tory Lygons, led by Earl Beauchamp, and the Whig Foleys usually shared the representation.Yorkshire 20,000 6 Fitzwilliam, Lascelles Contests were surprisingly rare in England's largest and most populous county, partly because of the expense. No one family had enough influence to elect a member. Until 1784 there was an agreement between the Whigs and Tories to share the representation, but from 1784 to 1812 William Wilberforce and his personal brand of reforming Toryism dominated the county. In 1830 Henry Brougham stormed the county for the Whigs.
English boroughs
In alphabetical order by county