This is a list of the 658 Members of Parliament (MPs) elected to the House of Commons of the 11th Parliament of the United Kingdom at the 1832 general election, held over several days from 8 December 1832 to 8 January 1833.
A total of 401 constituencies returned members. 153 constituencies returned one member each; 240 constituencies returned two members each; 7 constituencies returned 3 members each; and one constituency returned 4 members.
Background
1832 was the first general election in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland after the Representation of the People Act 1832 (commonly known as the "Reform Act 1832" or the "Great Reform Act") had introduced wide-ranging changes to the electoral system. The Act disenfranchised many small towns (some of which were known as rotten boroughs), reduced the number of MPs elected by some of the remaining boroughs, and created 65 new seats for the counties and 65 new seats for parliamentary boroughs.
The Act also increased the number of individuals entitled to vote, allowing a total of one out of six adult males to vote, but included the first statutory bar to women voting. The franchise was subsequently extended in several steps over the next century, culminating in the Representation of the People (Equal Franchise) Act 1928, which allowed all adult men and women to vote.
Not all constituencies voted. Where the number of candidates did not exceed the number of seats, members were returned unopposed; this was the case for 189 of the 658 members returned.
Explanatory notes
Scope The list of MPs records those MPs listed in the London Gazette as having been "returned to serve in the new Parliament". It does not include those subsequently elected in by-elections.
Where the election of an MP was subsequently overturned as a result of an election petition, the relevant entry in the list is shown in italics, and a footnote added to explain the circumstances. For a list of results which were overturned, see below: overturned elections.
Parties The party labels for MPs in this period should be treated with caution.
The source for party affiliation of MPs for constituencies in England, Scotland and Wales is F. W. S. Craig's British Parliamentary election results 1832–1885. Craig does not distinguish between Liberals, Radicals and Whigs, labeling them all as "Liberal". Similarly, Craig does not distinguish between those who described themselves as Conservatives and those described as Tory, labeling them all as "Conservative". That convention has been followed in this list, with one variation: the label "Tory" has been used for Conservatives and Tories, because the term "Conservative" was not officially adopted by the party until 1834. Craig's volume covers only two years before that date, and 51 years after it, so "Conservative" is the more appropriate term for the period as a whole; but for 1832, it is an anachronism.
Craig warns that party affiliations in the period were fluid and cannot always be accurately assessed, and that some candidates could have been equally well described as either "Liberal" or "Conservative".
Walker's Parliamentary election results in Ireland, 1801–1922 is the source for the party affiliations of the MPs for constituencies in Ireland. Walker also uses the labels "Liberal" and "Conservative", but warns that they are an "over-simplification", noting that until 1868 neither term was used consistently by contemporaries.
A number of Irish MPs have been labelled as "Repeal", referring to the Repeal Association. Walker assigned this label to MPs who "signed the repeal pledge, advocated it at this election, or supported repeal measures in the ensuing parliament".
Types of constituency There were three types of constituency, each with different arrangements for the franchise: Counties, which covered the whole of a county. In some cases they were divided into two or more divisions University constituencies, which had no geographical basis. Their electorate comprised the graduates of the university Parliamentary boroughs, known in Scotland as burghs, which comprised a town and in some cases some areas outside the town boundaries. Districts of burghs (in Scotland) and districts of boroughs (in Wales) were a type of borough constituency in which several boroughs jointly elected one Member of Parliament. The areas were not geographically contiguous, and in some cases the boroughs were in different counties
List of MPs elected Parties Liberal Party Tory Repeal
Edit by initial letter of constituencies: A–B • C • D–E • F–I • J–L • M–N • O–R • S–T • U–Z
Overturned elections
The list of MPs records those MPs listed in the London Gazette as having been "returned to serve in the new Parliament". Where the election of an MP was subsequently overturned as a result of an election petition, the relevant entry in the list is shown in italics, and a footnote added to explain the circumstances. A total of 16 MPs in 14 constituencies were unseated, although one (Sir Charles Paget) was subsequently reinstated.
Voided elections The 1832 elections were declared void as a result of a petition for a total of 7 MPs in six constituencies:Rallings and Thrasher, op. cit. page 249
Constituency Country County Seats voided Reason for voidingCarrickfergus Ireland Antrim 1 of 1 Bribery and/or corrupt practices. Writ suspended Walker, page 51Hertford England Hertfordshire 2 of 2 Bribery and/or corrupt practices. Writ suspended Craig, pages 152–153Montgomery Boroughs Wales Montgomeryshire 1 of 1 Bribery and/or corrupt practices. Writ suspended Craig, pages 509–510Oxford England Oxfordshire 1 of 2 Bribery and/or corrupt practices. Writ suspended Craig, pages 233–234Tiverton England Devon 1 of 2 Candidate lacked property qualification to be elected Craig, pages 308–309Warwick England Warwickshire 1 of 2 Bribery and/or corrupt practices. Writ suspended Craig, pages 320–321
Undue elections
In 8 constituencies, a petition led to a recount and another candidate was declared elected without a further ballot being held. Nine seats changed hands in this way:Rallings and Thrasher, op. cit. page 247
Constituency Country County Seats overturned Caernarvon Boroughs Wales Caernarfonshire 1 of 1 Craig, page 500 Coleraine Ireland County Londonderry 1 of 1 Galway Borough Ireland County Galway 1 of 2 Walker, page 52 Longford Ireland County Longford 2 of 2 Walker, page 53 Mallow Ireland County Cork 1 of 1 Walker, page 54 Petersfield England Hampshire 1 of 1 Craig, page 239 Salisbury England Wiltshire 1 of 1 Craig, pages 266–267 Southampton England Hampshire 1 of 1 Craig, pages 279–280
Notes and references
See also 1832 United Kingdom general election List of parliaments of the United Kingdom List of United Kingdom Parliament constituencies (1832–1868)