On Wednesday 15 November 1922, the 1922 United Kingdom general election was held in England, to elect all 615 members of the House of Commons, with 492 constituencies being in England. 485 seats represented territorial constituencies contested under the first past the post electoral system, and seven additional seats represented the university constituencies. Three university constituencies returned two members through the single transferable vote electoral system and one returned one member by the first past the post system.
Candidates
Below is a table summarising the candidates of the 1922 general election in England, excluding those in the university constituencies.
Affiliation CandidatesConservative Party 406Labour Party 331Liberal Party 271National Liberal Party 97Independent Conservative 16Independent 11Co-operative Party 9Independent Labour 3Nationalist Party 2Communist Party of Great Britain 2 National Farmers' Union 2Constitutionalist 1Independent Liberal 1Agriculturalist 1People's 1Anti-Conservative 1Health 1Total 1,156
Analysis
Conservatives and Labour
The Labour Party gained 59 seats in England, however lost 6. The party therefore gained a total of 53 seats in England, and with its gains in Scotland and Wales, winning a total of 142 seats nationally. The seats it lost in England were Mansfield to the Liberal Party and Wellingborough and Rushden to the National Liberal Party (David Lloyd George's successor party to the Coalition Liberal Party). It also lost Barnard Castle, one of the two seats in Bolton, Clitheroe and Ormskirk to the Conservative Party. The Conservative Party also regained Widnes from former Leader of the Labour Party Arthur Henderson. Henderson had won the 1919 Widnes by-election against the Conservatives after having lost re-election in 1918, however lost the seat at this election. This represented no change for either party in terms of seats in comparison to the last election.
Labour also won North Norfolk which was held by an Independent who was supported by the former Coalition Government. Notably, the Labour party gained Limehouse from the National Liberal Party. The candidate that won the seat was future Labour Prime Minister Clement Attlee entered Parliament at this election. Coincidently, then Deputy Leader of the National Liberal Party and future Conservative Prime Minister Winston Churchill lost his seat in Dundee at this election.
The Conservatives, however, lost an overall nine seats at this election, with one loss being in the university constituency of Cambridge University. The Party gained several seats from the National Liberal Party. Amongst its gains was also William Greenwood in Stockport which he had gained in the 1920 Stockport by-election. This retention was gain from defunct Coalition Labour. The party won Birmingham Duddeston from the defunct National Democratic and Labour Party, along with Portsmouth Central, Stourbridge, Middlesbrough East and South Norfolk from the Liberal Party. From independents, the Conservatives won Hackney South which it retained from the 1922 Hackney South by-election, and Sowerby from an Independent Unionist Robert Hewitt Barker. Barker had been elected in the last election, however did not re-contest the seat. The Conservatives also gained Hertford compared to the last election, having retained it from the 1921 Hertford by-election at which independent-turned-Conservative Murray Sueter won the seat from an independent.
The Co-operative Party, although not yet in an electoral pact with the Labour Party but had taken the Labour Whip, also lost Kettering to the Conservatives. This was a loss of the standalone Co-operative Party (when not under the whip) when compared to the previous election. The Co-operative Party, however, did win seats in England. Alfred Barnes won East Ham South, A. V. Alexander won Sheffield Hillsborough, and Robert Morrison won Tottenham North. Including the party's fourth win in Glasgow Tradeston in Scotland, each of these wins for the Co-operative party were under the Labour Whip and therefore represented wins for the Labour Party at this election.
Liberals and National Liberals
Between the Liberal Party under H. H. Asquith and the National Liberal Party under David Lloyd George, the Liberals gained seats and the National Liberals overall lost seats. The Liberals remained the third largest Party in England despite increasing its seats to 44, with the Liberal Nationals moving from second largest to fourth at 32 seats when compared to its predecessor, the Coalition Liberal Party.
Seven former National Democratic and Labour Party candidates also stood for the National Liberal Party in this election. These were the former NDLP Members of Parliament Charles Edgar Loseby in Bradford East, James Walton in Don Valley, Chairman of the Party Clement Edwards in East Ham South, James Seddon in Hanley, Joseph Frederick Green in Leicester West, Matt Simm in Wallsend and Charles Jesson in Walthamstow West. However, each of these candidates lost their seats. Elsewhere in the United Kingdom, former NDLP candidate Charles Stanton, re-contested in Abderdare in Wales, but lost. John Taylor who was jointly Liberal Coalition and NDLP originally lost Dumbarton Burghs in Scotland. The last sitting 'member' the NDLP was Eldred Hallas, however, he had defected to the Labour Party (becoming Birmingham's first Labour Member of Parliament) but stood down from this election.
Minor parties and independents
Amongst the minor parties and independents at this election, the number of seats dropped from 21 seats to 8 overall in the county and borough constituencies.
Coalition Labour and the National Democratic and Labour Party had become defunct since the last election, with candidates either joining and standing for the Liberal National Party and losing their seats, or standing as independents. Former Coalition Labour Member of Parliament George Roberts, who had since left Coalition Labour, won one of the two seats in Norwich as an independent. Another independent, Austin Hopkinson, won Mossley. Hopkinson was originally a winning candidate and supporter of the Coalition Liberals in the previous election, although not a member of the party. His win in this election, standing rather as an independent in his own right, was a gain from the National Liberal Party. He would hold the seat until 1929, but then hold the seat again from 1931 to 1945. Then former Conservative Oswald Mosley won Harrow, having run against a candidate from his former party. With the three losses to Independents against the three gains, the number of independents was overall remain unchanged.
The disbanded National Party lost its two seats at this election. It lost Walsall to the Liberal Party. It also lost Bournemouth wherein former-National Party Member of Parliament Henry Page Croft won the seat after having switched to the Conservative Party.
A total of 16 Independent Conservative candidates stood in the county and borough constituencies at the election. 12 simply as Independent Conservative candidates, with four who stood sponsored by local organisations or other minor conservative parties and organisations, such as the Anti-Waste League or Independent Parliamentary Group. James Erskine won Westminster St George's in sponsorship of the St George's, Hanover Square, Independent Conservative Association, with Harry Becker winning Richmond (Surrey) as part of the Anti-Waste League. Both won seats from the Conservative Party. Additionally, Gordon Hall Caine won East Dorset from former Coalition Liberal Chief Whip Freddie Guest, therefore representing a gain from the National Liberal Party. With Robert Hewitt Barker losing his seat in Sowerby to the Conservatives, the number of Conservative Independent seats was increased to three seats in total.
Josiah Wedgwood, who is classed as an Independent Liberal (due to not receiving a coalition Coupon at the last election) although he was a member of the Liberal Party, won Newcastle-under-Lyme though as the official Labour candidate. However, an Independent Liberal, J. R. M. Butler, won in the seat at Cambridge University constituency against the Conservatives in the second round of voting in that seat. The number of Independent Liberals was unchanged. George Jarrett, who is classed as a National Liberal but also standing on the basis of being a Constitutionalist candidate, won Dartford.
Finally, Irish Nationalist T. P. O'Connor retained Liverpool Scotland unopposed, however candidate Joseph Devlin failed to win Liverpool Exchange against the Conservatives.
Seat summary
Below is a table summarising the total number of seats, gains and losses for each party in both the territorial county and borough constituencies and the English university constituencies.
+PartySeats Total Gains Losses Net Of all (%) Conservative 312 41 50 9 63.4 Labour (Total) 95 60 7 53 19.3 92 57 6 51 18.7 3 3 1 2 0.6 Liberal 44 34 15 19 8.9 National Liberal 32 5 56 51 6.5 Independent 3 3 3 0.6 Independent Conservative 3 3 0 3 0.6 Constitutionalist 1 colspan="2" 1 0.2 Irish Nationalist 1 0 0 0.2 Independent Liberal 1 1 1 0.2 Other 0 0 16 15 — Total 492
County and borough constituency results Below is a table summarising the constituency results of the 1922 general election in England, excluding the result in the university constituencies.
+PartySeatsAggregate votes Total Gains Losses Net Of all (%) Total Of all (%) Difference Conservative 312 41 50 9 63.4 4,809,797 41.5 1.1 Labour (Total) 95 60 7 53 19.6 3,370,430 28.8 6.2 92 57 6 51 19.0 3,272,900 28.0 5.4 3 3 1 2 0.6 97,530 0.8 0.3 Liberal 44 34 15 19 9.1 2,260,423 19.3 4.9 National Liberal 31 5 56 51 6.4 950,515 8.1 4.0 Independent 3 3 3 0.6 113,660 1.0 0.4 Independent Conservative 3 3 0 3 0.6 99,789 0.9 0.8 Constitutionalist 1 colspan="2" 1 0.2 16,662 0.1 Health 0 0 0 — 14,193 0.1 Irish Nationalist 1 0 0 0.2 12,614 0.1 0.1 Farmers' Union 0 0 0 — 11,492 0.1 0.1 Communist 0 colspan="3" — 9,693 0.1 Independent Labour 0 0 0 — 6,490 0.1 0.9 Independent Liberal 0 0 1 1 — 6,444 0.1 Agriculturalist 0 0 0 — 5,243 0.0 0.1 Anti-Conservative 0 colspan="3" — 4,964 0.0 People's 0 colspan="3" — 4,021 0.0 Other 0 0 15 16 — 0 0.0 Total 485 0 100.0 11,696,430 100.0 0.0 Registered voters, and turnout 16,726,739 72.8 17.1
University constituency results
University results summary
Below is a table summarising the seats and vote share of the English university constituencies in the 1922 general election.
+PartySeatsFirst preference votes Total Gains Losses Net Total Of all (%) 5 0 1 1 13,196 55.7 0 0 0 3,624 15.3 1 1 0 1 3,453 14.6 0 0 0 1,788 7.6 1 0 0 819 3.5 0 0 0 571 2.4 0 0 0 231 1.0 Total 7 23,682
Cambridge University
The constituency for Cambridge University returned two Members of Parliament using the single transferable vote electoral system. The electorate consisted of graduates of the university.
Combined English Universities
The Combined English Universities constituency, which represented effectively all red brick universities and Durham University, returned two Members of Parliament using the single transferable vote electoral system. The electorate consisted of graduates of the university.
London University
The constituency for London University returned one Member of Parliament using the First-past-the-post electoral system. The electorate consisted of graduates of the university.
Oxford University
The constituency for Oxford University returned two Members of Parliament using the single transferable vote electoral system. The electorate consisted of graduates of the university.
See also 1922 United Kingdom general election in Scotland 1922 United Kingdom general election in Wales 1922 United Kingdom general election in Northern Ireland
Notes
References