South Essex (formally the Southern division of Essex) was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1832 to 1885. It elected two Members of Parliament (MPs) using the bloc vote system.
History The constituency was created by the Reform Act 1832, with effect from the general election in December 1832, when the former Essex constituency was divided into Northern and Southern divisions. From 1868, it was reduced in size when Essex was redivided into the Eastern, Southern and Western divisions. It was abolished under the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 when the county was divided into eight single-member divisions.
Boundaries
1832–1868
The Hundreds of Barstable, Becontree, Chafford, Chelmsford, Dengie, Harlow, Ongar, Rochford, and Waltham; and The Liberty of Havering. See map on Vision of Britain website.
1868–1885
The Hundreds of Becontree, Chafford, Barstable, and Rochford; and The Liberty of Havering. See map on Vision of Britain website.
Areas covered Hundred/Liberty 1832 1868 After 1885 (post-abolition)Redistribution of Seats Act 1885. https://archive.org/stream/publicgeneralac01walegoog#page/n155/mode/2up Becontree (West Ham, Plaistow etc.) South EssexSouth EssexWest Ham North and West Ham South Becontree (Barking, Dagenham, East Ham, Wanstead etc.)Romford Becontree (Walthamstow, Low Leyton and Woodford)Walthamstow Chafford (Brentwood end) Chelmsford Chafford (Aveley, Grays and Thurrock end)South East Essex Barstable (Billericay and Shenfield etc.) 'Map of Essex', in An Inventory of the Historical Monuments in Essex, Volume 1, North West (London, 1916), p. xxxvii. British History Online http://www.british-history.ac.uk/rchme/essex/vol1/xxxvii [accessed 18 August 2017].Chelmsford Barstable (Orsett, Tilbury and Canvey Island) South East Essex Rochford South East Essex Liberty of Havering/Liberty of Havering-atte-BowerRomford Dengie (Maldon (burgage of town excluded) to Burnham and Tillingham)East Essex South East Essex ChelmsfordWest Essex Chelmsford HarlowEpping Ongar Waltham (Nazeing to Chingford) The place for "holding of courts for election of members" from 1867 became Brentwood under the 1867 Act.
Members of Parliament Election 1st Member 1st Party 2nd Member 2nd Party 1832 Robert Westley Hall-Dare Tory Sir Thomas Barrett-Lennard, Bt Whig 1834 Conservative 1835 Thomas William Bramston Conservative 1836 by-election George Palmer Conservative 1847 Sir Edward Buxton, Bt Whig 1852 Sir William Bowyer-Smijth, Bt Conservative 1857 Richard Wingfield-Baker Whig 1859 John Perry-Watlington Conservative 1865 Henry Selwin-Ibbetson Conservative Lord Eustace Cecil Conservative 1868 Richard Wingfield-Baker Liberal Andrew Johnston Liberal 1874 Thomas Charles Baring Conservative William Makins Conservative 1885 Constituency divided
Election results Elections in the 1830s
Dare's death caused a by-election.
Elections in the 1840s
Elections in the 1850s
Elections in the 1860s
Elections in the 1870s
Elections in the 1880s
References
Sources