Ayr Burghs (UK Parliament constituency)

Ayr Burghs was a district of burghs constituency of the House of Commons

House of Commons of Great Britain

The House of Commons of Great Britain was the lower house of the Parliament of Great Britain between 1707 and 1801. In 1707, as a result of the Acts of Union of that year, it replaced the House of Commons of England and the third estate of the Parliament of Scotland, as one of the most significant...

of the Parliament of Great Britain

Parliament of Great Britain

The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and Parliament of Scotland...

from 1708 to 1800 and of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom

Parliament of the United Kingdom

The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...

from 1801 to 1950. It elected one Member of Parliament

Member of Parliament

A Member of Parliament is a representative of the voters to a :parliament. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, the term applies specifically to members of the lower house, as upper houses often have a different title, such as senate, and thus also have different titles for its members,...

(MP), using the first-past-the-post

First-past-the-post

First-past-the-post voting refers to an election won by the candidate with the most votes. The winning potato candidate does not necessarily receive an absolute majority of all votes cast.-Overview:...

voting system.

The list of parliamentary burghs represented by the constituency changed in 1832 and again in 1918:

1708 to 1832: the Ayrshire
Ayrshire
Ayrshire is a registration county, and former administrative county in south-west Scotland, United Kingdom, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. Its principal towns include Ayr, Kilmarnock and Irvine. The town of Troon on the coast has hosted the British Open Golf Championship twice in the...

burghs of Ayr
Ayr
Ayr is a town and port situated on the Firth of Clyde in south-west Scotland. With a population of around 46,000, Ayr is the largest settlement in Ayrshire, of which it is the county town, and has held royal burgh status since 1205...

and Irvine, the Argyllshire burghs of Campbeltown
Campbeltown
Campbeltown is a town and former royal burgh in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It lies by Campbeltown Loch on the Kintyre peninsula. Originally known as Kinlochkilkerran , it was renamed in the 17th century as Campbell's Town after Archibald Campbell was granted the site in 1667...

and Inverary and the Buteshire burgh of Rothesay
Rothesay, Argyll and Bute
The town of Rothesay is the principal town on the Isle of Bute, in the council area of Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It can be reached by ferry from Wemyss Bay which offers an onward rail link to Glasgow. At the centre of the town is Rothesay Castle, a ruined castle which dates back to the 13th...
1832 to 1918: the Ayrshire burghs of Ayr and Irvine and the Argyllshire burghs of Cambeltown, Inverary and Oban
Oban
Oban Oban Oban ( is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. It has a total resident population of 8,120. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William and during the tourist season the town can be crowded by up to 25,000 people. Oban...
1918 to 1950: the Ayrshire burghs of Ardrossan
Ardrossan
Ardrossan is a town on the North Ayrshire coast in south-western Scotland. The name "Ardrossan" describes its physical position — 'ard' from the Gaelic àird meaning headland, 'ros' a promontory and the diminutive suffix '-an' - headland of the little promontory...

, Ayr, Irvine, Prestwick
Prestwick
Prestwick is a town in South Ayrshire on the south-west coast of Scotland, about south-west of Glasgow. It adjoins the larger town of Ayr, the centre of which is about south...

, Saltcoats
Saltcoats
- References :*McSherry, R. & M. . Old Saltcoats, Stenlake Publishing, Ochiltree. ISBN 1-872074-57-X.*Stansfield, G. . Ayrshire & Renfrewshire's Lost Railways, Stenlake Publishing, Catrine. ISBN 1-84033-077-5.-External links:***...

and Troon
Troon
Troon is a town in South Ayrshire. It is situated on the west coast of Scotland, about eight miles north of Ayr and three miles northwest of Glasgow Prestwick International Airport. Lying across the Firth of Clyde, the Isle of Arran can be seen. Troon is also a port with freight and ferry services...

When the Ayr Burghs constituency was abolished in 1950, the Ayr and Prestwick burghs were merged into the county constituency of Ayr

Ayr (UK Parliament constituency)

Ayr was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1950 to 2005. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first-past-the-post system of election.- History :...

. Ardrossan and Saltcoats were merged into Bute and Northern Ayrshire

Bute and Northern Ayrshire (UK Parliament constituency)

Bute and Northern Ayrshire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1918 to 1983. It elected one Member of Parliament by the first past the post voting system.-History:...

and Irvine and Troon were merged into Central Ayrshire

Central Ayrshire (UK Parliament constituency)

Central Ayrshire is a constituency of the British House of Commons, located in the south-west of Scotland within the North Ayrshire and South Ayrshire council areas...

Member of Parliament

Election		Member	Party
	1708	James Campbell
	1710	Charles Oliphant
	1720	Thomas Kennedy
	1721	Duncan Forbes
	1722	William Steuart William Steuart General Sir William Steuart , was a Scottish soldier, Commander-in-Chief of Queen Anne's Forces in Ireland and benefactor of Hanover Square, London.-Biography:...
	1734	James Stuart
	1741	The Earl of Granard George Forbes, 3rd Earl of Granard George Forbes, 3rd Earl of Granard PC was an Anglo-Irish naval commander and diplomat.-Life:He was the son of Arthur Forbes, 2nd Earl of Granard, by his wife Mary, daughter of Sir George Rawdon, 1st Baronet, of Moira, county Down, was born in Ireland 21 October 1685, and was for a time at the...
	1747	Charles Erskine
	1749	Sir Henry Erskine Sir Henry Erskine, 5th Baronet Sir Henry Erskine, 5th Baronet was a Scottish soldier and politician.He served as Member of Parliament for Ayr Burghs 1749–1754 and for Anstruther Easter Burghs 1754–1765-References:*...
	1754	James Stuart-Mackenzie James Stuart-Mackenzie James Stuart-Mackenzie was a Scottish politician.Born James Stuart, he was a younger son of James Stuart, 2nd Earl of Bute, and his wife Lady Anne, daughter of Archibald Campbell, 1st Duke of Argyll. Prime Minister John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute, was his elder brother...
	1761	Lord Frederick Campbell
	1761	Alexander Wedderburn Alexander Wedderburn, 1st Earl of Rosslyn Alexander Wedderburn, 1st Earl of Rosslyn was Lord Chancellor of Great Britain from 1793 to 1801.-Life:He was the eldest son of Peter Wedderburn , and was born in East Lothian....
	1768	James Archibald Stuart
	1774	Sir George Macartney George Macartney, 1st Earl Macartney George Macartney, 1st Earl Macartney, KB was an Irish-born British statesman, colonial administrator and diplomat. He is often remembered for his observation following Britain's success in the Seven Years War and subsequent territorial expansion at the Treaty of Paris that Britain now controlled...
	1776	Frederick Stuart
	1780	Archibald Edmonstone Sir Archibald Edmonstone, 1st Baronet Sir Archibald Edmonstone, 1st Baronet , also 11th of Duntreath, was a Scottish politician.Born at Dumbarton, Silver Banks, he was the son of Archibald Edmonstone, 10th of Duntreath, and his wife Anne Campbell Sir Archibald Edmonstone, 1st Baronet (10 October 1717 – 20 July 1807), also 11th of...
	1790	Charles Stuart Charles Stuart (general) Colonel Sir Charles Stuart, KB was a British nobleman and soldier. The fourth son of John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute and Mary Wortley Montagu, he was born in Kenwood House, London....
	1794	John Campbell
	1807	John Campbell
	1809	Duncan Campbell
	1818	Thomas Francis Kennedy Thomas Francis Kennedy Thomas Francis Kennedy , Scottish politician, was born near Ayr in 1788. He studied for the bar and became advocate in 1811. Having been elected Member of Parliament for the Ayr Burghs in 1818, he devoted the greater part of his life to the promotion of liberal reforms.In 1820 he married the only...
	1834	Lord Patrick James Herbert Crichton-Stuart
	1852	Edward Henry John Craufurd Edward Henry John Craufurd Edward Henry John Craufurd was a Scottish Radical politician.He was the eldest son of John Craufurd of Auchenames and Kerse in the counties of Renfrewshire and Ayr, Treasurer General of the Ionian Islands, and Sophia Marianne Churchill, daughter of Major General Churchill and great-granddaughter...	Radical Radicals (UK) The Radicals were a parliamentary political grouping in the United Kingdom in the early to mid 19th century, who drew on earlier ideas of radicalism and helped to transform the Whigs into the Liberal Party.-Background:...
	1874	Sir William Montgomery-Cuninghame	Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
	1880	Richard Frederick Fotheringham Campbell Richard Frederick Fotheringham Campbell Richard Frederick Fotheringham Campbell was a British army officer and Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons from 1880 to 1888....	Liberal Liberal Party (UK) The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
	1888 Ayr Burghs by-election, 1888 The Ayr Burghs by-election, 1888 was a parliamentary by-election held for the British House of Commons constituency of Ayr Burghs on 15 June 1888...	John Sinclair John Sinclair (MP) John Sinclair was a British politician. He was elected as a Liberal Member of Parliament for Ayr Burghs in 1888, resigning in 1890 by becoming Steward of the Manor of Northstead.-References:...	Liberal Liberal Party (UK) The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
	1890	James Somervell	Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
	1892 United Kingdom general election, 1892 The 1892 United Kingdom general election was held from 4 July to 26 July 1892. It saw the Conservatives, led by Lord Salisbury, win the greatest number of seats, but not enough for an overall majority as William Ewart Gladstone's Liberals won many more seats than in the 1886 general election...	William Birkmyre	Liberal Liberal Party (UK) The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
	1895 United Kingdom general election, 1895 The United Kingdom general election of 1895 was held from 13 July - 7 August 1895. It was won by the Conservatives led by Lord Salisbury who formed an alliance with the Liberal Unionist Party and had a large majority over the Liberals, led by Lord Rosebery...	Charles Lindsay Orr-Ewing Charles Lindsay Orr-Ewing Charles Lindsay Orr-Ewing was a Scottish Tory politician.The youngest son of Sir Archibald Orr-Ewing and Elizabeth Lindsay Reid, he was educated at Harrow School. After travel in the East, he was commissioned as a Captain in the 3rd Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders...	Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
	1904	Joseph Dobbie Joseph Dobbie Joseph Dobbie was Liberal MP for Ayr Burghs from 1904 to 1906.He won this seat from the Unionists at a by-election in 1904, following the death of the previous MP, Charles Lindsay Orr-Ewing. However he narrowly lost the seat at the 1906 general election.- References :...	Liberal Liberal Party (UK) The Liberal Party was one of the two major political parties of the United Kingdom during the 19th and early 20th centuries. It was a third party of negligible importance throughout the latter half of the 20th Century, before merging with the Social Democratic Party in 1988 to form the present day...
	1906 United Kingdom general election, 1906 -Seats summary:-See also:MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1906The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:**-References:F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...	Sir George Younger George Younger, 1st Viscount Younger of Leckie George Younger, 1st Viscount Younger of Leckie Bt was a British politician.He was educated at Edinburgh Academy. In 1897, he became chairman of George Younger and Son, the family brewing business founded by his great-grandfather, George Younger , of Alloa, Clackmannanshire...	Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
	1922 United Kingdom general election, 1922 The United Kingdom general election of 1922 was held on 15 November 1922. It was the first election held after most of the Irish counties left the United Kingdom to form the Irish Free State, and was won by Andrew Bonar Law's Conservatives, who gained an overall majority over Labour, led by John...	Sir John Baird John Baird, 1st Viscount Stonehaven John Lawrence Baird, 1st Viscount Stonehaven, GCMG, DSO, PC, JP, DL , known as Sir John Baird, Bt, between 1920 and 1925 and as The Lord Stonehaven between 1925 and 1928, was a British Conservative politician, who served as a Member of Parliament, government minister, and was later the eighth...	Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
	1925	Thomas Moore Sir Thomas Moore, 1st Baronet Sir Thomas Cecil Russell Moore, 1st Baronet CBE was a long-serving British Conservative Party politician. He was elected Member of Parliament for Ayr Burghs in a 1925 by-election, and served until his retirement in 1964, when he was succeeded by George Younger. Moore was created a Baronet, of...	Conservative Conservative Party (UK) The Conservative Party, formally the Conservative and Unionist Party, is a centre-right political party in the United Kingdom that adheres to the philosophies of conservatism and British unionism. It is the largest political party in the UK, and is currently the largest single party in the House...
1950 United Kingdom general election, 1950 The 1950 United Kingdom general election was the first general election ever after a full term of a Labour government. Despite polling over one and a half million votes more than the Conservatives, the election, held on 23 February 1950 resulted in Labour receiving a slim majority of just five...		constituency abolished

Sir Thomas was elected, in 1950, as the first MP for the then new constituency of Ayr

Member of Parliament

Elections in the 1940s

Elections in the 1930s

Elections in the 1920s

Elections in the 1910s

Elections in the 1900s

Elections in the 1890s

Elections in the 1880s

Elections in the 1860s

See also