Knaresborough (UK Parliament constituency)
Encyclopedia
Knaresborough was a parliamentary constituency
United Kingdom constituencies
In the United Kingdom , each of the electoral areas or divisions called constituencies elects one or more members to a parliament or assembly.Within the United Kingdom there are now five bodies with members elected by constituencies:...

 which returned two Members of Parliament (MPs) to the House of Commons
British House of Commons
The House of Commons is the lower house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, which also comprises the Sovereign and the House of Lords . Both Commons and Lords meet in the Palace of Westminster. The Commons is a democratically elected body, consisting of 650 members , who are known as Members...

 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...

 until 1868, and then one MP until its abolition in 1885.

Before the Great Reform Act

Knaresborough was a parliamentary borough
Parliamentary borough
Parliamentary boroughs are a type of administrative division, usually covering urban areas, that are entitled to representation in a Parliament...

, first enfranchised by Mary I
Mary I of England
Mary I was queen regnant of England and Ireland from July 1553 until her death.She was the only surviving child born of the ill-fated marriage of Henry VIII and his first wife Catherine of Aragon. Her younger half-brother, Edward VI, succeeded Henry in 1547...

 in 1553. The borough consisted of part of the town of Knaresborough
Knaresborough
Knaresborough is an old and historic market town, spa town and civil parish in the Borough of Harrogate, North Yorkshire, England, located on the River Nidd, four miles east of the centre of Harrogate.-History:...

, a market town in the West Riding of Yorkshire
West Riding of Yorkshire
The West Riding of Yorkshire is one of the three historic subdivisions of Yorkshire, England. From 1889 to 1974 the administrative county, County of York, West Riding , was based closely on the historic boundaries...

. In 1831, the population of the borough was approximately 4,852, and contained 970 houses.

Knaresborough was a burgage
Burgage
Burgage is a medieval land term used in England and Scotland, well established by the 13th century. A burgage was a town rental property , owned by a king or lord. The property usually, and distinctly, consisted of a house on a long and narrow plot of land, with the narrow end facing the street...

 borough, meaning that the right to vote was confined to the proprietors of certain specific properties (or "burgage tenements") in the borough; in Knaresborough there was no requirement for these proprietors to be resident, and normally the majority were not. This meant that the right to vote in Knaresborough could be legitimately bought and sold, and, for most of its history until the Great Reform Act of 1832 reformed the franchise, the majority of the burgages were concentrated in the hands of a single owner who could therefore nominate both MPs without opposition. Nevertheless, contested elections were possible, and in 1830, when there were theoretically about 90 qualified voters, 45 people actually voted. But the landowners had other resources beyond the votes they owned, as the bailiff of the lord of the manor
Lord of the Manor
The Lordship of a Manor is recognised today in England and Wales as a form of property and one of three elements of a manor that may exist separately or be combined and may be held in moieties...

 was also the returning officer, and of the 45 who attempted to vote in 1830 the bailiff rejected the votes of 23.

In the 16th and 17th century, the main landowners in the area were the Slingsby family, who on occasion occupied both seats themselves, though usually they found it more advantageous to allow one of their fellow county magnates to have at least one of the seats. During the latter part of the Elizabethan period, the Duchy of Lancaster
Duchy of Lancaster
The Duchy of Lancaster is one of the two royal duchies in England, the other being the Duchy of Cornwall. It is held in trust for the Sovereign, and is used to provide income for the use of the British monarch...

 also seems to have been influential - the historian Sir John Neale considered that the Duchy probably nominated at least one of the two members in each Parliament from 1584 to 1597 - but the influence of the Slingsbys was consolidated later. By the mid-18th century, ownership had passed to the Dukes of Devonshire
Duke of Devonshire
Duke of Devonshire is a title in the peerage of England held by members of the Cavendish family. This branch of the Cavendish family has been one of the richest and most influential aristocratic families in England since the 16th century, and have been rivalled in political influence perhaps only...

, who retained it until the Reform Act.

After the Great Reform Act

The Reform Act extended Knaresborough's boundaries, bringing in the remainder of the town and coinciding with the boundaries established during the previous decade for policing purposes. This increased the population by nearly a third, to 6,253. Nevertheless, Knaresborough was one of the smaller boroughs to retain both its seats, and the registered electorate for the first reformed election was only 278. In subsequent years this fell further, though by the 1860s it had recovered to reach around 270 once more, and inevitably Knaresborough's representation was reduced to one MP under the Representation of the People Act 1867. The extension of the franchise by the same Act trebled the electorate.

In 1880, after a disputed election with suspicion of corrupt practices, the result was declared void and the constituency's right to representation suspended while a Royal Commission
Royal Commission
In Commonwealth realms and other monarchies a Royal Commission is a major ad-hoc formal public inquiry into a defined issue. They have been held in various countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, and Saudi Arabia...

 investigated; however, unlike the investigations in some other constituencies at around the same period, nothing too damning was uncovered, and a by-election to fill the vacancies was held in 1881. It proved, nevertheless, to be Knaresborough's last Parliament, for its electorate was still too low and the borough was abolished by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885
Redistribution of Seats Act 1885
The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was a piece of electoral reform legislation that redistributed the seats in the House of Commons, introducing the concept of equally populated constituencies, in an attempt to equalise representation across...

. Its electors were transferred to the new Ripon
Ripon (UK Parliament constituency)
Ripon was a constituency sending members to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until 1983, centred on the city of Ripon in North Yorkshire.-History:...

 division of the West Riding, a county constituency.

1553-1640

ParliamentFirst memberSecond member
1553 (Oct) Reginald Beseley Ralph Scrope
1554 (Apr) Edward Napper John Long
1554 (Nov) Sir Thomas Chaloner Ralph Scrope
1555 Henry Fisher ?Sir Thomas Chaloner or George Eden
1558 Henry Darcy Thomas Colshill
1558/9 Laurence Nqwell William Byrnand
1562/3 William Strickland
William Strickland (navigator)
William Strickland was an English landowner who sailed on early voyages of exploration to the Americas and is credited with introducing the turkey into England...

, sat for Scarborough
repl. by
Christopher Tamworth
Sir Henry Gate, sat for Scarborough
repl. by
Robert Bowes
1571 Sir George Bowes John Cade
1572 (Apr) Francis Slingsby Richard Banks
1584 Edmund Poley Francis Slingsby
1586 Francis Palmes William Davison
1588/9 Thomas Preston Francis Harvey
Francis Harvey (MP for Colchester)
Francis Harvey was an English politician.He was born in 1534, the second son of John Harvey of Ickworth, Suffolk by Elizabeth, daughter of Henry Pope of Mildenhall, Suffolk....

 
1593 Samuel Foxe Simon Willis 
1597 (Sep) Hugh Beeston
Hugh Beeston
Sir Hugh Beeston was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons at various times between 1589 and 1614.Beeston was the second son of Sir George Beeston of Beeston and his first wife. Sir George baptised both his two eldest sons Hugh which leads to confusion. Hugh Beeston was awarded BA...

William Slingsby
William Slingsby
Sir William Slingsby , was an English soldier, who is noted as the discoverer of the first spa water well in Harrogate, North Yorkshire....

 
1601 (Oct) Henry Slingsby William Slingsby
William Slingsby
Sir William Slingsby , was an English soldier, who is noted as the discoverer of the first spa water well in Harrogate, North Yorkshire....

 
1604-1611 Sir Henry Slingsby Sir William Slingsby
William Slingsby
Sir William Slingsby , was an English soldier, who is noted as the discoverer of the first spa water well in Harrogate, North Yorkshire....

1614 Sir Henry Slingsby William Beecher
1620-1622 Sir Henry Slingsby Sir Richard Hutton
1624 Sir Henry Slingsby
1625 Sir Henry Slingsby
Sir Henry Slingsby, 1st Baronet
Sir Henry Slingsby was a Yorkshire landowner and Member of Parliament who was executed for his adherence to the Royalist cause during the English Civil War....

1626 Sir Richard Hutton
Sir Richard Hutton, the younger
Sir Richard Hutton, the younger was a Yorkshire landowner and Member of Parliament for Knaresborough who lost his life in the English Civil War....

 
Henry Benson
Henry Benson (MP)
Henry Benson was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1626 and 1641.Benson was Deputy Steward of Knaresborough. In 1626 he was elected Member of Parliament for Knaresborough. He was re-elected in 1628 and sat until 1629 when King Charles decided to rule without...

1628 Sir Richard Hutton
Sir Richard Hutton, the younger
Sir Richard Hutton, the younger was a Yorkshire landowner and Member of Parliament for Knaresborough who lost his life in the English Civil War....

 
Henry Benson
Henry Benson (MP)
Henry Benson was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1626 and 1641.Benson was Deputy Steward of Knaresborough. In 1626 he was elected Member of Parliament for Knaresborough. He was re-elected in 1628 and sat until 1629 when King Charles decided to rule without...

1629–1640 No Parliaments convened

1640-1868

Year|2nd Member2nd Party
April 1640
Short Parliament
The Short Parliament was a Parliament of England that sat from 13 April to 5 May 1640 during the reign of King Charles I of England, so called because it lasted only three weeks....

Sir Henry Slingsby
Sir Henry Slingsby, 1st Baronet
Sir Henry Slingsby was a Yorkshire landowner and Member of Parliament who was executed for his adherence to the Royalist cause during the English Civil War....

 
Royalist ?
November 1640
Long Parliament
The Long Parliament was made on 3 November 1640, following the Bishops' Wars. It received its name from the fact that through an Act of Parliament, it could only be dissolved with the agreement of the members, and those members did not agree to its dissolution until after the English Civil War and...

Henry Benson
Henry Benson (MP)
Henry Benson was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1626 and 1641.Benson was Deputy Steward of Knaresborough. In 1626 he was elected Member of Parliament for Knaresborough. He was re-elected in 1628 and sat until 1629 when King Charles decided to rule without...

 
Royalist
1641 William Deerlove 
March 1642 Sir William Constable, Bt.  Parliamentarian
September 1642 Slingsby disabled from sitting - seat vacant
1645 Thomas Stockdale
Thomas Stockdale
Thomas Stockdale of Bilton Park , supported the Parliamentary cause during the English Civil War, and sat as a member for Knaresborough in the Long Parliament from 1645...

1653 Knaresborough was unrepresented in the Barebones Parliament
Barebones Parliament
Barebone's Parliament, also known as the Little Parliament, the Nominated Assembly and the Parliament of Saints, came into being on 4 July 1653, and was the last attempt of the English Commonwealth to find a stable political form before the installation of Oliver Cromwell as Lord Protector...

 and the First
First Protectorate Parliament
The First Protectorate Parliament was summoned by the Lord Protector Oliver Cromwell under the terms of the Instrument of Government. It sat for one term from 3 September 1654 until 22 January 1655 with William Lenthall as the Speaker of the House....

 and Second
Second Protectorate Parliament
The Second Protectorate Parliament in England sat for two sessions from 17 September 1656 until 4 February 1658, with Thomas Widdrington as the Speaker of the House of Commons...

 Parliaments of the Protectorate
January 1659
Third Protectorate Parliament
The Third Protectorate Parliament sat for one session, from 27 January 1659 until 22 April 1659, with Chaloner Chute and Thomas Bampfylde as the Speakers of the House of Commons...

Slingsby Bethell  Robert Walters 
May 1659
Rump Parliament
The Rump Parliament is the name of the English Parliament after Colonel Pride purged the Long Parliament on 6 December 1648 of those members hostile to the Grandees' intention to try King Charles I for high treason....

Not represented in the restored Rump
Rump Parliament
The Rump Parliament is the name of the English Parliament after Colonel Pride purged the Long Parliament on 6 December 1648 of those members hostile to the Grandees' intention to try King Charles I for high treason....

 (Constable had died in the interim)
April 1660 William Stockdale
William Stockdale
William Stockdale was an English politician who sat in the House of Commons in 1660.Stockdale was the son of Thomas Stockdale of Bilton Park, Yorkshire and was baptised at Knaresborough on 3 January 1635...

Henry Bethell
1661 Sir John Talbot
John Talbot (died 1714)
Sir John Talbot was an English soldier and politician who sat in the House of Commons variously between 1660 and 1687. He was a second in a duel between George Villiers, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Francis Talbot, 11th Earl of Shrewsbury.Talbot was son of Sherington Talbot...

1679 Sir Thomas Slingsby, Bt
Sir Thomas Slingsby, 2nd Baronet
Sir Thomas Slingsby, 2nd Baronet , of Scriven in Yorkshire, was an English landowner and Member of Parliament.He was the second but oldest surviving son of Sir Henry Slingsby, executed in 1658 for his adherence to the Royalist cause during the English Civil War...

1685 Henry Slingsby
1689 Thomas Fawkes
1693 Christopher Stockdale
Christopher Stockdale
Christopher James Stockdale is a former English cricketer. Stockdale was a right-handed batsman who bowled right-arm medium pace. He was born in Carlisle, Cumberland and grew up in Penrith, Cumberland....

1695 Robert Byerley
Mar 1714 Francis Fawkes
May 1714 Henry Slingsby
1715 Henry Coote
Henry Coote, 5th Earl of Mountrath
Henry Coote, 5th Earl of Mountrath , styled The Honourable Henry Coote until 1715, was an Irish peer who sat as a Member of Parliament in the British House of Commons....

 
Whig Robert Hitch
1720 Hon Richard Arundell
1722 Sir Henry Slingsby, Bt
1758 Hon Robert Walsingham
Robert Walsingham
Robert Walsingham, also Wallsingham, was a famous 17th century English pirate who served with the Barbary States. He was the captain of a Turkish man-of-war, in which he finally sailed to Ireland to submit himself to the authorities...

1761 Lord John Cavendish
Lord John Cavendish
Lord John Cavendish PC was a British politician.-Background:Cavendish was the youngest son of William Cavendish, 3rd Duke of Devonshire, and his wife Catherine, daughter of John Hoskins. Prime Minister William Cavendish, 4th Duke of Devonshire, Lord George Cavendish and Field Marshal Lord...

Rockingham Whig
Rockingham Whigs
The Rockingham Whigs or Rockinghamite Whigs in 18th century British politics were a faction of the Whigs led by Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, when he was the opposition leader in the House of Lords during the government of Lord North from 1770 to 1782 and during the two...

1763 Sir Anthony Abdy, Bt
Sir Anthony Abdy, 5th Baronet
Sir Anthony Thomas Abdy, 5th Baronet KC was a British barrister and Whig politician.-Background and education:He was the eldest son of Sir William Abdy, 4th Baronet and his wife Mary Stotherd, daughter of Philip Stotherd. Abdy was educated at Felsted School and went then to St John's College,...

Rockingham Whig
Rockingham Whigs
The Rockingham Whigs or Rockinghamite Whigs in 18th century British politics were a faction of the Whigs led by Charles Watson-Wentworth, 2nd Marquess of Rockingham, when he was the opposition leader in the House of Lords during the government of Lord North from 1770 to 1782 and during the two...

1768 Captain The Hon Robert Walsingham
Robert Walsingham
Robert Walsingham, also Wallsingham, was a famous 17th century English pirate who served with the Barbary States. He was the captain of a Turkish man-of-war, in which he finally sailed to Ireland to submit himself to the authorities...

, RN
1775 Lord George Cavendish
1780 Viscount Duncannon
Frederick Ponsonby, 3rd Earl of Bessborough
Frederick Ponsonby, 3rd Earl of Bessborough was a British peer.Ponsonby was the eldest son of the 2nd Earl of Bessborough and succeeded to his father's titles in 1793...

1781 James Hare
James Hare
James Hare may refer to:* James Butler Hare , U.S. Congressman from South Carolina* James M. Hare , Michigan Secretary of State* Jimmy Hare , photographer for Colliers...

Whig
1793 Lord John Townshend
Lord John Townshend
Lord John Townshend PC , styled The Honourable John Townshend until 1787, was a British Whig politician.-Background:...

Whig
1804 William Cavendish (politician)
William Cavendish
Sir William Cavendish was an English courtier.-Life:He was the younger son of Thomas Cavendish , who was a senior financial official, the "clerk of the pipe", in the Court of Exchequer, and his wife, Alice Smith of Padbrook Hall...

Whig
1805 Viscount Duncannon
John Ponsonby, 4th Earl of Bessborough
John William Ponsonby, 4th Earl of Bessborough PC , known as Viscount Duncannon from 1793 to 1844, was a British Whig politician...

Whig
1806 Viscount Ossulston
Charles Bennet, 5th Earl of Tankerville
Charles Augustus Bennet, 5th Earl of Tankerville PC, DL , styled Lord Ossulston until 1822, was a British politician...

Whig
1818 George Tierney
George Tierney
George Tierney PC was an English Whig politician.-Background and education:Born in Gibraltar, Tierney was the son of Thomas Tierney, a wealthy Irish merchant of London, who was living in Gibraltar as prize agent. He was sent to Eton and Peterhouse, Cambridge, where he took the degree of Law in 1784...

Whig Sir James Mackintosh
James Mackintosh
Sir James Mackintosh was a Scottish jurist, politician and historian. His studies and sympathies embraced many interests. He was trained as a doctor and barrister, and worked also as a journalist, judge, administrator, professor, philosopher and politician.-Early life:Mackintosh was born at...

Whig
Feb 1830 Henry Brougham
Henry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux
Henry Peter Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux was a British statesman who became Lord Chancellor of Great Britain.As a young lawyer in Scotland Brougham helped to found the Edinburgh Review in 1802 and contributed many articles to it. He went to London, and was called to the English bar in...

 
Whig
Dec 1830 The Lord Waterpark
Henry Cavendish, 3rd Baron Waterpark
Henry Manners Cavendish, 3rd Baron Waterpark , was a British Whig politician.Waterpark was the son of Richard Cavendish, 2nd Baron Waterpark, and his wife Juliana . He succeeded his father in the barony in 1830 but as this was an Irish peerage it did not entitle him to an automatic seat in the...

Whig
Jun 1832 William Ponsonby
William Ponsonby, 1st Baron de Mauley
William Francis Spencer Ponsonby, 1st Baron de Mauley was an English Whig and Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1826 and 1837...

Whig
Dec 1832 John Richards Benjamin Rotch Whig
1835 Andrew Lawson 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...

1837 Henry Rich Whig Hon Charles Langdale
Charles Langdale
- External references :...

Whig
1841 Andrew Lawson 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...

William Busfeild Ferrand
William Ferrand
- External links :...

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...

1847 William Saunders Sebright Lascelles
William Saunders Sebright Lascelles
William Saunders Sebright Lascelles PC was a British Whig politician. He served as Comptroller of the Household from 1847 to 1851.-Background:...

Whig Joshua Proctor Brown Westhead
Joshua Proctor Brown Westhead
Joshua Proctor Brown Westhead was a British politician. He was elected as a Liberal Member of Parliament for City of York in 1868, resigning in 1871 by becoming Steward of the Manor of Northstead.-References:...

Whig
1851 Thomas Collins
Thomas Collins (UK politician)
Thomas Collins was a Conservative Party politician in England.He was elected as Member of Parliament for Knaresborough at a by-election in 1851 following the death of William Lascelles, but was defeated at the 1852 general election...

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...

1852 Basil Thomas Woodd 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...

John Dent Dent Whig
1857 Thomas Collins
Thomas Collins (UK politician)
Thomas Collins was a Conservative Party politician in England.He was elected as Member of Parliament for Knaresborough at a by-election in 1851 following the death of William Lascelles, but was defeated at the 1852 general election...

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...

1865 Isaac Holden 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...


1868-1885

ElectionMemberParty
1868
United Kingdom general election, 1868
The 1868 United Kingdom general election was the first after passage of the Reform Act 1867, which enfranchised many male householders, thus greatly increasing the number of men who could vote in elections in the United Kingdom...

Alfred Illingworth
Alfred Illingworth
Alfred Illingworth , was an English worsted spinner and Liberal politician who sat in the House of Commons in two periods between 1868 and 1895....

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...

1874
United Kingdom general election, 1874
-Seats summary:-References:* F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987* British Electoral Facts 1832-1999, compiled and edited by Colin Rallings and Michael Thrasher *...

Basil Thomas Woodd 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
United Kingdom general election, 1880
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987* British Electoral Facts 1832-1999, compiled and edited by Colin Rallings and Michael Thrasher *...

Sir Henry Meysey Meysey-Thompson, Bt. 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...

1881 Thomas Collins
Thomas Collins (UK politician)
Thomas Collins was a Conservative Party politician in England.He was elected as Member of Parliament for Knaresborough at a by-election in 1851 following the death of William Lascelles, but was defeated at the 1852 general election...

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...

1884 Robert Gunter 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...

1885
Redistribution of Seats Act 1885
The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was a piece of electoral reform legislation that redistributed the seats in the House of Commons, introducing the concept of equally populated constituencies, in an attempt to equalise representation across...

constituency abolished
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