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North Wiltshire (UK Parliament constituency)
Encyclopedia
North Wiltshire is a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
. Until 1983, it was known as Chippenham
.
which is represented by North Swindon and South Swindon.
North Wiltshire constituency was formed for the 1983 general election
, with boundaries identical to the former Chippenham constituency (1885–1983). The constituency sits between the Cotswolds
and Swindon
. Its main towns are Calne
, Wootton Bassett
, Cricklade
and Malmesbury
, and it also contains a number of villages, both small and large, spread over a large area of farming countryside, including the well-known picturesque village of Box
.
From the 2010 general election the North Wiltshire constituency changed radically as a result of boundary change recommendations
. The name was retained by the northernmost part of the current constituency, focused on the towns of Malmesbury
, Cricklade
, Wootton Bassett
and Calne
(the furthest south) while the largest town of Chippenham
was given its own seat (which was previously abolished in 1983) encompassing the nearby market towns of Bradford on Avon
and Melksham
. The sitting North Wiltshire member James Gray
successfully stood for the new North Wiltshire seat.
While North Wiltshire has a long history of returning Conservative candidates, its district council (created in 1973 and abolished in 2009) was closely contested between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats.
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 1983, it was known as Chippenham
Chippenham (UK Parliament constituency)
Chippenham is a parliamentary constituency, abolished in 1983 but recreated in 2010, and represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It elects one Member of Parliament by the first past the post system of election...
.
Boundaries
As the name suggests, the constituency covers most of north Wiltshire. However it excludes the town of SwindonSwindon
Swindon is a large town within the borough of Swindon and ceremonial county of Wiltshire, in South West England. It is midway between Bristol, west and Reading, east. London is east...
which is represented by North Swindon and South Swindon.
North Wiltshire constituency was formed for the 1983 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1983
The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945...
, with boundaries identical to the former Chippenham constituency (1885–1983). The constituency sits between the Cotswolds
Cotswolds
The Cotswolds are a range of hills in west-central England, sometimes called the Heart of England, an area across and long. The area has been designated as the Cotswold Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty...
and Swindon
Swindon
Swindon is a large town within the borough of Swindon and ceremonial county of Wiltshire, in South West England. It is midway between Bristol, west and Reading, east. London is east...
. Its main towns are Calne
Calne
Calne is a town in Wiltshire, southwestern England. It is situated at the northwestern extremity of the North Wessex Downs hill range, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty....
, Wootton Bassett
Wootton Bassett
Royal Wootton Bassett , informally known as Wootton Bassett, is a small market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, with a population of 11,043 in 2001...
, Cricklade
Cricklade
Cricklade is a town and civil parish on the River Thames in north Wiltshire in England, midway between Swindon and Cirencester.On 25 September 2011 Cricklade was awarded The Royal Horticultural Society's 'Champion of Champions' award in the Britain in Bloom competition.Cricklade is twinned with...
and Malmesbury
Malmesbury
Malmesbury is a market town and civil parish located in the southern Cotswolds in the county of Wiltshire, England. Historically Malmesbury was a centre for learning and home to Malmesbury Abbey...
, and it also contains a number of villages, both small and large, spread over a large area of farming countryside, including the well-known picturesque village of Box
Box, Wiltshire
Box is a village located in Wiltshire, England, about east of Bath and west of Chippenham. It is quite a large parish with several settlements, apart from the village of Box, within its boundaries....
.
From the 2010 general election the North Wiltshire constituency changed radically as a result of boundary change recommendations
Boundary change recommendations for the next UK general election
Between 2000 and 2007, the Boundary Commissions conducted their periodic reviews of constituency boundaries in England, Wales and Northern Ireland for the Parliament of the United Kingdom...
. The name was retained by the northernmost part of the current constituency, focused on the towns of Malmesbury
Malmesbury
Malmesbury is a market town and civil parish located in the southern Cotswolds in the county of Wiltshire, England. Historically Malmesbury was a centre for learning and home to Malmesbury Abbey...
, Cricklade
Cricklade
Cricklade is a town and civil parish on the River Thames in north Wiltshire in England, midway between Swindon and Cirencester.On 25 September 2011 Cricklade was awarded The Royal Horticultural Society's 'Champion of Champions' award in the Britain in Bloom competition.Cricklade is twinned with...
, Wootton Bassett
Wootton Bassett
Royal Wootton Bassett , informally known as Wootton Bassett, is a small market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, with a population of 11,043 in 2001...
and Calne
Calne
Calne is a town in Wiltshire, southwestern England. It is situated at the northwestern extremity of the North Wessex Downs hill range, a designated Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty....
(the furthest south) while the largest town of Chippenham
Chippenham, Wiltshire
Chippenham is a market town in Wiltshire, England, located east of Bath and west of London. In the 2001 census the population of the town was recorded as 28,065....
was given its own seat (which was previously abolished in 1983) encompassing the nearby market towns of Bradford on Avon
Bradford on Avon
Bradford on Avon is a town in west Wiltshire, England with a population of about 9,326. The town's canal, historic buildings, shops, pubs and restaurants make it popular with tourists....
and Melksham
Melksham
Melksham is a medium-sized English town, lying on the River Avon. It lies in the county of Wiltshire.It is situated southeast of the city of Bath, south of Chippenham, west of Devizes and north of Warminster on the A350 national route. The 2001 UK census cited Melksham as having 20,000...
. The sitting North Wiltshire member James Gray
James Gray (UK politician)
James Whiteside Gray is a British politician. He is the Conservative Member of Parliament for North Wiltshire.-Early life:Born in Scotland, Gray is the son of the late Rev...
successfully stood for the new North Wiltshire seat.
While North Wiltshire has a long history of returning Conservative candidates, its district council (created in 1973 and abolished in 2009) was closely contested between the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats.
MPs 1832–1885
| Election | 2nd Member | 2nd Party | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1832 United Kingdom general election, 1832 -Seats summary:-Parties and leaders at the general election:The Earl Grey had been Prime Minister since 22 November 1830. His was the first predominantly Whig administration since the Ministry of all the Talents in 1806-1807.... |
Paul Methuen Paul Methuen, 1st Baron Methuen Paul Methuen, 1st Baron Methuen , was a British Whig politician.Methuen was the son of Paul Cobb Methuen of Corsham, Wiltshire, and his wife Matilda . He sat as Member of Parliament for Wiltshire from 1812 to 1819 and for Wiltshire North from 1833 to 1837... |
Sir John Astley, Bt Sir John Astley, 1st Baronet Sir John Dugdale Astley, 1st Baronet was an English politician. He was Member of Parliament for Wiltshire from 1820 to 1832, and for North Wiltshire from 1832 to 1835.... |
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| 1835 United Kingdom general election, 1835 The 1835 United Kingdom general election was called when Parliament was dissolved on 29 December 1834. Polling took place between 6 January and 6 February 1835, and the results saw Robert Peel's Conservatives make large gains from their low of the 1832 election, but the Whigs maintained a large... |
Walter Long | |||||
| 1837 United Kingdom general election, 1837 The 1837 United Kingdom general election saw Robert Peel's Conservatives close further on the position of the Whigs, who won their fourth election of the decade.... |
Sir Francis Burdett, Bt Sir Francis Burdett, 5th Baronet Sir Francis Burdett, 5th Baronet was an English reformist politician, the son of Francis Burdett and his wife Eleanor, daughter of William Jones of Ramsbury manor, Wiltshire, and grandson of Sir Robert Burdett, Bart... |
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| Feb 1844 | Thomas Sotheron-Estcourt | 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... |
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| Mar. 1865 | Lord Charles Bruce | |||||
| 1865 United Kingdom general election, 1865 The 1865 United Kingdom general election saw the Liberals, led by Lord Palmerston, increase their large majority over the Earl of Derby's Conservatives to more than 80. The Whig Party changed its name to the Liberal Party between the previous election and this one.Palmerston died later in the same... |
Richard Penruddocke Long Richard Penruddocke Long Richard Penruddocke Long JP, DL was an English landowner and Conservative Party politician. He was a founding member of the amateur cricket club I Zingari... |
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| 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... |
Sir George Jenkinson, Bt Sir George Jenkinson, 11th Baronet Sir George Samuel Jenkinson, 11th Baronet , was a British Conservative politician.-Background:Jenkinson was the son of the Right Reverend John Jenkinson, Bishop of St David's, and Frances Augusta, daughter of Augustus Pechell. Prime Minister Robert Jenkinson, 2nd Earl of Liverpool, was his first... |
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| 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 *... |
George Sotheron-Estcourt George Sotheron-Estcourt, 1st Baron Estcourt George Thomas John Sotheron-Estcourt, 1st Baron Estcourt , known as George Bucknall-Estcourt until 1876 and as George Sotheron-Estcourt from 1876 to 1903, was a British Conservative Party politician.... |
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| 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 *... |
Walter Long | |||||
| 1885 United Kingdom general election, 1885 -Seats summary:-See also:*List of MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1885*Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885–1918*Representation of the People Act 1884*Redistribution of Seats Act 1885-References:... |
Redistribution of Seats Act 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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MPs since 1983
| Election | Member | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1983 United Kingdom general election, 1983 The 1983 United Kingdom general election was held on 9 June 1983. It gave the Conservative Party under Margaret Thatcher the most decisive election victory since that of Labour in 1945... |
Richard Needham Richard Needham Richard Francis Needham, 6th Earl of Kilmorey, Kt, PC usually known as Sir Richard Needham is a former Conservative Party politician in the United Kingdom... |
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... |
|
| 1997 United Kingdom general election, 1997 The United Kingdom general election, 1997 was held on 1 May 1997, more than five years after the previous election on 9 April 1992, to elect 659 members to the British House of Commons. The Labour Party ended its 18 years in opposition under the leadership of Tony Blair, and won the general... |
James Gray | 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... |
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