Thomas Bramsdon
Encyclopedia
Sir Thomas Arthur Bramsdon (27 February 1857 – 29 September 1935) was a British solicitor from Portsmouth
and a Liberal Party
politician who was elected for four non-consecutive terms as a Member of Parliament
(MP) for Portsmouth constituencies.
district of Portsmouth
, the son of John and Emma Bramsdon. In the 1861 Census
his father was described as a retail brewer living at 40 Hertford Street, Portsea and Thomas is listed as a four-year-old Scholar.
In the 1871 Census
Bramsdon is living with his widowed mother at 350 Commercial Road, Portsea and is described as a 14-year-old Soliciters clerk.
Bramsdon was educated at Esplanade House School, in Portsmouth, and admitted as a solicitor in 1878, practising in the local firm of Bramsdon and Childs. He later became a Justice of the Peace
and Coroner for Portsmouth, and was at one time President of Coroners' Society for England and
Wales. He also served as Chairman of the Governors of the Royal Portsmouth, Portsea, and Gosport Hospital, as a Governor of Portsmouth Grammar School, and for six years was Chairman of the Portsmouth School Board.
In 1880 he married Mary Anna Adelaide (née Reid), the only daughter of Captain Charles Auguste Reid of the 20th Bengal Infantry.
for the for Borough of Portsmouth
following the resignation of the Liberal MP Walter Clough
. However, he lost his seat five months later in a very closely fought contest at the general election in October 1900
. Two Liberal candidates and two Conservative
s had contested the two seats, with the Conservatives winning both seats; but although Bramsdon won the lowest number of votes, his 24.2% share was only fractionally below that required to win a seat.
At the 1906 general election
, Bramsdon and Sir John Baker
retook both seats for the Liberals, but and Bramsdon was knight
ed in July 1909. He and his fellow Liberal candidate were defeated again in January 1910, and Bramsdon did not stand in the December 1910 election.
During the First World War, Bramsdon was out of Parliament but accepted several war-related public appointments. He was Vice-Chairman of Portsmouth District Recruiting Committee from 1914 to 1918, was appointed as National Service Commissioner for Portsmouth and East Hampshire in 1917.
However, at the post-World War I
general election in December 1918
, the two-seat Portsmouth constituency was replaced by three single-member divisions, and Bramsdon stood in Portsmouth Central
. He faced both a Labour Party
and a Coalition Conservative opponent, but although the "coalition coupon
" issued to supporters of the Conservative-dominated (but Liberal-led) Coalition Government was enough to secure victory in many seats, Bramsdon won Portsmouth Central with a large majority and over 50% of the votes.
At the 1922 general election
, Portsmouth Central saw a closely fought 4-way contest, with Labour, Conservative, Liberal and National Liberal
candidates all winning over 20% of the votes. The Conservative Frank Privett
won with a majority of only 7 votes over the National Liberal, but Bramsdon's third-place was only 2.0% of the votes behind the winner.
The following year, at the general election in December 1923
, the rift in the Liberal Party had been healed, and Bramsdon regained the seat. That was his last term in Parliament
; he did not contest the 1924 general election
.
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
and a Liberal Party
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...
politician who was elected for four non-consecutive terms as a 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) for Portsmouth constituencies.
Early life
Bramsdon was born on the 27 February 1871 in the PortseaPortsea
Portsea is an area of the English city of Portsmouth, located on Portsea Island, within the ceremonial county of Hampshire.The area was originally known as the Common and lay between the town of Portsmouth and the nearby Dockyard. The Common started to be developed at the end of the seventeenth...
district of Portsmouth
Portsmouth
Portsmouth is the second largest city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire on the south coast of England. Portsmouth is notable for being the United Kingdom's only island city; it is located mainly on Portsea Island...
, the son of John and Emma Bramsdon. In the 1861 Census
Census in the United Kingdom
Coincident full censuses have taken place in the different jurisdictions of the United Kingdom every ten years since 1801, with the exceptions of 1941 and in both Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State in 1921; simultaneous censuses were taken in the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, with...
his father was described as a retail brewer living at 40 Hertford Street, Portsea and Thomas is listed as a four-year-old Scholar.
In the 1871 Census
Census in the United Kingdom
Coincident full censuses have taken place in the different jurisdictions of the United Kingdom every ten years since 1801, with the exceptions of 1941 and in both Northern Ireland and the Irish Free State in 1921; simultaneous censuses were taken in the Channel Islands and the Isle of Man, with...
Bramsdon is living with his widowed mother at 350 Commercial Road, Portsea and is described as a 14-year-old Soliciters clerk.
Bramsdon was educated at Esplanade House School, in Portsmouth, and admitted as a solicitor in 1878, practising in the local firm of Bramsdon and Childs. He later became a Justice of the Peace
Justice of the Peace
A justice of the peace is a puisne judicial officer elected or appointed by means of a commission to keep the peace. Depending on the jurisdiction, they might dispense summary justice or merely deal with local administrative applications in common law jurisdictions...
and Coroner for Portsmouth, and was at one time President of Coroners' Society for England and
Wales. He also served as Chairman of the Governors of the Royal Portsmouth, Portsea, and Gosport Hospital, as a Governor of Portsmouth Grammar School, and for six years was Chairman of the Portsmouth School Board.
In 1880 he married Mary Anna Adelaide (née Reid), the only daughter of Captain Charles Auguste Reid of the 20th Bengal Infantry.
Political career
He was first elected to the House of Commons at a by-election in May 1900Portsmouth by-election, 1900
The Portsmouth by-election, 1900 was a parliamentary by-election held on 3 May 1900 for one of the two seats in the British House of Commons constituency of Portsmouth in Hampshire....
for the for Borough of Portsmouth
Portsmouth (UK Parliament constituency)
Portsmouth was a borough constituency based upon the borough of Portsmouth in Hampshire. It returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the bloc vote system.- History :...
following the resignation of the Liberal MP Walter Clough
Walter Clough
Walter Owen Clough was a British Liberal Party politician.Clough was born in Huddersfield Yorkshire on 15 September 1846.He was elected at the 1892 general election as a Member of Parliament for Portsmouth...
. However, he lost his seat five months later in a very closely fought contest at the general election in October 1900
United Kingdom general election, 1900
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1900*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...
. Two Liberal candidates and two 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...
s had contested the two seats, with the Conservatives winning both seats; but although Bramsdon won the lowest number of votes, his 24.2% share was only fractionally below that required to win a seat.
At the 1906 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1906
-Seats summary:-See also:*MPs elected in the United Kingdom general election, 1906*The Parliamentary Franchise in the United Kingdom 1885-1918-External links:***-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987**...
, Bramsdon and Sir John Baker
John Baker (Portsmouth politician)
Sir John Baker was a Liberal Party politician in the United Kingdom.He was elected at the 1892 general election as one of the two Members of Parliament for Portsmouth, and held the seat until his defeat at the 1900 general election, when both Portsmouth seats were won by the Conservative Party.He...
retook both seats for the Liberals, but and Bramsdon was knight
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
ed in July 1909. He and his fellow Liberal candidate were defeated again in January 1910, and Bramsdon did not stand in the December 1910 election.
During the First World War, Bramsdon was out of Parliament but accepted several war-related public appointments. He was Vice-Chairman of Portsmouth District Recruiting Committee from 1914 to 1918, was appointed as National Service Commissioner for Portsmouth and East Hampshire in 1917.
However, at the post-World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
general election in December 1918
United Kingdom general election, 1918
The United Kingdom general election of 1918 was the first to be held after the Representation of the People Act 1918, which meant it was the first United Kingdom general election in which nearly all adult men and some women could vote. Polling was held on 14 December 1918, although the count did...
, the two-seat Portsmouth constituency was replaced by three single-member divisions, and Bramsdon stood in Portsmouth Central
Portsmouth Central (UK Parliament constituency)
Portsmouth Central was a borough constituency in Portsmouth. It returned one Member of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first past the post system.- History :...
. He faced both a Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
and a Coalition Conservative opponent, but although the "coalition coupon
Coalition Coupon
The ‘Coalition Coupon’, often referred to as ‘the coupon’, refers to the letter sent to parliamentary candidates at the United Kingdom general election, 1918 endorsing them as official representatives of the Coalition Government. The 1918 election took place in the heady atmosphere of victory in...
" issued to supporters of the Conservative-dominated (but Liberal-led) Coalition Government was enough to secure victory in many seats, Bramsdon won Portsmouth Central with a large majority and over 50% of the votes.
At the 1922 general election
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...
, Portsmouth Central saw a closely fought 4-way contest, with Labour, Conservative, Liberal and National Liberal
National Liberal Party (UK, 1922)
The National Liberal Party was a liberal political party in the United Kingdom from 1922 to 1923. It was led by David Lloyd George and was, at the time, separate to the original Liberal Party.-History:...
candidates all winning over 20% of the votes. The Conservative Frank Privett
Frank Privett
Frank John Privett was a British Conservative Party politician who served briefly as a Member of Parliament in the early 1920s....
won with a majority of only 7 votes over the National Liberal, but Bramsdon's third-place was only 2.0% of the votes behind the winner.
The following year, at the general election in December 1923
United Kingdom general election, 1923
-Seats summary:-References:*F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987*-External links:***...
, the rift in the Liberal Party had been healed, and Bramsdon regained the seat. That was his last term in Parliament
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...
; he did not contest the 1924 general election
United Kingdom general election, 1924
- Seats summary :- References :* F. W. S. Craig, British Electoral Facts: 1832-1987* - External links :* * *...
.