Fife (UK Parliament constituency)

Fife
Former County constituency
for the House of Commons
Major settlements Fife
1708–1885
Number of members One
Replaced by East Fife
West Fife
Created from Fife

Fife was a county constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1708 until 1885, when it was divided into East Fife and West Fife.

It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) using the first-past-the-post voting system.

Boundaries

The constituency covered the county of Fife.

Members of Parliament

ElectionMemberPartyNotes
1708Patrick Moncreiff
1709Sir Robert Anstruther
1710Sir Alexander Erskine
1715Sir John Anstruther, 1st Baronet
1741David Scott
1747James Oswald
1754James St Clair
1763James Wemyss
1768John Scott
1776James Townsend Oswald
1779Robert Skene
1780John Henderson5th Baronet from 1781
1780Robert Skene
1787William Wemyss
1796Sir William Erskine, BtBritish Army officer, died insane
1806Robert Ferguson
1807William Wemyss
1820James Erskine Wemyss Whig[1]
1831James LindsayTory[1]
1832James Erskine Wemyss Whig[1]
1847John Fergus Whig[2][1]
1859James Hay Erskine Wemyss Liberal
1864Sir Robert Anstruther, 5th Baronet Liberal
1880Robert Preston Bruce Liberal

Election results

Elections in the 1850s

General Election 1852: Fife[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Whig John Fergus Unopposed
Registered electors 3,211
Whig hold
General Election 1857: Fife[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Whig John Fergus Unopposed
Registered electors 3,389
Whig hold
General Election 1859: Fife[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal James Hay Erskine Wemyss 1,087 56.1 N/A
Conservative Robert St Clair-Erskine 850 43.9 N/A
Majority 237 12.2 N/A
Turnout 1,937 47.8 N/A
Registered electors 4,056
Liberal hold Swing N/A

Elections in the 1860s

Wemyss's death caused a by-election.

By-election, 19 April 1864: Fife[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Robert Anstruther Unopposed
Liberal hold
General Election 1865: Fife[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Robert Anstruther Unopposed
Registered electors 2,725
Liberal hold
General Election 1868: Fife[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Robert Anstruther 1,837 62.0 N/A
Liberal John Boyd Kinnear 1,127 38.0 N/A
Majority 710 24.0 N/A
Turnout 2,964 70.5 N/A
Registered electors 4,206
Liberal hold Swing 'N/A

Elections in the 1870s

General Election 1874: Fife[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Robert Anstruther 1,859 60.2 −1.8
Conservative Frederick William Hamilton[4] 1,230 39.8 N/A
Majority 629 20.4 −3.6
Turnout 3,089 70.9 +0.4
Registered electors 4,358
Liberal hold Swing 'N/A

Elections in the 1880s

General Election 1880: Fife[3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Robert Preston Bruce 2,421 63.8 +3.6
Conservative James Townsend Oswald[5] 1,373 36.2 −3.6
Majority 1,048 27.6 +7.2
Turnout 3,794 79.6 +8.7
Registered electors 4,767
Liberal hold Swing +3.6

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 Smith, Henry Stooks (1842). The Register of Parliamentary Contested Elections (Second ed.). Simpkin, Marshall & Company. pp. 202, 205. Retrieved 11 September 2018 – via Google Books.
  2. ↑ "Greenock Advertiser". 6 August 1847. p. 2. Retrieved 11 September 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive. (Subscription required (help)).
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Craig, F. W. S., ed. (1977). British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885 (e-book)|format= requires |url= (help) (1st ed.). London: Macmillan Press. ISBN 978-1-349-02349-3.
  4. ↑ "General Hamilton's Meetings". Fife Herald. 12 February 1874. p. 2. Retrieved 30 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive. (Subscription required (help)).
  5. ↑ "Representation of Fife". Fifeshire Advertiser. 10 April 1880. p. 2. Retrieved 20 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive. (Subscription required (help)).
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