THE HOUSE OF COMMONS
CONSTITUENCIES BEGINNING WITH "N"
Last updated 13/06/2017 (13 Feb 2024)
Date Name Born Died Age
Dates in italics in the first column denote that the election held on that date was a by-election or, in some instances, the date of a successful petition against a previous election result. Dates shown in normal type were general elections.
Dates in italics in the "Born" column indicate that the MP was baptised on that date; dates in italics in the "Died" column indicate that the MP was buried on that date.
NEW ROMNEY
19 Apr 1660 Sir Norton Knatchbull, 1st baronet (to 1679) 26 Dec 1602 3 Feb 1685 82
John Knatchbull, later [1685] 2nd baronet c 1636 15 Dec 1696
6 May 1661 Sir Charles Berkeley, later [1663] 1st Viscount Fitzhardinge [I] and [1664] 1st Earl of Falmouth 11 Jan 1630 3 Jun 1665 35
24 Oct 1665 Henry Brouncker [expelled 21 Apr 1668] c 1627 4 Jan 1688
8 May 1668 Sir Charles Sedley, 5th baronet (to 1685) 30 Mar 1639 20 Aug 1701 62
10 Feb 1679 Paul Barret 24 Mar 1633 9 May 1685 52
2 Apr 1685 Sir William Goulston c 1641 23 Dec 1687
Sir Benjamin Bathurst [he was also returned for Bere Alston, for which he chose to sit] 3 Oct 1638 27 Apr 1704 65
30 May 1685 Thomas Chudleigh c 1649 after 1688
16 Jan 1689 John Brewer (to 1710) 9 Jan 1654 2 Jun 1724 70
James Chadwick c 1660 19 May 1697
7 Mar 1690 Sir Charles Sedley, 5th baronet 30 Mar 1639 20 Aug 1701 62
26 Oct 1695 Sir William Twisden [he was also returned for Appleby, for which he chose to sit] 11 Dec 1635 27 Nov 1697 61
27 Nov 1696 Sir Charles Sedley, 5th baronet 30 Mar 1639 20 Aug 1701 62
24 Nov 1701 Edward Goulston c 1666 1720
28 Jul 1702 Sir Benjamin Bathurst 3 Oct 1638 27 Apr 1704 65
4 Nov 1704 Walter Whitfield (to 1713) 27 Dec 1635 1712
10 Oct 1710 Sir Robert Furnese, 2nd baronet (to 1727) 1 Aug 1687 14 Mar 1733 45
20 Apr 1713 Edward Watson, styled Viscount Sondes from 1714 3 Jul 1686 20 Mar 1722 35
23 Mar 1722 David Papillon (to 1728) 1691 26 Feb 1762 70
17 Aug 1727 John Essington 8 Dec 1689 8 Apr 1729 39
Both sitting members (Papillon and Essington) were unseated on petition in favour of Sir Robert Austen and Sir Robert Furnese 29 Apr 1728
29 Apr 1728 Sir Robert Austen, 4th baronet (to 1734) 6 Oct 1697 7 Oct 1743 46
Sir Robert Furnese [he was also returned for Kent, for which he chose to sit] 1 Aug 1687 7 Mar 1733 45
13 May 1728 David Papillon (to 1736) [at the general election in Apr 1734, he was also returned for Dover, for which he chose to sit] 1691 26 Feb 1762 70
23 Apr 1734 Stephen Bisse (to 1741) 23 Jan 1672 9 Sep 1746 74
10 Feb 1736 Sir Robert Austen, 4th baronet 6 Oct 1697 7 Oct 1743 46
5 May 1741 Henry Furnese after 1688 30 Aug 1756
Sir Francis Dashwood, later [1763] 15th Lord Le Despencer (to 1761) Dec 1708 11 Dec 1781 73
8 Dec 1756 Rose Fuller c 1708 7 May 1777
27 Mar 1761 Sir Edward Dering, 6th baronet (to 1770) 28 Sep 1732 8 Dec 1798 66
Thomas Knight 15 May 1735 23 Oct 1794 59
18 Mar 1768 Richard Jackson (to 1784) c 1721 6 May 1787
5 Mar 1770 John Morton c 1714 25 Jul 1780
7 Oct 1774 Sir Edward Dering, 6th baronet (to 1787) 28 Sep 1732 8 Dec 1798 66
12 Apr 1784 John Smith 13 Mar 1797
14 Jun 1784 Richard Atkinson 6 Mar 1738 28 May 1785 47
7 Jun 1785 John Henniker, later [1803] 2nd Baron Henniker [I] (to 1790) 19 Apr 1752 4 Dec 1821 69
29 Jan 1787 Richard Joseph Sulivan (to 1796) 10 Dec 1752 17 Jul 1806 53
19 Jun 1790 Sir Elijah Impey 13 Jun 1732 1 Oct 1809 77
27 May 1796 John Fordyce 1735 1 Jul 1809 74
John Willett Willett (to 1806) 1 Jan 1745 26 Sep 1815 70
9 Jul 1802 Manasseh Lopes (Manasseh Masseh Lopes from 1805), later [1805] 1st baronet 27 Jan 1755 26 Mar 1831 76
4 Nov 1806 William Windham 3 May 1750 4 Jun 1810 60
John Perring, later [1808] 1st baronet 26 Apr 1765 30 Jan 1831 65
7 May 1807 Thomas Scott, 2nd Earl of Clonmell [I] 15 Aug 1783 18 Jan 1838 54
George Ashburnham 9 Oct 1785 7 Jun 1813 27
8 Oct 1812 Sir John Thomas Duckworth, later [1813] 1st baronet 28 Feb 1748 31 Aug 1817 69
William Mitford (to 1818) 10 Feb 1744 8 Feb 1827 82
5 Nov 1817 Cholmeley Dering 25 Oct 1766 7 Nov 1836 70
18 Jun 1818 Andrew Strahan (to 1820) c 1749 25 Aug 1831
Richard Erle-Drax-Grosvenor 5 Oct 1762 8 Feb 1819 56
22 Feb 1819 Richard Edward Erle-Drax-Grosvenor (to 1826) 10 Mar 1797 18 Aug 1828 31
8 Mar 1820 George Hay Dawkins-Pennant (to 1830) 20 Feb 1764 17 Dec 1840 76
9 Jun 1826 George William Tapps, later [1835] 2nd baronet 24 May 1795 26 Oct 1842 47
30 Jul 1830 Arthur Hill-Trevor, later [1837] 3rd Viscount Dungannon [I] 9 Nov 1798 11 Aug 1862 63
William Miles, later [1859] 1st baronet (to 1832) 13 May 1797 17 Jun 1878 81
19 Mar 1831 Sir Roger Gresley, 8th baronet 27 Dec 1799 12 Oct 1837 37
29 Apr 1831 Sir Edward Cholmeley Dering, 8th baronet 19 Nov 1807 1 Apr 1896 88
CONSTITUENCY DISENFRANCHISED 1832
NEW ROSS (WEXFORD)
1801 Robert Leigh c 1760 20 Apr 1836
10 Jul 1802 Charles Tottenham 1 Mar 1768 6 Jul 1843 75
26 Jul 1805 Ponsonby Tottenham 1746 13 Dec 1818 72
10 Nov 1806 Charles Leigh c 1760 20 Apr 1836
21 May 1807 William Wigram 23 Jul 1780 8 Jan 1858 77
16 Oct 1812 Charles Leigh c 1760 20 Apr 1836
26 Jun 1818 John Carroll c 1790 4 Jun 1875
9 Feb 1821 Francis Leigh 18 Jan 1758 1839 81
5 Mar 1824 John Doherty 1785 8 Sep 1850 65
29 Jun 1826 William Wigram 23 Jul 1780 8 Jan 1858 77
6 Aug 1830 Charles Powell Leslie c 1767 15 Nov 1831
7 May 1831 Charles Tottenham 14 Nov 1807 1 Jun 1886 78
15 Aug 1831 William Wigram 23 Jul 1780 8 Jan 1858 77
10 Dec 1832 John Hyacinth Talbot 1794 30 Apr 1868 73
6 Jul 1841 Robert Gore 1810 4 Aug 1854 44
7 Aug 1847 John Hyacinth Talbot 1794 30 Apr 1868 73
15 Jul 1852 Charles Gavan Duffy [kt 1873]
For further information on this MP, see the note at the foot of this page
12 Apr 1816 9 Feb 1903 86
18 Mar 1856 Charles Tottenham 1807 1 Jun 1886 78
8 Jun 1863 Charles George Tottenham 1838 23 Apr 1918 79
18 Nov 1868 Patrick McMahon 1813 19 Dec 1875 62
9 Feb 1874 John Dunbar 1827 3 Dec 1878 51
17 Dec 1878 Charles George Tottenham 1838 23 Apr 1918 79
6 Apr 1880 Joseph William Foley 1821 Jan 1881 59
2 Feb 1881 John Edward Redmond 1 Sep 1856 6 Mar 1918 61
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED 1885
NEWRY (DOWN)
1801 John Moore 1756 21 May 1834 77
13 Jul 1802 Isaac Corry 15 May 1752 15 May 1813 61
15 Nov 1806 Francis Needham, later [1818] 12th Viscount Kilmorey [I] and [1822] 1st Earl of Kilmorey [I] 5 Apr 1748 21 Nov 1832 84
6 Mar 1819 Francis Jack Needham, later [1832] 2nd Earl of Kilmorey 12 Dec 1787 20 Jun 1880 92
14 Jun 1826 John Henry Knox 26 Jul 1788 27 Aug 1872 84
27 Dec 1832 Lord Arthur Marcus Cecil Hill, later [1860] 3rd Baron Sandys 28 Jan 1798 10 Apr 1863 65
21 Jan 1835 Denis Caulfield Brady 30 Nov 1886
4 Aug 1837 John Ellis 21 Nov 1812
8 Jul 1841 Francis Jack Needham, styled Viscount Newry 2 Feb 1815 6 May 1851 36
30 May 1851 Edmund Gilling Hallewell 1796 5 Nov 1881 85
19 Jul 1852 William Kirk 1795 20 Dec 1870 75
5 May 1859 Peter Quinn 1814
15 Jul 1865 Arthur Charles Innes 1834 1902 68
18 Nov 1868 William Kirk 1795 20 Dec 1870 75
23 Jan 1871 Francis Charles Needham, styled Viscount Newry, later [1880] 3rd Earl of Kilmorey 2 Aug 1842 28 Jul 1915 72
5 Feb 1874 William Whitworth 1814 31 Dec 1886 72
5 Apr 1880 Henry Thomson 1840 30 Dec 1916 76
24 Nov 1885 Justin Huntly McCarthy 1859 20 Mar 1936 76
Jul 1892 Patrick George Hamilton Carvill 1839 10 Jan 1924 84
17 Jan 1906 John Joseph Mooney [kt 1920] 1874 12 Apr 1934 59
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED 1918
NEWRY AND ARMAGH
9 Jun 1983 James Frederick Nicholson 29 Jan 1945
23 Jan 1986 Seamus Mallon 17 Aug 1936 24 Jan 2020 83
5 May 2005 Conor Terence Murphy 10 Jul 1963
7 May 2015 Michael Brady 7 Oct 1950
NEW SHOREHAM (SUSSEX)
11 Apr 1660 Herbert Springet, later [1661] 1st baronet c 1613 5 Jan 1662
Edward Blaker (to 1678) 10 Jan 1630 13 Sep 1678 48
20 Jan 1662 William Quatremaine c 1618 11 Jun 1667
24 Oct 1667 John Fagg c 1646 31 Jul 1672
11 Feb 1673 Henry Goring (to 1679) 6 Apr 1646 10 Jun 1685 39
24 Oct 1678 Sir Anthony Deane 3 Dec 1633 11 Jun 1721 87
11 Feb 1679 Robert Fagg, later [1701] 2nd baronet c 1649 22 Aug 1715
John Cheale (to 1681) 28 Aug 1685
15 Aug 1679 John Hales (to 1685) 2 Mar 1648 8 Oct 1723 75
18 Feb 1681 Robert Fagg c 1649 22 Aug 1715
11 Mar 1685 Sir Edward Hungerford (to 1695) 20 Oct 1632 8 Jul 1711 78
Sir Richard Haddock c 1629 26 Jan 1715
9 Jan 1689 John Monke c 1659 13 Nov 1701
18 Mar 1690 John Perry (to 1701) c 1639 29 Mar 1732
2 Nov 1695 Henry Priestman c 1647 20 Aug 1712
26 Jul 1698 Charles Sergison (to 1702) 11 Jan 1655 26 Nov 1732 77
7 Jan 1701 Nathaniel Gould [kt 1721] (to May 1708) 3 Dec 1661 21 Jul 1728 66
18 Jul 1702 John Perry c 1639 29 Mar 1732
11 May 1705 John Wicker 5 Aug 1658 May 1720 61
5 May 1708 Anthony Hammond 1 Sep 1668 1738 69
Richard Lloyd (to 1710) c 1661 1714
18 Dec 1708 Sir Gregory Page, later [1714] 1st baronet (to 1713) c 1669 25 May 1720
6 Oct 1710 Nathaniel Gould [kt 1721] (to 1729) 3 Dec 1661 21 Jul 1728 66
20 Aug 1713 Francis Chamberlayne after 1667 26 Sep 1728
29 Jan 1715 Sir Gregory Page, 1st baronet c 1668 25 May 1720
11 Jun 1720 Francis Chamberlayne after 1667 26 Sep 1728
29 Jan 1729 Samuel Ongley 2 Nov 1697 15 Jun 1747 49
John Gould c 1695 25 Aug 1740
24 Apr 1734 Thomas Frederick 26 Oct 1707 21 Aug 1740 32
John Phillipson (to 1741) 28 Apr 1698 27 Nov 1756 58
24 Nov 1740 John Frederick, later [1770] 4th baronet 28 Nov 1708 9 Apr 1783 74
2 May 1741 Charles Frederick [kt 1761] (to 1754) 21 Dec 1709 18 Dec 1785 75
Thomas Brand c 1717 23 Aug 1770
26 Jun 1747 Robert Bristow (to 1761) 1712 9 Dec 1776 64
16 Apr 1754 Richard Stratton c 1705 18 Dec 1758
27 Dec 1758 Sir William Peere Williams, 2nd baronet
(to Dec 1761) c 1730 27 Apr 1761
25 Mar 1761 George Brodrick, 3rd Viscount Midleton [I] (to 1765) 3 Oct 1730 22 Aug 1765 34
4 Dec 1761 John Savile, 1st Baron Pollington [I], later [1766] 1st Earl of Mexborough [I] (to 1768) Dec 1719 12 Feb 1778 58
23 Dec 1765 Samuel Cornish, later [1766] 1st baronet (to 1770) c 1715 30 Oct 1770
16 Mar 1768 Peregrine Cust (to 1774) 19 May 1723 2 Jan 1785 61
26 Nov 1770 John Purling [he was unseated on petition in favour of Thomas Rumbold 17 Dec 1770] c 1722 23 Aug 1800
17 Dec 1770 Thomas Rumbold, later [1779] 1st baronet 15 Jan 1736 11 Nov 1791 55
15 Oct 1774 Charles Goring 1743 3 Dec 1829 86
Sir John Shelley c 1730 11 Sep 1783
14 Sep 1780 Sir Cecil Bisshopp, 8th baronet, later [1815] 12th Lord Zouche 29 Dec 1753 11 Nov 1828 74
John Peachey, later [1808] 2nd Baron Selsey 16 Mar 1749 27 Jun 1816 67
28 Jun 1790 Sir Harry Goring, 6th baronet (to 1796) 26 Apr 1739 1 Dec 1824 85
John Clater Aldridge c 1737 16 May 1795
30 May 1795 Charles William Wyndham (to 1802) 8 Oct 1760 1 Jul 1828 67
1 Jun 1796 Sir Cecil Bisshopp, 8th baronet later [1815] 12th Lord Zouche (to 1806) 29 Dec 1753 11 Nov 1828 74
12 Jul 1802 Timothy Shelley (to 1818) 7 Sep 1753 24 Apr 1844 90
4 Nov 1806 Sir Charles Merrik Burrell, 3rd baronet (to 1862) 24 May 1774 4 Jan 1862 87
23 Jun 1818 James Martin Lloyd 21 May 1762 24 Oct 1844 82
16 Jun 1826 Henry Howard 25 Jul 1802 7 Jan 1875 72
15 Dec 1832 Harry Dent Goring, later [1844] 8th baronet 30 Dec 1801 19 Apr 1859 57
3 Jul 1841 Charles Goring 14 Jul 1817 19 Apr 1849 31
28 Dec 1849 Lord Alexander Francis Charles Gordon‑Lennox 14 Jun 1825 22 Jan 1892 66
29 Apr 1859 Stephen Cave [kt 1880] (to 1880) 28 Dec 1820 6 Jun 1880 59
5 Feb 1862 Sir Percy Burrell, 4th baronet 10 Feb 1812 19 Jul 1876 64
5 Aug 1876 Sir Walter Wyndham Burrell, 5th baronet (to 1885) 26 Oct 1814 24 Jan 1886 71
5 Apr 1880 Robert Loder, later [1887] 1st baronet 7 Aug 1823 27 May 1888 64
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED 1885
NEWTON (LANCASHIRE)
Apr 1660 Richard Legh (to 1679) 7 May 1634 31 Aug 1687 53
William Banks c 1636 6 Jul 1676
23 Apr 1661 John Vaughan [he was also returned for Cardiganshire, for which he chose to sit] 14 Sep 1603 10 Dec 1674 71
24 Jun 1661 Sir Philip Mainwaring c 1589 2 Aug 1661
24 Oct 1661 Richard Gorges, 2nd Baron Gorges of Dundalk [I] c 1619 27 Sep 1712
28 Feb 1679 Sir John Chicheley (to 1691) c 1640 20 Mar 1691
Andrew Fountaine c 1637 7 Feb 1707
23 Apr 1685 Peter Legh [aged only 15!!] 22 Aug 1669 16 Jan 1744 74
11 Jan 1689 Francis Cholmondeley 10 Jan 1636 3 Jul 1713 77
11 Mar 1690 George Cholmondeley, later [1725] 2nd Earl of Cholmondeley (to 1695) 1666 7 May 1733 66
18 Dec 1691 John Bennet c 1656 1712
31 Oct 1695 Legh Banks 30 Aug 1666 Oct 1703 37
Thomas Brotherton (to 1701) c 1656 11 Jan 1702
5 Aug 1698 Thomas Legh (to 1702) Mar 1703
1 Dec 1701 Thomas Legh (to 1713) 13 Jun 1675 9 Nov 1717 42
27 Jul 1702 John Grobham Howe [he was also returned for Bodmin, Gloucester and Gloucestershire, for which he chose to sit] 9 Feb 1657 11 Jun 1722 65
31 Dec 1702 Thomas Legh Mar 1703
7 Dec 1703 John Ward (to 1715) 13 Jun 1670 17 Mar 1749 78
8 Sep 1713 Abraham Blackmore c 1677 18 May 1732
7 Feb 1715 Sir Francis Leicester, 3rd baronet 30 Jul 1674 5 Aug 1742 68
William Shippen (to 1743) 30 Jul 1673 1 May 1743 69
22 Aug 1727 Legh Master (to 1747) c 1694 2 Apr 1750
15 Dec 1743 Peter Legh (to 1774) 7 Jan 1707 20 May 1792 85
1 Jul 1747 Sir Thomas Grey Egerton, 6th baronet c 1721 7 Aug 1756
17 Apr 1754 Randle Wilbraham 1694 3 Dec 1770 76
19 Mar 1768 Anthony James Keck (to 1780) c 1740 18 Feb 1782
11 Oct 1774 Robert Vernon Atherton Gwillym c 1741 9 Jul 1783
12 Sep 1780 Thomas Peter Legh (to 1797) c 1754 7 Aug 1797
Thomas Davenport [kt 1783] 14 Jan 1734 25 Mar 1786 52
10 Apr 1786 Thomas Brooke (to 1807) 1755 20 Jun 1820 64
15 Sep 1797 Thomas Langford Brooke [he was unseated on petition in favour of Peter Patten 13 Dec 1797] c 1769 21 Dec 1815
13 Dec 1797 Peter Patten (Patten-Bold from 1813) 1764 17 Oct 1819 55
3 Nov 1806 Peter Heron (to 1814) 19 May 1770 15 Nov 1848 78
8 May 1807 John Ireland Blackburne (to 1818) 26 May 1783 27 Jan 1874 90
16 Apr 1814 Thomas Legh (to 1832) c 1793 8 May 1857
18 Jun 1818 Thomas Claughton 23 Aug 1773 8 Mar 1842 68
11 Feb 1825 Sir Robert Townsend Townsend‑Farquhar, 1st baronet 14 Oct 1776 16 Mar 1830 53
9 Jun 1826 Thomas Alcock 19 Aug 1801 22 Aug 1866 65
31 Jul 1830 Thomas Houldsworth 13 Sep 1771 1 Sep 1852 80
CONSTITUENCY DISENFRANCHISED 1832, BUT REVIVED 1885
30 Nov 1885 Sir Richard Assheton Cross, later [1886] 1st Viscount Cross 30 May 1823 8 Jan 1914 90
16 Aug 1886 Thomas Wodehouse Legh, later [1898] 2nd Baron Newton 18 Mar 1857 21 Mar 1942 85
16 Jan 1899 Richard Pilkington 17 Jan 1841 12 Mar 1908 67
23 Jan 1906 James Andrew Seddon 7 May 1868 31 May 1939 71
Dec 1910 Roundell Cecil Palmer, styled Viscount Wolmer, later [1942] 3rd Earl of Selborne 15 Apr 1887 3 Sep 1971 84
14 Dec 1918 Robert Young [kt 1931] 26 Jan 1872 13 Jul 1957 85
27 Oct 1931 Reginald Clare Essenhigh 7 Sep 1890 1 Nov 1955 65
14 Nov 1935 Sir Robert Young 26 Jan 1872 13 Jul 1957 85
23 Feb 1950 Frederick Lee, later [1974] Baron Lee of Newton [L] 3 Aug 1906 4 Feb 1984 77
28 Feb 1974 John Evans, later [1997] Baron Evans of Parkside [L] 19 Oct 1930 5 Mar 2016 85
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED 1983
NEWTON ABBOT (DEVON)
6 May 2010 Anne-Marie Morris 5 Jul 1957
NEWTOWN (ISLE OF WIGHT)
20 Apr 1660 Sir John Barrington, 3rd baronet (to Feb 1679) c 1615 24 Mar 1683
Sir Henry Worsley, 2nd baronet 31 May 1613 11 Sep 1666 53
8 Nov 1666 Sir Robert Worsley, 3rd baronet c 1643 Dec 1675
17 Feb 1677 Sir John Holmes (to 1685) c 1640 28 May 1683
11 Feb 1679 John Churchill, later [1682] 1st Baron Churchill, [1689] 1st Earl of Marlborough and [1702] 1st Duke of Marlborough 24 Jun 1650 16 Jun 1722 71
14 Aug 1679 Lemuel Kingdon c 1654 19 Feb 1686
14 Feb 1681 Daniel Finch, later [1682] 2nd Earl of Nottingham and [1729] 7th Earl of Winchilsea [He was also returned for Lichfield, but the Parliament was dissolved before he could choose which seat to represent] 2 Jul 1647 1 Jan 1730 82
3 Apr 1685 Thomas Done (to 1698) c 1651 Jan 1703
William Blathwayt 2 Mar 1649 16 Aug 1717 68
12 Jan 1689 Richard Jones, 1st Earl of Ranelagh [I] 8 Feb 1641 5 Jan 1712 70
31 Oct 1695 James Worsley, later [1747] 5th baronet (to 1701) 28 May 1672 12 Jun 1756 84
26 Jul 1698 Thomas Hopson (to 1705) 5 Apr 1643 12 Oct 1717 74
29 Nov 1701 Joseph Dudley 23 Sep 1647 2 Apr 1720 72
20 Jul 1702 John Leigh c 1670 Apr 1743
12 May 1705 James Worsley, later [1747] 5th baronet (to 1722) 28 May 1672 12 Jun 1756 84
Henry Worsley 26 Feb 1672 15 Mar 1740 68
28 Jan 1715 Sir Robert Worsley, 4th baronet c 1669 29 Jul 1747
24 Mar 1722 William Stephens 28 Jan 1671 Aug 1753 82
Charles Worsley after 1671 28 Aug 1739
23 Aug 1727 James Worsley, later [1747] 5th baronet 28 May 1672 12 Jun 1756 84
Thomas Holmes, later [1760] 1st Baron Holmes [I] 2 Nov 1699 21 Jul 1764 64
Both sitting members were unseated on petition in favour of Charles Armand Powlett and Sir John Barrington 25 Apr 1729
25 Apr 1729 Charles Armand Powlett c 1694 14 Nov 1751
Sir John Barrington, 7th baronet by 1707 4 May 1776
24 Apr 1734 James Worsley, later [1747] 5th baronet 28 May 1672 12 Jun 1756 84
Thomas Holmes, later [1760] 1st Baron Holmes [I] 2 Nov 1699 21 Jul 1764 64
6 May 1741 Sir John Barrington, 7th baronet (to Dec 1775) by 1707 4 May 1776
Henry Holmes 28 Feb 1703 11 Aug 1762 59
29 Jun 1747 Maurice Bocland c 1695 15 Aug 1765
20 Apr 1754 Harcourt Powell 1718 26 Feb 1782 63
24 Apr 1775 Charles Ambler (to 1780) 19 Apr 1721 28 Feb 1794 72
4 Dec 1775 Edward Meux Worsley (to 1782) 1747 31 Jul 1782 35
9 Sep 1780 John Barrington, later [1792] 9th baronet (to 1796) 8 Dec 1752 5 Aug 1818 65
16 Sep 1782 Henry Dundas, later [1802] 1st Viscount Melville 28 Apr 1742 2 May 1811 69
17 Jan 1783 Richard Pepper Arden, later [1801] 1st Baron Alvanley 20 May 1744 19 Mar 1804 59
5 Apr 1784 James Worsley 10 Apr 1725 10 Apr 1787 62
30 Aug 1784 Mark Gregory 1 May 1793
18 Jun 1790 Sir Richard Worsley, 7th baronet 5 Mar 1751 8 Aug 1805 54
28 Jun 1793 George Canning 11 Apr 1770 8 Aug 1827 57
27 May 1796 Sir Richard Worsley, 7th baronet 5 Mar 1751 8 Aug 1805 54
Charles Shaw Lefevre (to Jul 1802)
25 Feb 1801 Sir Edward Law, later [1802] 1st Baron Ellenborough 16 Nov 1750 13 Dec 1818 68
5 May 1802 Ewan Law 30 Oct 1747 24 Apr 1829 81
7 Jul 1802 Sir Robert Barclay, 8th baronet (to 1807) 13 Sep 1755 14 Aug 1839 83
Charles Chapman 23 Nov 1752 19 Mar 1809 56
5 Jun 1805 James Paull
For further information on the death of this MP, see the note at the foot of this page
1770 15 Apr 1808 37
3 Nov 1806 George Canning 11 Apr 1770 8 Aug 1827 57
7 May 1807 Barrington Pope Blachford (to 1816) c 1784 14 May 1816
Dudley North (Long-North from 1812) 14 Mar 1748 21 Feb 1829 80
23 Feb 1808 George Anderson-Pelham (to 1820) 15 Sep 1785 14 Jun 1835 49
3 Jun 1816 Hudson Gurney (to 1832) 19 Jan 1775 9 Nov 1864 89
10 Mar 1820 Dudley Long-North 14 Mar 1748 21 Feb 1829 80
9 Feb 1821 Charles Compton Cavendish, later [1858] 1st Baron Chesham 28 Aug 1793 12 Nov 1863 70
3 Aug 1830 Charles Anderson Worsley Anderson-Pelham, later [1846] 2nd Earl of Yarborough 12 Apr 1809 7 Jan 1862 52
30 Apr 1831 Sir William Horne 2 Dec 1773 13 Jul 1860 86
CONSTITUENCY DISENFRANCHISED 1832
NORFOLK
2 Apr 1660 Thomas Richardson, 2nd Lord Cramond [S] (to 1674) 19 Jun 1627 16 May 1674 46
Sir Horatio Townshend, later [1661] 1st Viscount Townshend and [1682] 1st Viscount Townshend 16 Dec 1630 10 Dec 1687 56
1 Apr 1661 Sir Ralph Hare, 1st baronet 24 Mar 1623 28 Feb 1672 48
17 Feb 1673 Sir John Hobart, 3rd baronet (to Feb 1679) 20 Mar 1628 22 Aug 1683 55
10 May 1675 Sir Robert Kemp, 2nd baronet 2 Feb 1628 26 Jun 1710 82
10 Feb 1679 Sir Christopher Calthorpe c 1645 7 Feb 1718
Sir Neville Catelyn 3 Mar 1634 Jul 1702 68
Election declared void 21 Apr 1679
5 May 1679 Sir John Hobart, 3rd baronet (to 1685) 20 Mar 1628 22 Aug 1683 55
Sir Neville Catelyn 3 Mar 1634 Jul 1702 68
25 Aug 1679 Sir Peter Gleane, 1st baronet 1619 7 Feb 1695 76
30 Mar 1685 Sir Thomas Hare, 2nd baronet c 1658 1 Jan 1693
Sir Jacob Astley, 1st baronet 1640 17 Aug 1729 89
14 Jan 1689 Sir William Cook, 2nd baronet (to 1695) c 1630 Jan 1708
Sir Henry Hobart, 4th baronet c 1657 21 Aug 1698
24 Feb 1690 Sir Jacob Astley, 1st baronet (to Dec 1701) 1640 17 Aug 1729 89
28 Oct 1695 Sir Henry Hobart, 4th baronet c 1657 21 Aug 1698
3 Aug 1698 Sir William Cook, 2nd baronet c 1630 Jan 1708
15 Jan 1701 Roger Townshend (to 1702) after 1675 22 May 1709
17 Dec 1701 Sir John Holland, 2nd baronet (to 1710) c 1669 by Jul 1724
29 Jul 1702 Sir Jacob Astley, 1st baronet 1640 17 Aug 1729 89
30 May 1705 Roger Townshend after 1675 22 May 1709
26 May 1708 Ashe Windham 17 Feb 1673 4 Apr 1749 76
11 Oct 1710 Sir John Wodehouse, 4th baronet 23 Mar 1669 9 Oct 1754 85
Sir Jacob Astley, 1st baronet (to 1722) 1640 17 Aug 1729 89
9 Sep 1713 Sir Edmund Bacon, 6th baronet c 1680 30 Apr 1755
18 Feb 1715 Thomas de Grey (to 1727) 13 Aug 1680 18 Dec 1765 85
11 Apr 1722 Thomas Coke, later [1744] 1st Earl of Leicester (to 1728) 17 Jun 1697 20 Apr 1759 61
23 Aug 1727 Sir John Hobart, 5th baronet, later [1746] 1st Earl of Buckinghamshire 11 Oct 1693 22 Sep 1756 62
26 Jun 1728 Harbord Harbord c 1675 28 Jan 1742
Sir Edmund Bacon, 6th baronet (to 1741) c 1680 30 Apr 1755
22 May 1734 William Wodehouse c 1706 13 Mar 1737
23 Mar 1737 Armine Wodehouse, later [1754] 5th baronet (to 1768) c 1714 21 May 1777
13 May 1741 Edward Coke, styled Viscount Coke from 1744 2 Feb 1719 31 Aug 1753 34
1 Jul 1747 George Townshend, later [1764] 4th Viscount Townshend and [1787] 1st Marquess Townshend 28 Feb 1724 14 Sep 1807 83
11 Apr 1764 Thomas de Grey (to 1774) 29 Sep 1717 23 Jun 1781 63
23 Mar 1768 Sir Edward Astley, 4th baronet (to 1790) 26 Dec 1729 27 Mar 1802 72
26 Oct 1774 Wenman Coke 7 Jan 1717 11 Apr 1776 59
8 May 1776 Thomas William Coke, later [1837] 1st Earl of Leicester of Holkham 6 May 1754 30 Jun 1842 88
14 Apr 1784 Sir John Wodehouse, 6th baronet, later [1797] 1st Baron Wodehouse of Kimberley (to 1797) 15 Apr 1741 29 May 1834 83
24 Jun 1790 Thomas William Coke, later [1837] 1st Earl of Leicester of Holkham (to Mar 1807) 6 May 1754 30 Jun 1842 88
15 Nov 1797 Sir Jacob Henry Astley, 5th baronet 12 Sep 1756 28 Apr 1817 60
20 Nov 1806 Thomas William Coke, later [1837] 1st Earl of Leicester of Holkham (to Mar 1807) 6 May 1754 30 Jun 1842 88
William Windham 3 May 1750 4 Jun 1810 60
Election declared void 19 Feb 1807
4 Mar 1807 Edward Coke 1758 1837 79
Sir Jacob Henry Astley, 5th baronet (to 1817) 12 Sep 1756 28 Apr 1817 60
12 May 1807 Thomas William Coke, later [1837] 1st Earl of Leicester of Holkham (to 1832) 6 May 1754 30 Jun 1842 88
24 May 1817 Edmund Wodehouse 26 Jul 1784 21 Aug 1855 71
6 Aug 1830 Sir William John Henry Browne Ffolkes, 2nd baronet
COUNTY SPLIT INTO "EAST" AND "WEST" DIVISIONS 1832
NORFOLK CENTRAL
23 Feb 1950 Frank Medlicott [kt 1955] 10 Nov 1903 9 Jan 1972 68
8 Oct 1959 Richard Charles Marler Collard 25 Aug 1911 9 Aug 1962 50
22 Nov 1962 Ian Hedworth John Little Gilmour, later [1977] 3rd baronet and [1992] Baron Gilmour of Craigmillar [L] 8 Jul 1926 21 Sep 2007 81
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED FEB 1974
NORFOLK EAST
24 Dec 1832 William Howe Windham 22 Dec 1854
George Thomas Keppel, later [1851] 6th Earl of Albemarle 13 Jun 1799 21 Feb 1891 91
23 Jan 1835 Edmond Wodehouse (to 1855) 26 Jun 1784 21 Aug 1855 71
Horatio William Walpole, styled Baron Walpole, later [1858] 4th Earl of Orford 18 Apr 1813 7 Dec 1894 81
11 Aug 1837 Henry Negus Burroughes (to 1857) 8 Feb 1791 22 Mar 1872 81
17 Jul 1855 Sir Henry Josias Stracey, 5th baronet 31 Jul 1802 7 Aug 1885 83
6 Apr 1857 Charles Ashe Windham [kt 1865] (to 1859) 8 Oct 1810 4 Feb 1870 59
Sir Edward North Buxton, 2nd baronet 16 Sep 1812 11 Jun 1858 45
1 Jul 1858 Wenman Clarence Walpole Coke (to 1865) 13 Jul 1828 10 Jan 1907 78
2 May 1859 Edward Howes (to 1868) 7 Jul 1813 26 Mar 1871 57
20 Jul 1865 Clare Sewell Read 1826 22 Aug 1905 79
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED 1868, BUT REVIVED IN 1885
1 Dec 1885 Edward Birkbeck, later [1886] 1st baronet 11 Oct 1838 2 Sep 1908 69
Jul 1892 Robert John Price [kt 1908] 26 Apr 1854 18 Apr 1926 71
14 Dec 1918 Michael Falcon 21 Jul 1888 27 Feb 1976 87
6 Dec 1923 Hugh Michael Seely, later [1926] 3rd baronet and [1941] 1st Baron Sherwood 2 Oct 1898 1 Apr 1970 71
29 Oct 1924 Reginald James Neville Neville, later [1927] 1st baronet 22 Feb 1863 28 Apr 1950 87
30 May 1929 William Lygon, styled Viscount Elmley, later [1938] 8th Earl Beauchamp 3 Jul 1903 3 Jan 1979 75
26 Jan 1939 Frank Medlicott [kt 1955] 10 Nov 1903 9 Jan 1972 68
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED 1950
NORFOLK MID
4 Dec 1885 Robert Thornhagh Gurdon, later [1899] 1st Baron Cranworth 18 Jun 1829 13 Oct 1902 73
Jul 1892 Clement Higgins 10 Jan 1844 4 Dec 1916 72
24 Apr 1895 Robert Thornhagh Gurdon, later [1899] 1st Baron Cranworth 18 Jun 1829 13 Oct 1902 73
24 Jul 1895 Frederick William Wilson [kt 1907] 26 Mar 1844 26 May 1924 80
25 Jan 1906 John Wodehouse, styled Baron Wodehouse, later [1932] 3rd Earl of Kimberley 11 Nov 1883 16 Apr 1941 57
19 Jan 1910 William Lewis Boyle 27 May 1859 2 Oct 1918 59
23 Oct 1918 Neville Paul Jodrell [kt 1922] 27 May 1858 20 May 1932 73
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED 1918, BUT REVIVED 1983
9 Jun 1983 Richard Andrew Ryder, later [1997] Baron Ryder of Wensum [L] 4 Feb 1949
1 May 1997 Keith Robert Simpson 29 Mar 1949
6 May 2010 George William Freeman 12 Jul 1967
NORFOLK NORTH
23 Nov 1868 Frederick Walpole 18 Sep 1822 1 Apr 1876 53
Sir Edmund Henry Knowles Lacon, 3rd baronet (to 1885) 14 Aug 1807 2 Dec 1888 81
24 Apr 1876 James Duff 1831 22 Dec 1878 47
23 Jan 1879 Edward Birkbeck, later [1886] 1st baronet 11 Oct 1838 2 Sep 1908 69
REPRESENTATION REDUCED TO ONE MEMBER 1885
2 Dec 1885 Herbert Hardy Cozens‑Hardy, later [1914] 1st Baron Cozens-Hardy 22 Nov 1838 18 Jun 1920 81
16 Mar 1899 Sir William Brampton Gurdon 5 Sep 1840 31 May 1911 70
25 Jan 1910 Noel Edward Buxton, later [1930] 1st Baron Noel‑Buxton 9 Jan 1869 12 Sep 1948 79
14 Dec 1918 Henry Douglas King
For information on the death of this MP, see the note at the foot of the page containing details of the members for Paddington South
1 Jun 1877 20 Aug 1930 53
15 Nov 1922 Noel Edward Buxton, later [1930] 1st Baron Noel‑Buxton 9 Jan 1869 12 Sep 1948 79
9 Jul 1930 Lucy Edith Pelham Noel‑Buxton 1888 9 Dec 1960 72
27 Oct 1931 Thomas Russell Albert Mason Cook [kt 1937] 12 Jun 1902 12 Aug 1970 68
26 Jul 1945 Edwin George Gooch 15 Jan 1889 2 Aug 1964 75
15 Oct 1964 Bertie Hazell 18 Apr 1907 11 Jan 2009 101
18 Jun 1970 Ralph Frederick Howell [kt 1993] 25 May 1923 14 Feb 2008 84
1 May 1997 David Gifford Leathes Prior, later [2015] Baron Prior of Brampton [L] 3 Dec 1954
7 Jun 2001 Norman Peter Lamb [kt 2019] 16 Sep 1957
12 Dec 2019 Duncan Charles Baker 15 Nov 1979
NORFOLK NORTH WEST
9 Dec 1885 Joseph Arch 10 Nov 1826 12 Feb 1919 92
10 Jul 1886 Lord Henry Cavendish‑Bentinck 28 May 1863 6 Oct 1931 68
Jul 1892 Joseph Arch 10 Nov 1826 12 Feb 1919 92
11 Oct 1900 George White [kt 1907] 1840 11 May 1912 71
31 May 1912 Edward George Hemmerde 13 Nov 1871 24 May 1948 76
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED 1918, BUT REVIVED FEB 1974
28 Feb 1974 Christopher Brocklebank-Fowler 13 Jan 1934 29 May 2020 86
9 Jun 1983 Henry Campbell Bellingham [kt 2015], later [2020] Baron Bellingham [L] 29 Mar 1955
1 May 1997 George Turner 9 Aug 1940
7 Jun 2001 Henry Campbell Bellingham [kt 2015], later [2020] Baron Bellingham [L] 29 Mar 1955
12 Dec 2019 James Oliver Wild 5 Jan 1977
NORFOLK SOUTH
21 Nov 1868 Clare Sewell Read (to 1880) 1826 22 Aug 1905 79
Edward Howes 7 Jul 1813 26 Mar 1871 57
17 Apr 1871 Sir Robert Jacob Buxton, 3rd baronet (to 1885) 13 Mar 1829 20 Jan 1888 58
8 Apr 1880 Robert Thornhagh Gurdon, later [1899] 1st Baron Cranworth 18 Jun 1829 13 Oct 1902 73
REPRESENTATION REDUCED TO ONE MEMBER 1885
28 Nov 1885 Francis Taylor 1845 1 Sep 1915 70
12 May 1898 Arthur Wellesley Soames 30 Nov 1852 2 Nov 1934 81
14 Dec 1918 William Hepburn Cozens-Hardy, later [1920] 2nd Baron Cozens-Hardy 25 Mar 1868 25 May 1924 56
27 Jul 1920 George Edwards [kt 1930] 5 Oct 1850 6 Dec 1933 83
15 Nov 1922 Thomas William Hay 25 Aug 1882 10 Jul 1956 73
6 Dec 1923 George Edwards [kt 1930] 5 Oct 1850 6 Dec 1933 83
29 Oct 1924 James Archibald Christie 1873 16 Oct 1958 85
26 Jul 1945 Christopher Paget Mayhew, later [1981] Baron Mayhew [L] 12 Jun 1915 7 Jan 1997 81
23 Feb 1950 Peter Arthur David Baker [expelled 16 Dec 1954]
For further information on this MP, see the note at the foot of this page
20 Apr 1921 14 Nov 1966 45
13 Jan 1955 John Edward Bernard Hill 13 Nov 1912 6 Dec 2007 95
28 Feb 1974 John Roddick Russell MacGregor, later [2001] Baron MacGregor of Pulham Market [L] 14 Feb 1937
7 Jun 2001 Richard Michael Bacon 3 Dec 1962
NORFOLK SOUTH WEST
5 Dec 1885 William Amhurst Tyssen‑Amherst, later [1892] 1st Baron Amherst of Hackney 25 Apr 1835 16 Jan 1909 73
Jul 1892 Thomas Leigh Hare, later [1905] 1st baronet 4 Apr 1859 22 Feb 1941 81
18 Jan 1906 Richard Winfrey [kt 1914] 8 Aug 1858 18 Apr 1944 85
6 Dec 1923 Alan McLean [kt 1933] 5 Jul 1875 9 May 1959 83
30 May 1929 William Benjamin Taylor 22 May 1875 29 Jul 1932 57
27 Oct 1931 Alan McLean [kt 1933] 5 Jul 1875 9 May 1959 83
14 Nov 1935 Somerset Struben de Chair 22 Aug 1911 3 Jan 1995 83
26 Jul 1945 Sidney Dye 1900 9 Dec 1958 58
25 Oct 1951 Denys Gradwell Bullard 15 Aug 1912 2 Nov 1994 82
26 May 1955 Sidney Dye 1900 9 Dec 1958 58
25 Mar 1959 Albert Victor Hilton, later [1965] Baron Hilton of Upton [L] 14 Feb 1908 3 May 1977 69
15 Oct 1964 Paul Lancelot Hawkins [kt 1982] 7 Aug 1912 29 Dec 2002 90
11 Jun 1987 Gillian Patricia Shephard, later [2005] Baroness Shephard of Northwold [L] 22 Jan 1940
5 May 2005 Christopher James Fraser 25 Oct 1962
6 May 2010 (Mary) Elizabeth Truss 26 Jul 1975
NORFOLK WEST
15 Dec 1832 Sir William John Henry Browne Ffolkes, 2nd baronet 30 Aug 1786 24 Mar 1860 73
Sir Jacob Astley, 6th baronet, later [1841] 16th Lord Hastings 13 Nov 1797 27 Dec 1859 62
29 Jul 1837 William Bagge, later [1867] 1st baronet (to 1857) 17 Jun 1810 12 Feb 1880 69
William Lyde Wiggett Chute 16 Jan 1800 6 Jul 1879 79
16 Aug 1847 Edward Keppel Wentworth Coke 20 Aug 1824 26 May 1889 64
23 Jul 1852 George William Pierrepont Bentinck (to 1865) 17 Jul 1803 20 Feb 1886 82
30 Mar 1857 John Brampton Gurdon 25 Sep 1797 28 Apr 1881 83
24 Jul 1865 Sir William Bagge, 1st baronet (to 1880) 17 Jun 1810 12 Feb 1880 69
Thomas de Grey, later [1870] 6th Baron Walsingham 29 Jul 1843 3 Dec 1919 76
8 Feb 1871 George William Pierrepont Bentinck (to 1884) 17 Jul 1803 20 Feb 1886 82
8 Mar 1880 William Amhurst Tyssen‑Amherst, later [1892] 1st Baron Amherst of Hackney (to 1885) 25 Apr 1835 16 Jan 1909 73
20 Feb 1884 Clare Sewell Read 1826 22 Aug 1905 79
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED 1885
NORMANTON (YORKSHIRE)
1 Dec 1885 Benjamin Pickard 28 Feb 1842 3 Feb 1904 61
1 Mar 1904 William Parrott 18 Dec 1843 9 Nov 1905 61
27 Nov 1905 Frederick Hall 1855 18 Apr 1933 77
8 May 1933 Tom Smith 24 Apr 1886 27 Feb 1953 66
11 Feb 1947 George Oscar Sylvester 14 Sep 1898 26 Oct 1961 63
23 Feb 1950 Thomas Judson Brooks 7 Jul 1880 15 Feb 1958 77
25 Oct 1951 Albert Roberts 14 May 1908 11 May 2000 91
9 Jun 1983 William O'Brien [kt 2010] 25 Jan 1929
5 May 2005 Edward Michael Balls 25 Feb 1967
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED 2010
NORMANTON, PONTEFRACT AND CASTLEFORD (WEST YORKSHIRE)
6 May 2010 Yvette Cooper 20 Mar 1969
NORTHALLERTON (YORKSHIRE)
c Apr 1660 Francis Lascelles 23 Aug 1612 28 Nov 1667 55
Thomas Lascelles (to 1661) 5 Aug 1624 4 Nov 1697 73
6 Jul 1660 Sir George Marwood, 1st baronet 28 Apr 1601 19 Feb 1680 78
Sir Francis Holles, 1st baronet, later [1680] 2nd Baron Holles 19 Aug 1627 1 Mar 1690 62
Double return
8 Apr 1661 Gilbert Gerard, later [1666] 1st baronet (to 1685) 24 Sep 1687
Roger Talbot c 1619 2 Oct 1680
14 Feb 1679 Sir Henry Calverley c 1641 14 Jun 1684
27 Mar 1685 Sir David Foulis, 3rd baronet 14 Mar 1633 13 Mar 1695 61
Sir Henry Marwood, 2nd baronet c 1635 1 Nov 1725
10 Jan 1689 Sir William Robinson, 1st baronet 19 Nov 1655 22 Dec 1736 81
Thomas Lascelles (to 1697) 5 Aug 1624 4 Nov 1697 73
30 Oct 1695 Sir William Hustler (to Nov 1702) [at the general election in Jul ;1702, Hustler was also returned for Ripon, for which he chose to sit] c 1658 20 Aug 1730
28 Dec 1697 Ralph Milbancke c 1670 Oct 1701
25 Nov 1701 Robert Dormer [he was also returned for Buckinghamshire, for which he chose to sit] 30 May 1650 18 Sep 1726 76
3 Feb 1702 Daniel Lascelles 6 Nov 1655 5 Sep 1734 78
24 Jul 1702 John Aislabie (to May 1705) 4 Dec 1670 18 Jun 1742 71
23 Nov 1702 Robert Dormer (to Dec 1705) [at the general election in May 1705, Dormer was also returned for Buckinghamshire, for which he chose to sit] 30 May 1650 18 Sep 1726 76
15 May 1705 Sir William Hustler (to 1710) c 1658 20 Aug 1730
3 Dec 1705 Roger Gale (to 1713) 1672 25 Jun 1744 71
10 Oct 1710 Robert Raikes 1 Nov 1683 20 Jun 1753 69
2 Sep 1713 Henry Peirse 25 Feb 1692 2 Oct 1759 67
Leonard Smelt (to 1740) c 1683 30 May 1740
3 Feb 1715 Cholmley Turner 20 Jul 1685 9 May 1757 71
30 Mar 1722 Henry Peirse (to 1754) 25 Feb 1692 2 Oct 1759 67
1 Dec 1740 William Smelt 10 Jan 1690 14 Sep 1755 65
16 May 1745 Henry Lascelles 20 Dec 1690 16 Oct 1753 62
3 Apr 1752 Daniel Lascelles (to 1780) 20 May 1714 24 May 1784 70
16 Apr 1754 Edwin Lascelles, later [1790] 1st Baron Harewood 5 Feb 1713 25 Jan 1795 81
30 Mar 1761 Edward Lascelles, later [1796] 1st Baron Harewood and [1812] 1st Earl of Harewood 7 Jan 1740 3 Apr 1820 80
10 Oct 1774 Henry Peirse (to 1824) 2 Jun 1754 14 May 1824 69
9 Dec 1780 Edwin Lascelles, later [1790] 1st Baron Harewood 5 Feb 1713 25 Jan 1795 81
18 Jun 1790 Edward Lascelles, later [1796] 1st Baron Harewood and [1812] 1st Earl of Harewood 7 Jan 1740 3 Apr 1820 80
27 May 1796 Edward Lascelles, styled Viscount Lascelles from 1812 10 Jan 1764 3 Jun 1814 50
24 Jun 1814 John Bacon Sawrey Morritt 1771 12 Jul 1843 72
20 Jun 1818 Henry Lascelles, styled Viscount Lascelles, later [1820] 2nd Earl of Harewood 25 Dec 1767 24 Nov 1841 73
9 Mar 1820 William Saunders Sebright Lascelles (to 1826) 29 Oct 1798 2 Jul 1851 52
28 May 1824 Marcus Beresford 28 Jul 1800 16 Mar 1876 75
9 Jun 1826 Henry Lascelles, later [1841] 3rd Earl of Harewood 11 Jun 1797 22 Feb 1857 59
Sir John Poer Beresford, 1st baronet (to 1832) 1766 2 Oct 1844 78
3 May 1831 William Saunders Sebright Lascelles 29 Oct 1798 2 Jul 1851 52
REPRESENTATION REDUCED TO ONE MEMBER 1832
10 Dec 1832 John George Boss 1781 1837
8 Jan 1835 William Battie Wrightson 1789 10 Feb 1879 89
13 Jul 1865 Charles Henry Mills, later [1872] 2nd baronet and [1886] 1st Baron Hillingdon [his election was declared void 30 Apr 1866] 26 Apr 1830 3 Apr 1898 67
11 May 1866 Egremont William Lascelles 26 Jul 1825 27 Oct 1892 67
17 Nov 1868 John Hutton 10 Jan 1847 19 Dec 1921 74
5 Feb 1874 George William Elliot, later [1893] 2nd baronet 13 May 1844 15 Nov 1895 51
CONSTITUENCY ABOLISHED 1885
NORTHAMPTON (NORTHAMPTONSHIRE)
29 Mar 1660 Richard Rainsford (to Apr 1661) c 1605 17 Feb 1680
Francis Harvey [unseated on petition in favour of Sir John Norwich 21 Jun 1660] 20 Dec 1611 30 Apr 1703 91
21 Jun 1660 Sir John Norwich, 1st baronet 19 Sep 1613 9 Oct 1661 48
29 Apr 1661 Sir James Langham, later [1671] 2nd baronet c 1621 22 Aug 1699
Francis Harvey 20 Dec 1611 30 Apr 1703 91
Sir John Norwich, 1st baronet 19 Sep 1613 9 Oct 1661 48
Double return between Harvey and Norwich. Harvey seated 22 May 1661, but election declared void 13 Jun 1661
4 Nov 1661 Sir Charles Compton c 1624 30 Nov 1661
Richard Rainsford (to 1664) c 1605 17 Feb 1680
21 Feb 1662 Sir James Langham, later [1671] 2nd baronet c 1621 22 Aug 1699
Election declared void 26 Apr 1662
9 Mar 1663 Sir William Dudley [he was unseated on petition in favour of Christopher Hatton 9 Apr 1663] c 1607 18 Sep 1670
9 Apr 1663 Christopher Hatton, later [1670] 2nd Baron Hatton and [1683] 1st Viscount Hatton (to 1670) 6 Nov 1632 24 Sep 1706 73
31 Mar 1664 Sir John Bernard [he was unseated on petition in favour of Sir Henry Yelverton 26 Apr 1664] 23 Aug 1604 5 Mar 1674 69
26 Apr 1664 Sir Henry Yelverton, 2nd baronet 6 Jul 1633 3 Oct 1670 37
31 Oct 1670 Sir William Fermor, 2nd baronet later [1692] 1st Baron Leominster (to Aug 1679) 3 Aug 1648 7 Dec 1711 63
Henry O'Brien, styled Baron Ibrackan [I] c 1642 1 Sep 1678
31 Oct 1678 Ralph Montagu, later [1683] 3rd Baron Montagu, [1689] 1st Earl of Montagu and [1705] 1st Duke of Montagu 24 Dec 1638 9 Mar 1709 70
Sir William Temple, 1st baronet 25 Apr 1628 27 Jan 1699 70
Double return. Montagu declared elected 10 Nov 1678
10 Feb 1679 Sir Hugh Cholmeley, 4th baronet 21 Jul 1632 9 Jan 1689 56
21 Aug 1679 Ralph Montagu, later [1683] 3rd Baron Montagu, [1689] 1st Earl of Montagu and [1705] 1st Duke of Montagu 24 Dec 1638 9 Mar 1709 70
Sir William Langham, later [1699] 3rd baronet c 1625 29 Sep 1700
9 Mar 1685 Sir Justinian Isham, 4th baronet (to 1690) 11 Aug 1658 13 May 1730 71
Richard Rainsford c 1641 15 Mar 1703
10 Jan 1689 Sir William Langham, later [1699] 3rd baronet (to 1695) c 1625 29 Sep 1700
20 Feb 1690 Sir Thomas Samwell, 1st baronet c 1654 23 Feb 1694
9 Mar 1694 Sir Justinian Isham, 4th baronet (to 1698) 11 Aug 1658 13 May 1730 71
21 Oct 1695 Christopher Montagu (to 1702) c 1655 27 Sep 1735
20 Jul 1698 William Thursby 18 Apr 1630 4 Feb 1701 70
21 Feb 1701 Thomas Andrew c 1645 19 Oct 1722
17 Jul 1702 Sir Matthew Dudley, 2nd baronet (to 1705) 1 Oct 1661 14 Apr 1721 59
Bartholomew Tate 1666 6 Jul 1704 38
2 Nov 1704 Francis Arundell (to 1710) 3 May 1676 5 Dec 1712 36
8 May 1705 George Montagu, later [1715] 1st Earl of Halifax (to 1715) c 1684 9 May 1739
6 Oct 1710 William Wykes (to 1722) 5 May 1686 5 May 1742 56
7 Jun 1715 William Wilmer (to 1727) c 1692 3 Apr 1744
22 Mar 1722 Edward Montagu (to 1734) after 1684 2 Aug 1738
18 Aug 1727 George Compton, later [1754] 6th Earl of Northampton (to Dec 1754) 1692 6 Dec 1758 66
27 Apr 1734 William Wilmer c 1692 3 Apr 1744
13 Apr 1744 George Montagu c 1713 9 May 1780
15 Apr 1754 Charles Montagu (to 1759) after 1695 29 May 1759
9 Dec 1754 Charles Compton 30 Jan 1698 20 Nov 1755 57
9 Dec 1755 Richard Backwell (to 1761) c 1695 12 Feb 1765
6 Jun 1759 Frederick Montagu (to 1768) Jul 1733 30 Jul 1800 67
26 Mar 1761 Spencer Compton, later [1763] 8th Earl of Northampton 16 Aug 1738 7 Apr 1796 57
21 Nov 1763 Lucy Knightley 23 Feb 1742 28 Jan 1791 48
1 Apr 1768 Sir George Brydges Rodney, later [1782] 1st Baron Rodney (to 1774) 13 Feb 1719 24 May 1792 73
Sir George Osborn, 4th baronet [he was unseated on petition in favour of Thomas Howe 14 Feb 1769] 10 May 1742 29 Jun 1818 76
14 Feb 1769 Thomas Howe c 1728 14 Nov 1771
13 Dec 1771 Wilbraham Tollemache, later [1799] 6th Earl of Dysart [S] (to 1780) 23 Oct 1739 9 Mar 1821 81
10 Oct 1774 Sir George Robinson, 5th baronet 27 May 1730 10 Oct 1815 85
9 Sep 1780 George John Spencer, styled Viscount Althorp, later [1783] 2nd Earl Spencer 1 Sep 1758 10 Nov 1834 76
George Rodney, later [1792] 2nd Baron Rodney (to 1784) 25 Dec 1753 2 Jan 1802 48
26 Apr 1782 Charles Bingham, 1st Baron Lucan [I], later [1795] 1st Earl of Lucan [I] 22 Sep 1735 29 Mar 1799 63
7 Apr 1784 Charles Compton, styled Baron Compton, later [1796] 9th Earl of Northampton and [1812] 1st Marquess of Northampton (to 1796) 21 Mar 1760 24 May 1828 68
Fiennes Trotman c 1752 19 Jun 1824
21 Jun 1790 Edward Bouverie (to 1810) 5 Sep 1738 3 Sep 1810 71
9 May 1796 Spencer Perceval (to 1812)
For further information about an alleged dream which predicted Perceval's assassination, see the note at the foot of this page
1 Nov 1762 11 May 1812 49
8 Oct 1810 William Hanbury, later [1837] 1st Baron Bateman (to 1818) 24 Jun 1780 22 Jul 1845 65
26 May 1812 Spencer Joshua Alwyne Compton, styled Earl Compton from Sep 1812, later [1828] 2nd Marquess of Northampton (to 1820) 2 Jan 1790 17 Jan 1851 61
30 Jun 1818 Sir Edward Kerrison, later [1821] 1st baronet 30 Jul 1776 9 Mar 1853 76
11 Mar 1820 Sir George Robinson, 6th baronet (to 1832) 12 Jan 1766 23 Nov 1833 67
William Leader Maberly 7 May 1798 6 Feb 1885 86
4 Aug 1830 Sir Robert Henry Gunning, 3rd baronet 26 Dec 1795 22 Sep 1862 66
31 May 1831 Robert Vernon Smith, later [1859] 1st Baron Lyveden (to 1859) 23 Feb 1800 10 Nov 1873 73
13 Dec 1832 Charles Ross c 1800 21 Mar 1860
26 Jul 1837 Raikes Currie 1801 16 Oct 1881 80
30 Mar 1857 Charles Gilpin (to Oct 1874) 1815 8 Sep 1874 59
5 Jul 1859 Anthony Henley, 3rd Baron Henley [I] 12 Apr 1825 27 Nov 1898 73
7 Feb 1874 Pickering Phipps (to 1880) 1827 14 Sep 1890 63
7 Oct 1874 Charles George Merewether 1823 26 Jun 1884 60
5 Apr 1880 Henry Du Pré Labouchère (to 1906)
For further information on this MP, see the note at the foot of this page
1831 15 Jan 1912 80
Charles Bradlaugh [His seat was declared vacant and a new election was ordered to be held. At this election, held on 9 Apr 1881, he was again returned. He was then expelled from the House on 22 Feb 1882. At the subsequent by-election held on 4 Mar 1882, he was returned once again]
For information on this MP, see the note at the foot of this page
26 Sep 1833 30 Jan 1891 57
13 Feb 1891 Moses Philip Manfield [kt 1894] 26 Jul 1819 31 Jul 1899 80
16 Jul 1895 Charles Gustavus Adolphus Drucker
For information on this MP, see the note at the foot of this page
1 May 1868 10 Dec 1903 35
4 Oct 1900 John Greenwood Shipman (to 1910) 1848 20 Oct 1918 70
15 Jan 1906 Herbert Woodfield Paul 16 Jan 1853 4 Aug 1935 82
18 Jan 1910 Hastings Bertrand Lees‑Smith 26 Jan 1878 18 Dec 1941 63
Charles Albert McCurdy (to 1923) 13 Mar 1870 10 Nov 1941 71
REPRESENTATION REDUCED TO ONE MEMBER 1918
6 Dec 1923 Margaret Grace Bondfield 17 Mar 1873 16 Jun 1953 80
29 Oct 1924 Sir Arthur Edward Aveling Holland 13 Apr 1862 7 Dec 1927 65
9 Jan 1928 Cecil John L'Estrange Malone
For further information on this MP, see the note at the foot of the page containing details of the members for Leyton East
7 Sep 1890 25 Feb 1965 74
27 Oct 1931 Sir Mervyn Edward Manningham‑Buller, 3rd baronet 16 Jan 1876 22 Aug 1956 80
6 Dec 1940 Gerard Spencer Summers [kt 1956] 27 Oct 1902 19 Jan 1976 73
26 Jul 1945 Reginald Thomas Paget, later [1975] Baron Paget of Northampton [L] 2 Sep 1908 2 Jun 1990 81
CONSTITUENCY SPLIT INTO "NORTH" AND "SOUTH" DIVISIONS FEB 1974
 

James Paull
MP for Newtown (Isle of Wight) 1805‑1806
After commencing his career as an employee of a Scottish lawyer, Paull went out to India while still a teenager. He became a trader at Lucknow, where he made a fortune, returning to England in 1801. Here he soon lost his fortune in bad speculations, and the next year he returned to India to recoup his losses. Back in Lucknow, he quarrelled with the Governor-General of India, the Marquess Wellesley, and Paull's grievance against Wellesley consumed the remainder of his life.
Paull arrived back in England in early 1805 and shortly after entered the House of Commons as a result of purchasing the seat of Newtown (Isle of Wight). In the House he devoted himself to his vendetta against Wellesley, charging him with misconduct towards the Indian princes (particularly the Nawab of Oudh in whose territory Lucknow was situated), and also with 'profuse expenditure'. He was unable to find a seat at the 1806 general election.
The charges against Wellesley were dismissed by the House on 15 March 1808. By this time, Paull was almost certainly deranged, and the failure of his action against Wellesley, together with gambling losses, and his inability to find a wealthy wife, appears to have tipped him over the edge.
The following report of Paull's death is taken from Jackson's Oxford Journal of 23 April 1808:-
'We have to add to the late melancholy list of suicides, that of James Paull, Esq., whose celebrity in public affairs, and particularly in election contests, will not be shortly forgotten. The dreadful act appears to have been meditated for some time, and was effected between four and five on Friday afternoon [i.e. 15 April 1808]. Mr. Paull possessed great pride, an ardent mind, and his temper was considerably soured by serious disappointments, both in public and private life. His expectations appear to have been all disappointed, and his circumstances were, from losses at play, and a liberality approaching to profusion, altogether irreparable, when he rushed into the presence of his Creator.
Saturday evening an inquest was held on the body, before the Coroner of the county of Middlesex, at No. 2, Charles-street, St. James-square, the house of Mr. Paull. The first witness called was the butler, Mr. Paull's confidential servant. He stated, that a very considerable alteration had taken place for several months in the conduct of his master. His orders were frequently contradictory - he was irresolute, fluctuating and depressed. The change was so great as to be perceived by every one who was acquainted with his master, and he was convinced that he was very much deranged. About half after four on Friday, knowing that Mr. Paull was engaged to dine out, he went up to his bed room, knocked at the door, and reminded him of the engagement. The answer was, that he should be rung for shortly. Having remained below for some time, he was alarmed by the screams of the servant maid, who had attended Mr. Paull in his long illness. He instantly returned to the bed room, which he entered, and found his master weltering in his blood, reclining upon the bed, with his throat severed from ear to ear, a vein opened in his right arm, and another wound in the upper part of the arm. He said Mr. Paull was left handed. He found near the bed a basin on his dressing table, nearly two thirds full of blood, a razor, and a lancet, both of which were bloody. He lost no time in sending for Surgeon Brodie, who had attended his master during his late illness.
Surgeon Brodie deposed, that, having attended Mr. Paull during his long illness, he had many opportunities of observing, both then and from that time, the alteration which had taken place in his mind. He was perfectly convinced that his intellects had undergone a material derangement, and stated, that his death was occasioned by the wounds which had been inflicted on Friday.
The testimony of Mr. Brodie, as to the derangement of Mr. Paull's mind was fully confirmed by Mr. Paull's friends, Mr. Sloper and Mr. Butler. The servant maid, who discovered Mr. Paull in the dreadful situation described, was next called. She said, that knowing her master was to dine out, she went to call him between four and five. She knocked at the door, and was answered by him in a very faint voice, that he would ring presently. She here described herself as much affected by the tone in which he spoke, and recollected his late alteration in conduct, and more particularly what he had said to her some days before, when expressing his concern for the great trouble he had given her, he added, "an end will be shortly put to it all". She acquainted the butler with her fears, and determined to go into the bed chamber by a side door, which opened from a dressing closet. She accordingly went up again, and having entered that way, she found her master in the situation described by the butler, whom she called up by her shrieks and screams.
It appeared that Mr. Sloper and Mr. Butler found a will made by Mr. Paull, which they sealed up, and deposited in his secretaire, until the arrival of his relatives in town.
Juror's verdict, Lunacy.
Peter Arthur David Baker
MP for Norfolk South 1950‑1954
Baker holds the dubious distinction of being the last MP expelled from the House of Commons, although, to be fair, a number of other MPs who came after him would have been expelled had they not resigned before the axe fell - for example, John Stonehouse.
Baker was the son of an army officer and, following his father's footsteps, he joined the Royal Artillery, later transferring to the Intelligence Corps. During World War II, working for the Dutch resistance he was captured, escaped twice but was re-captured on both occasions. For his exploits he was awarded the Military Cross and promoted to Captain. After the war had finished, he founded a publishing company.
When he was elected in 1950, Baker, then aged 28, was the "baby of the House" - i.e. its youngest member. Despite his age, he was already running numerous businesses, including four publishing houses, a wine merchant, an aircraft company, a whisky company, and television, radio, investment and property companies, employing more than 500 staff in total. At one stage, a then-unknown Muriel Spark was his secretary.
By 1953, Baker was facing a major liquidity crisis and his business conduct began to turn seriously fraudulent. He forged twelve bills of exchange worth a total of £13,200, which were accompanied by a letter supposedly written by Sir John Mann, which Baker simply dictated to his typist and then forged Sir John's signature thereto. This letter authorised Baker to use the bills as he chose and helped to secure an £8,500 loan from the Edgware Trust. Between December 1953 and May 1954, six of the bills of exchange matured and were paid. However, an alert cashier noticed irregularities in the seventh bill, which as a result was not honoured.
Baker then borrowed £3,000 from the Bank of America, secured by forged guarantees. Next came a loan for £49,000 from Barclays, again secured on three forged signatures.
While all this was going on, Baker's mental health appeared to be going downhill rapidly. Baker later admitted that "there were whole weeks in 1953 and 1954 that I cannot remember. Often I had to check up in Hansard to make sure I had attended the Commons and voted". On one occasion, he was approached in House of Commons Smoking Room by the Deputy Speaker Sir Charles McAndrew, who prided himself on knowing every MP. He was puzzled that he couldn't recall Baker. "Please don't apologize", said Baker, "I have no idea who you are either."
On 28 May 1954, Baker was confronted by Sir John Mann and another businessman whose signature Baker had forged. Baker broke down; "I have been ill for a long time", he cried. He checked into Holloway Sanatorium, where he was arrested shortly thereafter. At his trial at the Old Bailey he confessed to six charges of forgery and was sentenced to seven years in prison. When Baker was ushered away, the prison escort whispered: "Seems like a long time to me", to which Baker responded: "Sounds a bloody sight longer to me."
Charles Gavan Duffy
MP for New Ross 1852‑1856
Duffy was born at Monaghan, the son of John Duffy, a prosperous shopkeeper; his mother was a daughter of Patrick Gavan, a gentleman farmer. Monaghan was a city divided by religious feuds between Catholics and Protestants. One of Duffy's earliest recollections was witnessing the murder of a Catholic by an Orangeman in the street outside his home.
When Charles was 10 his father died and the family's prosperity decayed. Some years later he made a political enemy of the local squire, Lord Rossmore, who retaliated by refusing to renew Mrs Duffy's lease on income-producing properties, thus confirming in young Duffy a revolutionary brand of politics.
As a boy he was deeply religious, but this was eventually displaced by nationalism. He attended Belfast Grammar School, the only Catholic in a sea of Protestants. His experience there gave him a wider and more humane attitude to the bitter sectarian feuds of his country and prepared him for the part he was to play in later life in Ireland.
Punished by his headmaster for an offence he did not commit, Duffy left Belfast Grammar School at 16 and continued his studies at home. At 18, he obtained a job on The Northern Herald, a non-sectarian nationalist journal. This was followed by appointment as a sub-editor on the Dublin Morning Register and, by the time he was 26, he had become a journalist of national repute as founder, part-owner and editor of The Nation, a journal devoted to a united and independent Ireland.
In 1844, Duffy was arrested for sedition, on the grounds that he had incited the stoppage of troop trains. He was imprisoned, but allowed to write and publish articles for his paper. At his trial he was released on a technicality. In 1848, Duffy was accused of treasonable felony and, although arraigned four times in 1848 and 1849, he was never convicted, as the juries could never agree.
He was elected to the House of Commons in 1852 as a member of the Irish Independence Party, but sectarian differences caused this party to disintegrate. Despairing of the prospects for Irish independence, he migrated to Australia with his family. Duffy's reputation had preceded him and he received a warm welcome in Melbourne. Within a very short time he was elected to the Victorian Parliament where he quickly became a cabinet minister on a number of occasions, culminating in his becoming Premier of Victoria between June 1871 and June 1872.
Duffy was knighted in 1873 and promoted to KCMG in 1877. Between 1876 and 1880 he was Speaker of the Victorian Assembly, following which he left Australia and settled in the south of France, where he wrote a series of books on Irish and colonial history and politics and an autobiography. He died at Nice in 1903 and was buried in Ireland.
Duffy was married three times; firstly in 1842 to Emily McLaughlin, by whom he had a son, John. Emily died in 1845 and he married, as his second wife, Susan Hughes, by whom he had his second and third sons, Frank and Charles. Susan died in 1878 and in 1881, he married, as his third wife, Louise Hall who died in 1890, by whom another son, George, was born.
Of his sons, all attained high office. The eldest, John (1844-1917), sat in the Victorian Parliament between 1874 and 1904 and was several times a cabinet minister. Frank (1852-1936) became Chief Justice of Australia between 1930 and 1936 and was knighted. Frank's son Charles also became a Supreme Court judge. Duffy's third son, Charles, was Clerk of the Australian Senate. His youngest son, George (1882-1951), was briefly Minister for Foreign Affairs in the Irish cabinet, before becoming President of the High Court of Ireland.
Spencer Perceval
MP for Northampton 1796‑1812
Spencer Perceval became the only English Prime Minister to be assassinated when he was shot in the lobby of the House of Commons on 11 May 1812 by John Bellingham, who had an imagined grievance against the Government. Bellingham had been imprisoned in Russia for a number of years and, after his eventual release, he petitioned the UK government for compensation but was refused. Accordingly, he took matters into his own hands. It is not the purpose of this note to describe the assassination, since details of it are readily available on, for example, Wikipedia - rather, this note is aimed at providing information in relation to an extraordinary dream which predicted the assassination.
The following story is taken from The Book of Days edited by Robert Chambers and which was published in 1869. Throughout the story the name of Perceval is incorrectly shown as Percival.
It has often been stated that Mr. John Williams of Scorrier House, near Redruth, in Cornwall - a man noted through a long life for his vigorous practical talents as a miner and mining speculator - had a dream representing the assassination of Mr. Percival on the night after its occurrence, when the fact could not be known to him by any ordinary means, and mentioned the fact to many persons during the interval between the dream and his receiving notice of its fulfilment. In a book of old world matters, it may be allowable to give such particulars of this alleged affair as can be gathered, more particularly as it is seldom that such occurrences can be stated on evidence so difficult to be dealt with by incredulity. It may be remarked that, unlike many persons who are supposed or alleged to have had such revelations, Mr. Williams never made any secret of his story, but freely related every particular, even to individuals who meant to advert to it in print. Thus a minute account of it found its way into the Times of 28th August 1828 [either this date is incorrect or the account never appeared at all], and another was furnished to Dr. Abercrombie, and inserted by him in his Inquiries Concerning the Intellectual Powers; being directly drawn, he tells us, by an eminent medical friend of his own, from 'the gentleman to whom the dream occurred'. This latter account has been republished in a work by Dr. Clement Carlyon, formerly a Fellow of Pembroke College, who states that he had more than once heard the particulars from Mr. Williams's own lips. Finally, Mr. Hill, a barrister, and grandson of Mr. Williams, communicated to Dr. Carlyon a narrative which he drew up from the words of his grand-father, agreeing in all essential respects with the other recitals.
According to Dr. Abercrombie's account, which Dr. Carlyon mainly follows:
"Mr. Williams dreamt that he was in the lobby of the House of Commons, and saw a small man enter, dressed in a blue coat, and white waistcoat. Immediately after, he saw a man dressed in a brown coat with yellow basket buttons draw a pistol from under his coat and discharge it at the former, who instantly fell, the blood issuing from a wound a little below the left breast."
According to Mr. Hill's account, 'he heard the report of the pistol, saw the blood fly out and stain the waistcoat, and saw the colour of the face change'.
Dr. Abercrombie's recital goes on to say:
"he saw the murderer seized by some gentlemen who were present, and observed his countenance, and on asking who the gentleman was who had been shot, he was told it was the Chancellor (Mr. Percival was at the time Chancellor of the Exchequer.) He then awoke, and mentioned the dream to his wife, who made light of it."
We now pursue the more detailed narrative of the Times:
"Mrs. Williams very naturally told him it was only a dream, and recommended him to be composed, and go to sleep as soon as he could. He did so, and shortly after, again awoke her, and said that he had the second time had the same dream; whereupon she observed he had been so much agitated by his former dream, that she supposed it had dwelt on his mind, and begged of him to try to compose himself and go to sleep, which he did. A third time the vision was repeated; on which, notwithstanding her entreaties that he would be quiet, and endeavour to forget it, he arose, it then being between one and two o'clock, and dressed himself. At breakfast, the dreams were the sole subject of conversation; and in the forenoon Mr. Williams went to Falmouth, where he related the particulars of them to all of his acquaintance that he met. On the following day, Mr. Tucker, of Tremanton Castle, accompanied by his wife, a daughter of Mr. Williams, went to Scorrier House about dusk.
"Immediately after the first salutations, on their entering the parlour, where were Mr., Mrs. and Miss Williams, Mr. Williams began to relate to Mr. Tucker the circumstances of his dream: and Mrs. Williams observed to her daughter, Mrs. Tucker, laughingly, that her father could not even suffer Mr. Tucker to be seated before he told him of his nocturnal visitation: on the statement of which Mr. Tucker observed that it would do very well for a dream to have the Chancellor in the lobby of the House of Commons, but he could not be found there in reality [Tucker obviously meaning the Lord Chancellor]; and Mr. Tucker then asked what sort of man he appeared to be, when Mr. Williams minutely described him; to which Mr. Tucker replied, "Your description is not that of the Chancellor, but it is certainly that of Mr. Percival, the Chancellor of the Exchequer: and although he has been to me the greatest enemy I ever met with through life, for a supposed cause which had no foundation in truth (or words to that effect), I should be exceedingly sorry, indeed, to hear of his being assassinated, or of injury of the kind happening to him."
"Mr. Tucker then inquired of Mr. Williams if he had ever seen Mr. Percival, and was told that he had never seen him; nor had ever even written to him, either on public or private business; in short, that he never had anything to do with him, nor had he ever been in the lobby of the House of Commons in his life. Whilst Mr. Williams and Mr. Tucker were still standing, they heard a horse gallop to the door of the house, and immediately after Mr. Michael Williams, of Treviner (son of Mr. Williams, of Scorrier), entered the room, and said that he had galloped out from Truro (from which Scorrier is distant seven miles), having seen a gentleman there who had come by that evening's mail from London, who said that he had been in the lobby of the House of Commons on the evening of the 11th, when a man called Bellingham had shot Mr. Percival; and that, as it might occasion some great ministerial changes, and might affect Mr. Tucker's political friends, he had come as fast as he could to make him acquainted with it, having heard at Truro that he had passed through that place on his way to Scorrier. After the astonishment which this intelligence created had a little subsided, Mr. Williams described most particularly the appearance and dress of the man that he saw in his dream fire the pistol, as he had before done of Mr. Percival.
"About six weeks after, Mr. Williams, having some business in town, went, accompanied by a friend, to the House of Commons, where, as he has already been observed, he had never before been. Immediately that he came to the steps at the entrance of the lobby, he said, "This place is as distinctly within my recollection in my dream as any in my house", and he made the same observation when he entered the lobby. He then pointed out the exact spot where Bellingham stood when he fired, and which Mr. Percival had reached when he was struck by the ball, and when and how he fell. The dress both of Mr. Percival and Bellingham agreed with the description given by Mr. Williams, even to the most minute particulars.
It is worthy of remark that Mr. Williams died in April 1841, after the publication of the two accounts of his dream which are here quoted, and no contradiction of the narrative, or of any particular of it, ever appeared. He is described in the obituary of the Gentleman's Magazine, as a man in the highest degree estimable. "His integrity," says this record, "was proof against all temptation and above all reproach".
Henry du Pré Labouchère
MP for Windsor 1865‑1866, Middlesex 1867‑1868 and Northampton 1880‑1905
The following biography of Henry Labouchère appeared in the May 1953 issue of the Australian monthly magazine Parade. It contains a number of factual errors, which I have done my best to correct. The article concentrates largely on Labouchère's life before entering politics and, consequently, merely touches upon his political career. It makes no reference, for example, to his virulent anti-Semitism and homophobia, nor to the "Labouchère Amendment" (also known as the "Blackmailer's Charter") which criminalised sexual activity between men and allowed the prosecution of Oscar Wilde ten years later.
In turn diplomat, theatre owner, war correspondent, editor, newspaper proprietor and politician, Henry du Pre Labouchère, fighting founder of London's newspaper, "Truth," "Lobby" to his friends, was one of the most versatile and colourful figures on the English scene during the 19th century. In his youth he kept a diary for a time, and the last entry - made when he was 22 years old, records his intention of making love affairs his chief hobby. For 13 years he put his resolution enthusiastically into practice in various corners of the globe. Then he fell genuinely in love with a beautiful London actress, Henrietta Hodson [1841-1910].
She was already married, though estranged from her husband, but social conventions never worried Labouchère. He persuaded her to live with him until he was able to marry her in a registry office two years later. A rich man, he was always frugal in money matters and to a friend he expressed great delight that he was, as he put it, able to make an honest woman of Henrietta for only 2s 6d - the registry fee. [This chronology is totally incorrect - they were not married until 1887- see below].
The eldest of a family of 12, Labouchère was born in London on November 9, 1831. After completing his schooling at Eton he put in two years at Trinity College, Cambridge, where he quickly distinguished himself as an inveterate gambler. During his stay at the University he never missed a meeting at Newmarket racecourse, located only 12 miles away. To add variety to the risks, he frequently made overnight visits to London and hazarded his money on games even more chancy than racing.
On one of these surreptitious visits to the city he had the bad luck to run into his father in the Strand. Asked to explain his presence, Labouchère looked coldly at his angry parent and pretended not to know him. Expressing surprise and annoyance at being questioned by a stranger, he walked away and boarded the next train for Cambridge. Hurrying back to Trinity College, he had barely time to change his clothes and appear to be deep in study before his father arrived. Labouchère senior had not believed in the existence of a "double", and was taken aback to find his son working diligently. Anxious to make amends for his unworthyuspicions, he took Henry out to dinner.
This capacity for quick thinking was to save Labouchère many embarrassments later in life. While at the University he amassed debts totalling £6,000, and these his long-suffering parent paid. Following a dispute with the [University] authorities [who accused him of cheating and threatened to withhold his degree], Labouchère returned home, ran up more debts, and led a fast life that shocked his deeply-religious family. For some months he was a familiar figure at taverns and casinos both reputable and disreputable, and indulged freely in most of the commoner vices. Alcohol was not one of his failings, however, and he retained a dislike for it all his life. In despair his father provided a tutor and sent Henry off to the Continent.
The tour did nothing to steady him. His tutor was weak and Labouchère found the casinos at Wiesbaden and the ladies of Paris as alluring as their London equivalents. Funds rapidly ran out and he had to return home. At the end of 1852 he was packed off to Mexico, where his father had substantial business connections. Labouchère made no use of these, but for nearly a year travelled about Mexico, gambling and making love. After throwing in his lot with a bandit chieftain, he joined a circus as an acrobat to improve his chances of wooing a glamorous horsewoman. Next he acted as a self-appointed arbitrator between two warring tribes and nearly lost his life in the negotiations.
The lure of gold drew him northwards to California at the end of 1853. In the rough life of a mining boom town he added to his experience by becoming a member of one of the improvised juries that sentenced a man to be lynched, but he left without making his fortune. Travelling across the United States, he fell in with a band of Chippewa Indians and lived with them for several weeks on the shores of Lake Superior. He won rapid favour with the chief's daughter, who did his cooking for him and generally ministered to his needs.
He tired of the peaceful life in the woods and after crossing the lake in a canoe, headed for New York. There he found plenty to occupy his time, and afterwards wrote: "I have a great weakness for the American girl. She always puts her heart into what she is about. When she flirts she does it conscientiously."
From New York he wrote a long-deferred letter to his father, who seems to have been far from delighted at the prospect of his return to England. The old man used his influence to have his prodigal son appointed to the British Diplomatic Service as attaché at Washington and Labouchère took up his new duties in July, 1854.
Always critical of formality and humbug, he began an uneasy ten years in the public service. After only 18 months in Washington, Labouchère was transferred to Munich. There he had daily conversations with old ex-King Ludwig I, who had lost his throne through devotion to his pretty mistress, Lola Montez. Stationed next at Stockholm, he distinguished himself by challenging the Austrian Charge d"Affaires to a duel. Fortunately neither combatant was injured. In the following year he went to Frankfurt, which he found exceedingly dull. By dividing his liberal spare time between women in ill-repute and the gambling houses at Wiesbaden and Homburg, he soon brought himself into disfavour with the British colony, and he was hastily transferred to the Imperial Russian capital of St. Petersburg.
He packed up, but went only so far as Homburg, where he had recently developed an interesting intrigue with a lady of the town. After some months the Ambassador at St. Petersburg complained that he was an attaché short and the Foreign Office traced Labouchère to Homburg. Asked to explain his presence there, he answered that as no travelling expenses were given him he had assumed he was expected to walk to Russia, and at Homburg his feet had become too sore to continue. He hoped to be able to proceed on foot, he said, after a few more weeks' rest.
The firm tone of the Foreign Office's reply made him decide his feet were not so sore after all, and he hurried to the Russian capital. He found it much more to his liking than he expected. In court circles they gambled freely for high stakes and there was ample scope for love-making. He established a very close liaison with his laundress, a beautiful, lithe, dark-haired lass whose husband worked in the government printing office. By increasing his payments to her he was able to arrange that she bring him advance copies of the minutes of Cabinet meetings. Consequently the British were well informed as to Russian intentions.
Appointments at Dresden and Constantinople followed, but between the two jobs Labouchère had nearly a year's unauthorised holiday on full pay in Florence. Due to some error he had been appointed Secretary to the Legation of Parana, a remote South American republic that had ceased to exist some years before [it was located in southern Brazil]. The idyll came to an end when, tiring of Italy, he visited London and met Sir Edward [sic - Edmund] Hammond in Pall Mall. Sir Edward [later 1st Baron Hammond], a permanent Under-Secretary at the Foreign Office [between 1854 and 1873], was known for his severity and reputed to be totally lacking in humour. He immediately demanded to know what Labouchère was doing in England. On learning the facts, he asked why Labouchère hadn't directed the attention of the Foreign Office to the error. "I thought it was just one of your little jokes, sir," the young diplomat undiplomatically explained. He was promptly sent to Constantinople, and during his stay there his father died in 1863.
Less than a year later, Labouchère was promoted Second Secretary at Buenos Aires, but refused to go. He had inherited a tidy sum from his father and welcomed an opportunity of leaving the diplomatic service, of which he had no high opinion. A free agent once more, he turned his attention to politics and was elected one of the two members for Windsor at the British general election in 1865. He treated politics with characteristic cynicism and openly boasted in his club of the bribery and corruption employed by his agents. Word soon spread, and in a few months a Select Committee declared the election of Labouchère and his colleague invalid.
About this time he became interested in the theatre and was captivated by the youthful loveliness of an actress, Henrietta Hodson. He found she was the wife of a Bristol solicitor, but that their marriage was on the rocks. Labouchère fell passionately in love with her and she reciprocated his affection. They lived together as man and wife, and after Labouchère had been returned to Parliament at a Middlesex by-election in 1867, visited Europe on a short "honeymoon". On their return to England, Labouchère bought a partnership in the Queen's Theatre. Many famous actors and actresses appeared there, but the venture was not a financial success.
1868 was big year for Labouchère. Henrietta's husband divorced her, and she and Labouchère were free to embark on a marriage that was to continue in supreme happiness for 42 years. [This is incorrect - they married after the death of Henrietta's husband in 1887]. He bought a quarter share in the Daily News - first Liberal newspaper in England; and he lost his seat in the House of Commons.
The death of his uncle, Lord Taunton, in the following year made Labouchère heir both to the title [this is not correct - the peerage became extinct] and a fortune of £250,000. Critical of artificial distinctions, he refused to succeed to the baronetcy [it was a barony, not a baronetcy]. But he had no scruples about accepting the money. This sudden access to great wealth made little difference to Labouchère, since he loved to spend as little as possible. A chain smoker to the end, he always purchased only the cheapest cigarettes costing a penny for a packet of ten. Even at the age of 75 when he was virtually a millionaire, he boasted that meals in London cost him only ten pence a day.
The Franco-Prussian War found him in France, and he remained in Paris during the famous four months' siege of 1870-71. Food grew scarce and almost anything edible found its way to the table. Labouchère records is his letters that while he thought horseflesh tolerable, cat was excellent, and donkey better still. Throughout his stay in the beleaguered city, Labouchère wrote daily despatches for the Daily News. These he smuggled out of the city in unusual ways. Some went by balloon, some by pigeon, and some were sewn in the bootsoles of peasants who stole through enemy lines.
Soon after his return to England he was appointed city editor of the World, a Radical newspaper designed to attack social abuses. Labouchère set about the task with gusto, but soon felt that he wanted "a pair of boots of his own to kick with". Rebelling against the conservative, restrained reporting of his day, he decided to found a paper of his own, to be written in a racy, readable style, to expose dishonesty and shams and to tell the truth fearlessly about contemporary people and events. And so, in 1877, his famous weekly, Truth, was launched. Labouchère was cynically doubtful whether truth and modern society were compatible, and it was with difficulty that friends prevailed on him not to name his new paper the Lyre. Labouchère edited it himself until he re-entered Parliament in 1880, and he continued to contribute articles almost up to the time of his death. His frank, fearless statements of fact involved him in many libel suits, most of which he defended successfully.
On his retirement from politics in 1905 after 25 years in continuous membership of Parliament, he was created a Privy Counsellor. With his wife and daughter he went to live in a magnificent villa near Florence. His wife died in 1910 and was buried at San Miniato in a grave he was soon to share. Death came to him on January 15, 1912.
Charles Bradlaugh
MP for Northampton 1880‑1891
The following biography of Charles Bradlaugh appeared in the Australian monthly magazine Parade in its August 1965 issue. While it almost certainly sensationalises some aspects of his career, particularly his attempts to take the oath, it provides an interesting view of his life.
Unprecedented uproar convulsed England's House of Commons one February afternoon in 1882. As the weary session was drawing to a close, a tall, thick-set man suddenly ran down nimbly to the centre of the floor. Whipping from his pockets in swift succession a Bible, a piece of paper and a pencil stub, he gabbled some inaudible words and announced to the astonished House that he had just taken his parliamentary oath. Highlight of a monumental life-long struggle, this incident was one of many bitter clashes in [Charles] Bradlaugh's turbulent campaign to defend his right to hold unpopular principles.
Charles Bradlaugh was born in London on September 26, 1833, eldest of a family of seven children. His father was a £2-a-week solicitor's clerk, his mother an Irish nursemaid. At 14 he became a coal merchant's clerk. Already his young mind responded eagerly to the finer issues of the fight for political and social betterment being fought by the ill-fated Chartists. Every Sunday afternoon he hung about Bonner's Fields listening avidly to open-air tub-thumpers. Soon he was making vigorous speeches of his own. When he confided serious religious doubts to his family's minister, the worthy cleric hot-footed it to inform his employers. Horror-stricken, they gave the irreligious upstart three days to alter his views or get out. On the third day he packed his things and left home and job.
Years of grinding poverty followed. Between studying French and Hebrew, Bradlaugh fell briefly in love with pale-faced Hypatia Carlile, daughter of a deceased freethinker. One freezing December day in 1850 he slipped secretly away and joined the 7th Dragoon Guards as private. His next three years were spent in Dublin. While voyaging to Ireland, Bradlaugh's fellow recruits greeted the gaunt newcomer by playing football with his hat and making missiles of his Greek and Arabic dictionaries. When he aggressively stoop up to the crafty ship's captain who was trying to cheat the seasick soldiers out of money promised them for helping shift cargo, they immediately lionised the young man. Once in barracks he consolidated his popularity by licking the regimental bully in a fierce hand-to-hand scrap. Always an ardent teetotaller, he met an offer of a glass of port from his quartermaster's daughter with an impassioned temperance harangue.
When a dead great-aunt's legacy enabled him to purchase his army discharge, Bradlaugh threw himself whole-heartedly into free-thought agitation. From about 1857 he stumped up and down the countryside preaching atheism. Before long, mining villages, factory towns and London suburbs thundered to his full-blooded oratory. At Wigan, windows were broken, lime and water poured down the ventilators of his lecture hall. On a subsequent visit he narrowly escaped injury from flying brickbats. At Norwich he was hooted and stoned; at Burnley swept from the platform by an enraged mob.
London was more severe. Here his association with the vehement Parliamentary Reform League exploded in several street free-for-alls. Spectacular end to his Reform League activities came in July, 1866, when, prohibited by police from holding a public meeting in Hyde Park, his followers stormed the railings and smashed them down. Soldiers had to restore order. Each week he tossed off inflammatory articles for his paper, the National Reformer, under the pen-name Iconoclast - "destroyer of idols." Soon this pseudonym became notorious.
Never one to shirk a legal fight, Bradlaugh initiated scores of actions that made him one of the busiest litigants in England. His dispute with a crusty old judge who refused to hear an atheist's evidence led to passing of the Evidence Amendment Act in 1869, by which non-believers were permitted to make an affirmation in court instead of an oath.
Although earning £1,000 annually by his lectures, England's foremost controversialist lived in squalid three-and-sixpenny East End lodgings, while his wife and two daughters stayed in the country. Mrs. Bradlaugh was never seen in public. Throughout their 15 years' marriage her famous husband guarded a terrible secret - she was a hopeless dipsomaniac. Susannah Bradlaugh died, a pitiable alcoholic wreck, in 1870. To the very end no one outside the family knew of her abject condition. Charles Bradlaugh drowned his sorrow by plunging anew into his whirlwind life of speechmaking, pamphleteering, litigation and fisticuffs.
He collected 100 guineas on behalf Garibaldi's Italian rebels, and earned warm gratitude of leading Frenchmen for his courageous championship of France in the Franco-German War of 1870. In a visit to Spain in 1873 he was feted and honoured at a magnificent Madrid dinner by swarthy Senor Castelar [Emilio Castelar y Ripoll 1832-1899], head of the short-lived Spanish Republic.
Back in England, he held an open-air protest meeting against the Tory Government's pro-Turkish policy. He had hardly finished speaking before a hired posse fell upon his party wielding metal bludgeons. Murderous blows rained own on his upraised arm which was seriously injured. Jumping to his feet, Bradlaugh struck five successive blows with his good arm which sent five men to St. George's Hospital. When a well-intentioned friend attempted to seize his baton he received a broken head for his pains. One day in 1876 Bradlaugh had just conducted a lecture [at] Hoxton's dingy Hall of Science when a pugnacious, vibrant woman strode up and introduced herself. For the next nine years she played a leading part in his movement. Her name was Mrs. Annie Besant [1847-1933, later famous as head of the Theosophy movement].
On his return six months later from a wildly successful American tour, he found that in his absence the determined Annie had shot to the top by sheer force of personality. Together they made an invincible team. Their first tussle with authority became a 19th century cause celebre. Deliberately flouting police bans, they re-published a popular pamphlet called "Fruits of Philosophy." Constables' eyes popped when they read brazen advertisements announcing the day and hour when this suppressed "obscenity" would be on sale. Haled before a judge, Bradlaugh and Besant defended themselves with such eloquence that they were acquitted on the spot [This is not correct - they were both fined heavily and sentenced to six months' in prison, but these sentences were overturned on a legal technicality in the Court of Appeal].
In 1880, 12 years after his first attempt, Bradlaugh was at last elected to Parliament as junior member for Northampton in the Liberal Government of doughty, weatherbeaten Prime Minister William Gladstone. Chief obstacle to Bradlaugh's acceptance was the fact that, as a professing atheist, he could not conscientiously take the oath. Two successive Select Committees appointed to consider his case flatly contradicted each other. During their deliberations Bradlaugh stood with blanched face pressed at Parliament's glass portals, peering in at the proceedings in which he was not allowed to take part.
The day after the House, amid heated exchanges, had voted to exclude him, Bradlaugh, goaded beyond endurance, marched firmly up to the table and demanded to be sworn. As excitement mounted, the burly sergeant-at-arms, Mr. Gosset, advanced hand on sword and with his other hand pushed Bradlaugh out of the chamber into the clock tower, where he languished under custody for 24 hours. On his release he was cheered to the echo by 4,000 rough-and-ready supporters, who, at a word from Annie Besant, would have stormed Whitehall itself to rescue their hero.
Re-elected next year, the stubborn, would-be MP once more attempted to take his seat, but was removed, kicking furiously, by five guards who half-pushed, half-dragged him out by arms and coat-tails. The following day the Testament was purposely hidden to prevent Bradlaugh's making an oath by surprise. But he darted out from behind a crowd of onlookers and had to be tossed out yet again.
Farcical climax occurred on February 21, 1882, when, armed with his own Bible, Bradlaugh rushed forward and administered the oath to himself. He barely had time to kiss the book and scribble his signature on a piece of blue paper before, half-fainting, his clothes almost torn off, he was flung into the street to console himself with Annie Besant.
After his fourth re-election in 1885 he was finally permitted to sit unmolested on the benches. Three years later an Act was passed enabling freethinkers to substitute an affirmation for an oath in parliament.
On January 27, 1891, parliament in a generous tribute to the man whose sterling qualities of character evoked universal admiration, expunged from its journals all record of his numerous expulsions. Three days later Bradlaugh died.
Charles Gustavus Adolphus Drucker
MP for Northampton 1895‑1900
Drucker died in apparent mysterious circumstances in New York in December 1903. Attached below are several contemporary newspaper reports in relation to his death:-
From Chicago Daily Tribune 13 December 1903:-
Mysterious features in connection with the death of Adolphus Drucker, a former member of the British Parliament, in the alcoholic ward of Bellevue Hospital [New York], Thursday, will be investigated by the police. Friends of the dead man believe he was the victim of thugs, who drugged and robbed him. He was found wandering in the street near Grand Central Station. News of Drucker's death brings to light the fact that he was heavily insured. Companies holding policies will investigate. One of the heaviest holders of insurance on Drucker's life is Ernest Terah Hooley, the promoter, who is said to have a $100,000 policy. [For more information on Hooley, see below]. Attorney Eugene Robinson said:
"Drucker had not a penny when he was taken to the hospital, although he had plenty of money when he arrived here, and I am sure he was drugged and robbed."
The circumstances of Drucker's death may result in payment on the policies on his life being held up until the mystery is cleared. When he [Drucker] confessed bankruptcy in December 1901 owing to the collapse of his promotion on connection with British Columbia mines and ranch lands, he gave his unsecured liabilities at $1,750,000.
From Washington Post 16 December 1903:-
Investigation into the circumstances surrounding the death at Bellevue Hospital last week of Adolphus Drucker, a former member of the British Parliament, has been commenced by the police.
Drucker, who was a wealthy mine owner of British Columbia, was placed in the prison ward of the hospital, while suffering from alcoholism and died there. The inquiry was brought about by a letter written to Attorney Eugene N. Robinson, Drucker's lawyer, by James Murphy, now a prisoner in the Tombs, but who occupied a cot next to Drucker in the hospital. Murphy charges that the attendants dosed Drucker with frequent and heavy hypodermic injections of morphine, besides an internal dose of a narcotic known as "snipe", and also beat him about the head frequently and unnecessarily.
When Drucker died Murphy declared the body was hastily taken to the morgue and it is charged the hour of death was misstated. Another charge is that though friends of Drucker had several times telephoned to the hospital asking if Drucker was there, the answer was always that no such person was among the patients. It is also averred that when he was brought to Bellevue he had valuable jewellery about him and that this has disappeared.
The Irish Times 6 January 1904:-
One of the executors of the late Mr. Adolphus Drucker, formerly M.P. for Northampton, who called the attention of the Foreign Office to the circumstances surrounding Mr. Drucker's death, and asked that as a former member of Parliament the Consul-General at New York should be instructed to watch the inquiry, has received a reply from Lord Lansdowne through the Hon. F.S. Villiers. That states that the Consul-General reports that the accusation of murder and robbery was brought against the attendants in the Bellevue Hospital by a certain James Murphy, who was in the hospital pending his trial for robbery and intoxication. The letter continues: - "It appears that in September last Murphy was in the same hospital and had an altercation with one of the medical staff, at the close of which declared that he would 'get even' with him some-day. The case was investigated by the district attorney and the police, and the charges made by Murphy were found to be utterly without foundation. Mr. Drucker was delirious when brought to hospital, and had to be strapped to his cot in consequence, but the result of the investigation was to prove that he received the best treatment possible, while there was ample evidence to show that he had little or no money or jewellery in his possession at the time of his admission into hospital.
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Ernest Terah Hooley [1859-1947] was a financier and property developer who went through the 'boom and bust' cycle often experienced by such men. His obituary published in The Times of 13 February 1947 illustrates his ups and downs:-
The son of a small lace manufacturer, he realised before he was 30 that there was no future for him in the family business, and set up as a stockbroker in Nottingham. Beginning with no technical knowledge of the subject but with a gift for figures, he was soon turning over large sums of money. He realised early the potentialities of the bicycle trade, and promoted many of the pioneer companies. He then moved to London, and by 1897 was reputed to have promoted undertakings worth £30,000,000. He was also interested in the estate market, and at one time only just failed to become a member of Parliament for a Derbyshire constituency [Ilkeston]. His bankruptcy in 1898 checked, but did not halt, his career, and thereafter he began to tread more devious ways, and in the autumn of 1910 was charged with fraud and convicted. When he came out of gaol he carried on in the estate market, but was bankrupt again in 1921, and the next year was again tried for fraud and sentenced to three years' penal servitude. Now an old man he refused to give up, but his business dealings again brought him to the bankruptcy court in 1939. At the age of 85 he was still running a modest business as a property dealer.