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Nottinghamshire
Nottinghamshire
Former county constituency; for the House of Commons
County	Nottinghamshire
1290–1832
Seats	Two
Replaced by	North Nottinghamshire and South Nottinghamshire

Nottinghamshire was a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England, then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1832. It was represented by two Members of Parliament (MPs), traditionally known as Knights of the Shire.

The constituency was split into two two-member divisions, for Parliamentary purposes, by the Reform Act 1832. The county was then represented by the North Nottinghamshire and South Nottinghamshire constituencies.

Boundaries

The county of Nottinghamshire is located in the East Midlands of England. The county is known to have been represented in Parliament from 1290, although it probably sent knights of the shire to earlier meetings.

From 1295 the county and the town of Nottingham each returned two members to parliament. In 1572 East Retford was represented by two members, and in 1672 Newark-upon-Trent also. Under the Reform Act of 1832 the county returned four members in two divisions. By the act of 1885 it returned four members in four divisions; Newark and East Retford were disfranchised, and Nottingham returned three members in three divisions.

Members of Parliament

1290–1640

1305 Sir Hugh de Hercy and Thomas Malet

1316 Sir Hugh de Hercy and Lawrence Chaworth

Parliament	First member	Second member
1297	Sir John de Vilers
1307	Sir Walter Goushill of Hoveringham
1311	Sir Walter Goushill of Hoveringham
1312	John de Lisours
1313	Laurencius de Cadurcis
1318	Sir Richard Willoughby^[1]	Peter Foun^[1]
1320	John Darcy
1324	Robert de Jorce^[1]	Sir Richard de Willoughby^[1]
1361–1393	Robert Morton
1373	John Gateford
1376–1390	Sir John Burton (5 times)
1377–1388	John Annesley
1378	Sir John Leake
1378	William Neville
1379	Sir John Birmingham
1380 (Nov)	John Gateford
1381	Sir Thomas Rempston
1383	Sir Thomas Rempston
1386	Sir John Annesley	Sir John Leake^[2]
1388 (Feb)	Sir John Annesley	Sir John Leake^[2]
1388 (Sep)	Sir John Annesley	Sir Robert Cockfield^[2]
1390 (Jan)	John Gateford	Sir John Leake^[2]
1390 (Nov)	Sir John Burton	Hugh Cressy^[2]
1391	Sir Thomas Hercy	Sir Robert Cockfield^[2]
1393	Sir Thomas Rempston	John Gateford^[2]
1394	Sir William Neville	Nicholas Strelley^[2]
1395	Sir Thomas Rempston	Nicholas Burdon^[2]
1397 (Jan)	Sir Thomas Rempston	Hugh Cressy^[2]
1397 (Sep)	Sir Thomas Rempston	Robert Morton^[2]
1399	William Leek	John Gateford^[2]
1401	Sir John Burton (son of Sir John, 1376)	John Kniveton^[2]
1402	Sir John Clifton	Sir Richard Stanhope^[2]
1404 (Jan)	John Leek	Sir Richard Stanhope^[2]
1404 (Oct)	Simon Leek	Sir Richard Stanhope^[2]
1406	Sir Thomas Chaworth	Sir Richard Stanhope^[2]
1407	Sir John Zouche	Sir Hugh Hussey^[2]
1410
1411	William Rigmaiden	Thomas Staunton^[2]
1413 (Feb)
1413 (May)	Sir John Zouche	Sir Thomas Rempston II^[2]
1413 (Apr)	Sir Robert Plumpton	Henry Sutton^[2]
1414 (Nov)	Ralph Mackerell	Sir Hugh Hussey^[2]
1415
1416 (Mar)	William Compton	Sir Thomas Rempston II^[2]
1416 (Oct)
1417	Sir Thomas Chaworth	Sir Henry Pierrepont^[2]
1419	Sir John Zouche	Ralph Hussey^[2]
1420	Sir Thomas Chaworth	Ralph Mackerell^[2]
1421 (May)	Sir Thomas Chaworth	Sir William Mering^[2]
1421 (Dec)	Sir Henry Pierrepont	Sir Richard Stanhope^[2]
1422	Sir John Zouche
1423	Sir Henry Pierrepont	Sir Thomas Chaworth
1425	Sir Henry Pierrepont	Sir William Mering
1427	Ralph Mackerell^[3]
1429	John Bowes
1432	John Bowes
1435	John Bowes
1436	William Plumpton
1437	Sir Thomas Chaworth
1439	John Bowes
1442	Sir William Mering	Sir John Zouche
1445	Sir Thomas Chaworth
1510–1523	No names known^[4]
1529	Sir John Markham	Sir John Byron^[4]
1536
1539	Gervase Clifton	John Hercy^[4]
1542
1545	Sir Anthony Neville	Michael Stanhope^[4]
1547	Sir Michael Stanhope	Sir John Markham^[4]
1553 (Mar)	William Mering	George Lascelles^[4]
1553 (Oct)	Sir John Hercy	Sir William Holles^[4]
1554 (Apr)	Sir John Constable	Ellis Markham^[4]
1554 (Nov)	Richard Whalley	Ellis Markham^[4]
1555	Richard Whalley	Anthony Forster^[4]
1558	Sir John Markham	Hugh Thornhill^[4]
1559 (Jan)(writ)	Sir John Markham	John Manners^[5]
1562–1563	John Manners	John Molyneux^[5]
1571	Robert Markham	Edward Stanhope^[5]
1572	Henry Pierrepont	Edward Stanhope^[5]
1584 (Nov)	Sir Thomas Manners	Sir Robert Constable^[5]
1586	Sir Thomas Manners	Sir Thomas Stanhope^[5]
1588 (Oct)	Robert Markham	Brian Lascelles^[5]
1593 (Jan)	Sir Charles Cavendish	Philip Strelley^[5]
1597 (Oct)	John Byron	Richard Whalley^[5]
1601 (Oct)	Sir Charles Cavendish	Robert Pierrepont^[5]
1604–1611	Sir John Holles	Percival Willoughby
Addled Parliament (1614)	Sir John Holles	Sir Gervase Clifton
1621–1622	George Chaworth, 1st Viscount Chaworth
Happy Parliament (1624)	Robert Sutton
Useless Parliament (1625)	Sir Henry Stanhope
1626	Sir Henry Stanhope	Sir Thomas Hutchinson
1628	Sir John Byron	Sir Gervase Clifton
No Parliament summoned 1629–1640

1640–1832

Year		First member	First party	Second member	Second party
	April 1640	Sir Thomas Hutchinson	Parliamentarian	Robert Sutton	Royalist
	November 1640	Sir Thomas Hutchinson	Parliamentarian	Robert Sutton	Royalist
	August 1643	Hutchinson died – seat vacant		Robert Sutton	Royalist
	December 1643	Hutchinson died – seat vacant		Sutton disabled to sit – seat vacant
	1645	John Hutchinson		Gervase Pigot
	1653	John Oddingsels		Edward Cludd
1654		Representation increased to four members in First and Second Parliaments of the Protectorate
	1654	Hon. William Pierrepont, Major-General Edward Whalley, Colonel Edward Neville, Charles White
	1656	Edward Cludd, Major-General Edward Whalley, Colonel Edward Neville, Peniston Whalley
1659		Representation reverted to two members in Third Parliaments of the Protectorate
	January 1659	Colonel Edward Neville		Martin Bristow
	May 1659	Colonel John Hutchinson		One seat vacant
	March 1660	Lord Houghton		Hon. William Pierrepont
	1661	Anthony Eyre		Sir Gervase Clifton
	1666	Anthony Eyre		Sir Francis Leke
	1673	Sir Scrope Howe		Sir Francis Leke
	1679	Sir Scrope Howe		John White
	1685	Sir William Clifton, 3rd Baronet		Reason Mellish
	January 1689	Sir Scrope Howe		Lord Houghton
	May 1689			John White
	1690			William Sacheverell
	1691			John White
	1698	Sir Thomas Willoughby		Gervase Eyre
	1701	Sir Thomas Willoughby		Sir Francis Molyneux
	1702	Gervase Eyre
	1704	John Thornhagh
	1705	John Thornhagh		Sir Thomas Willoughby
	1710	The Viscount Howe		William Levinz	Tory
	1713	Hon. Francis Willoughby	Tory	William Levinz	Tory
	1722	The Viscount Howe	Whig	Sir Robert Sutton	Whig
	1732	William Levinz	Tory	Thomas Bennett	Non Partisan
	1734	William Levinz (junior)	Non Partisan	Thomas Bennett	Non Partisan
	1739	William Levinz (junior)	Non Partisan	Hon. John Mordaunt	Non Partisan
	1747	Colonel Lord Robert Sutton (Lord Robert Manners-Sutton)	Non Partisan	John Thornhagh (John Hewett)^[6]	Non Partisan
	1762	Hon. Thomas Willoughby	Non Partisan	John Thornhagh (John Hewett)^[6]	Non Partisan
	1774	Hon. Thomas Willoughby	Non Partisan	Earl of Lincoln	Non Partisan
	1775	Lord Edward Bentinck	Non Partisan	Earl of Lincoln	Non Partisan
	1778	Lord Edward Bentinck	Non Partisan	Charles Medows (Charles Pierrepont)^[7]	Non Partisan
	1796	Lord William Bentinck^[8]	Whig	Hon. Evelyn Pierrepont	Non Partisan
	1801	Lord William Bentinck^[8]	Whig	Hon. Charles Pierrepont (Viscount Newark)^[9]	Non Partisan
	1803	Anthony Hardolph Eyre	Non Partisan
	1812	Lord William Bentinck	Whig
	1814	Frank Frank (Frank Sotheron)	Tory
	1816			Lord William Bentinck	Whig
	1826			John Lumley^[10]	Whig
	1831	Evelyn Denison	Whig	John Lumley^[10]	Whig
1832		Constituency abolished: see Northern Nottinghamshire, Southern Nottinghamshire

Notes

The use of the term 'Non Partisan' in the list does not necessarily mean that the MP was not associated with a particular party or faction in Parliament. Stooks Smith only gives Nottinghamshire candidates party labels for the contested 1722 election and not again until well into the 19th century.

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d Members of Parliament 1213-1702. London: House of Commons. 1878.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p ^q ^r ^s ^t ^u ^v ^w ^x ^y ^z ^aa ^ab "History of Parliament". Retrieved 5 September 2011.
^ "MACKERELL, Ralph (d.1436), of Wilsthorpe, Derbys. and Clifton, Notts". History of Parliament Online. Retrieved 22 March 2013.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k "History of Parliament". Retrieved 5 September 2011.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j "History of Parliament". Retrieved 5 September 2011.
^ Adopted the surname Hewett in 1756
^ Adopted the surname Pierrepont in 1788
^ Stooks Smith incorrectly lists Lord Edward Bentinck as re-elected in 1796. In fact he was elected MP for Clitheroe.
^ Styled Viscount Newark from 1806
^ Styled Viscount Lumley from June 1832.

Election notes

The county franchise, from 1430, was held by the adult male owners of freehold land valued at 40 shillings or more. Each elector had as many votes as there were seats to be filled. Votes had to be cast by a spoken declaration, in public, at the hustings, which took place in Nottingham. The expense and difficulty of voting at only one location in the county, together with the lack of a secret ballot contributed to the corruption and intimidation of electors, which was widespread in the unreformed British political system.

The expense, to candidates and their supporters, of contested elections encouraged the leading families of the county to agree on the candidates to be returned unopposed whenever possible. Contested county elections were therefore unusual. Three families; the Duke of Newcastle, the Duke of Portland and the Pierreponts, all Whigs, dominated the county until well into the 19th century, which was why there was no contest after 1722.

The bloc vote electoral system was used in two seat elections and first past the post for single member by-elections. Each voter had up to as many votes as there were seats to be filled. Votes had to be cast by a spoken declaration, in public, at the hustings.

Note on percentage change calculations: Where there was only one candidate of a party in successive elections, for the same number of seats, change is calculated on the party percentage vote. Where there was more than one candidate, in one or both successive elections for the same number of seats, then change is calculated on the individual percentage vote.

Note on sources: The information for the election results given below is taken from Stooks Smith 1715–1754, Namier and Brooke 1754–1790 and Stooks Smith 1790–1832.

Election results 1715–1832

1710s –

1720s – 1730s – 1740s – 1750s – 1760s – 1770s – 1780s – 1790s – 1790s – 1800s – 1810s – 1820s – 1830s

Elections in the 1710s

General election 1715: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Francis Willoughby	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	William Levinz	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

Elections in the 1720s

General election 1722: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
Whig	Robert Sutton	1,349	25.89	N/A
Whig	Emanuel Howe	1,339	25.70	N/A
Tory	William Levinz	1,265	24.28	N/A
Tory	Francis Willoughby	1,257	24.13	N/A

Howe was a Peer of Ireland

General election 1727: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Robert Sutton	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	Emanuel Howe	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

Elections in the 1730s

Seats vacated on Howe being appointed Governor of Barbados and Sutton being expelled from the House.

By-Election May 1732: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
	Candidate	Votes	%	±%
Nonpartisan	William Levinz	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
Nonpartisan	Thomas Bennet	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
Nonpartisan hold		Swing	N/A

General election 1734: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	William Levinz (junior)	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	Thomas Bennet	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

Death of Bennet

By-Election February 1739: Nottinghamshire
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	John Mordaunt	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan hold		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1740s

General election 1741: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	William Levinz (junior)	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	John Mordaunt	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

General election 1747: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Robert Manners-Sutton	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	John Thornhagh	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

Sutton adopted the new surname of Manners-Sutton

Elections in the 1750s

General election 1 May 1754: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Robert Manners-Sutton	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	John Thornhagh	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

John Thornhagh adopted the new surname of Hewett

Elections in the 1760s

General election 8 April 1761: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Robert Manners-Sutton	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	John Hewett	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

Death of Manners-Sutton

By-Election 13 December 1762: Nottinghamshire
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Thomas Willoughby	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan hold		Swing	N/A

General election 28 March 1768: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Thomas Willoughby	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	John Hewett	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

Elections in the 1770s

General election 19 October 1774: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Henry Pelham-Clifton	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	Thomas Willoughby	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

Succession of Willoughby as the 4th Baron Middleton

By-Election 11 January 1775: Nottinghamshire
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Edward Bentinck	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan hold		Swing	N/A

Death of Lincoln

By-Election 9 December 1778: Nottinghamshire
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Charles Medows	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan hold		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1780s

General election 13 September 1780: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Edward Bentinck	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	Charles Medows	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

General election 21 April 1784: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Edward Bentinck	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	Charles Medows	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

Charles Medows adopted the surname of Pierrepont in 1788

Elections in the 1790s

General election 1790: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Edward Bentinck	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	Charles Pierrepont	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

General election 1796: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	William Bentinck	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Nonpartisan	Evelyn Pierrepont	Unopposed	N/A	N/A

Note (1796): Stooks Smith incorrectly has Lord Edward Bentinck returned at this election rather than Lord William Bentinck

Elections in the 1800s

Death of Pierrepont

By-Election November 1801: Nottinghamshire
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Charles Pierrepont	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Nonpartisan hold

General election 1802: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	William Bentinck	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Nonpartisan	Charles Pierrepont	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Resignation of Bentinck

By-Election April 1803: Nottinghamshire
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Anthony Eyre (MP)	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Nonpartisan hold

Pierrepont became known by the courtesy title of Viscount Newark, when his father was advanced in the peerage by being created Earl Manvers in 1806.

General election 1806: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Charles Pierrepont	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Nonpartisan	Anthony Eyre (MP)	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

General election 1807: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Charles Pierrepont	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Nonpartisan	Anthony Eyre (MP)	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Elections in the 1810s

General election 1812: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	Charles Pierrepont	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Nonpartisan	William Bentinck	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Resignation of Bentinck

By-Election April 1814: Nottinghamshire
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Tory	Frank Sotheron	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Tory gain from Nonpartisan

Succession of Newark as 2nd Earl Manvers

By-Election June 1816: Nottinghamshire
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Nonpartisan	William Bentinck	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Nonpartisan hold

General election 1818: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Tory	Frank Sotheron	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Nonpartisan	William Bentinck	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Frank adopted the new surname of Sotheron

Elections in the 1820s

General election 1818: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Tory	Frank Sotheron	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Nonpartisan	William Bentinck	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

General election 1826: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Tory	Frank Sotheron	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Whig	John Saville Lumley	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Elections in the 1830s

General election 1830: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Tory	Frank Sotheron	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Whig	John Saville Lumley	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

General election 1831: Nottinghamshire (2 seats)
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	John Saville Lumley	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*
	Whig	Evelyn Denison	Unopposed	*N/A*	*N/A*

Constituency divided in (1832)

References

British Parliamentary Election Results 1832–1885, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Macmillan Press 1977)
The House of Commons 1754–1790, by Sir Lewis Namier and John Brooke (HMSO 1964)
The Parliaments of England by Henry Stooks Smith (1st edition published in three volumes 1844–50), second edition edited (in one volume) by F.W.S. Craig (Political Reference Publications 1973)) out of copyright
Robert Beatson, A Chronological Register of Both Houses of Parliament (London: Longman, Hurst, Res & Orme, 1807) [1]
D Brunton & D H Pennington, Members of the Long Parliament (London: George Allen & Unwin, 1954)
Cobbett's Parliamentary history of England, from the Norman Conquest in 1066 to the year 1803 (London: Thomas Hansard, 1808) [2]
J E Neale, The Elizabethan House of Commons (London: Jonathan Cape, 1949)
Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "N" (part 3)