Clare (UK Parliament constituency)

Clare was a parliamentary constituency in Ireland, represented in the Parliament of the United Kingdom. From 1801 to 1885 it returned two Members of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

Clare
Former County constituency for the House of Commons
County Clare within Ireland.
1801–1885
Number of members	Two
Replaced by	East Clare and West Clare

At the 1885 general election, County Clare was split into two divisions: East Clare and West Clare.

Boundaries

This constituency comprised the whole of County Clare, except for the Borough of Ennis.

Members of Parliament

Year		First member	First party		Second member	Second party
1801		Francis Nathaniel Burton			Hugh Massey
1802					Sir Edward O'Brien, 4th Baronet	Whig
1808		Augustine FitzGerald	Tory
1818		William Vesey-FitzGerald	Tory[1][2]
1826					Lucius O'Brien	Tory[1][3]
1828		Daniel O'Connell	Radical[1]
1830		William Nugent Macnamara	Repeal Association[4]		James Patrick Mahon	Whig[1]
1831					Maurice O'Connell	Repeal Association[1]
1832					Cornelius O'Brien	Repeal Association[4]
1847					Sir Lucius O'Brien, 5th Baronet	Conservative[4]
1852		Sir John Forster Fitzgerald	Whig[5]		Cornelius O'Brien	Ind. Irish[4]
1857		Lord Francis Conyngham	Ind. Irish[6][7]		Francis Macnamara Calcutt	Ind. Irish[4]
1859		Crofton Moore Vandeleur	Conservative		Luke White	Liberal
1860					Francis Macnamara Calcutt	Liberal
1863					Sir Colman O'Loghlen, 2nd Baronet	Liberal
1874		Lord Francis Conyngham	Irish Nationalist			Irish Nationalist
1877					Sir Bryan O'Loghlen, 3rd Baronet	Irish Nationalist
1879					James Patrick Mahon	Irish Nationalist
1880		William O'Shea	Independent Nationalist
1885	Constituency divided into East Clare and West Clare

Elections

Elections in the 1830s

General election 1830: Clare[4][1][8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Irish Repeal	William Nugent Macnamara	664	39.9
	Whig	James Patrick Mahon	571	34.3
	Tory	Lucius O'Brien	399	24.0
	Whig	William Richard Mahon	18	1.1
	Whig	Burton Binden	12	0.7
Turnout			c. 832	c. 51.9
Registered electors			1,604
Majority			93	5.6
	Irish Repeal gain from Tory
Majority			172	10.3
	Whig gain from Tory

On petition, Mahon was unseated and a by-election was called.

By-election, 23 March 1831: Clare[4][1][8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Irish Repeal	Maurice O'Connell	325	64.7	+24.8
	Whig	Edward O'Brien	177	35.3	−0.8
Majority			148	29.5	+23.9
Turnout			502	c. 33.2	c. −18.7
Registered electors			c. 1,514
	Irish Repeal gain from Whig		Swing	+12.8

General election 1831: Clare[4][1][8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Irish Repeal	William Nugent Macnamara	883	44.7	+4.8
	Irish Repeal	Maurice O'Connell	597	30.2	N/A
	Whig	James Patrick Mahon	493	25.0	−9.3
	Whig	William Richard Mahon	1	0.1	N/A
Majority			104	5.2	−0.4
Turnout			c. 987	c. 65.2	c. +13.3
Registered electors			1,514
	Irish Repeal hold		Swing	+4.8
	Irish Repeal gain from Whig		Swing	N/A

General election 1832: Clare[4][1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Irish Repeal	William Nugent Macnamara	920	32.5	−12.2
	Irish Repeal	Cornelius O'Brien	897	31.6	+1.4
	Tory	John Macdonnell	701	24.7	New
	Tory	Augustine Butler	317	11.2	New
Majority			196	6.9	+1.6
Turnout			1,557	61.8	c. −3.4
Registered electors			2,518
	Irish Repeal hold		Swing	−12.2
	Irish Repeal hold		Swing	+1.4

General election 1835: Clare[4][1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Irish Repeal (Whig)	William Nugent Macnamara	686	50.0	+17.5
	Irish Repeal (Whig)	Cornelius O'Brien	686	50.0	+18.4
	Conservative	Lucius O'Brien	0	0.0	−24.7
	Conservative	Crofton Moore Vandeleur	0	0.0	−11.2
Majority			686	50.0	+43.1
Turnout			686	25.7	−36.1
Registered electors			2,671
	Irish Repeal hold		Swing	+17.8
	Irish Repeal hold		Swing	+18.2

• Lucius O'Brien and Vandeleur declined the contest

General election 1837: Clare[4][1]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Irish Repeal (Whig)	William Nugent Macnamara	Unopposed
	Irish Repeal (Whig)	Cornelius O'Brien	Unopposed
Registered electors			3,141
	Irish Repeal hold
	Irish Repeal hold

Elections in the 1840s

General election 1841: Clare[4][9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Irish Repeal	William Nugent Macnamara	1,079	44.6	N/A
	Irish Repeal	Cornelius O'Brien	1,072	44.3	N/A
	Conservative	Crofton Moore Vandeleur	222	9.2	New
	Conservative	James Molony	47	1.9	New
Majority			850	35.1	N/A
Turnout			1,338	72.4	N/A
Registered electors			1,848
	Irish Repeal hold		Swing	N/A
	Irish Repeal hold		Swing	N/A

General election 1847: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Lucius O'Brien	809	32.2	+23.0
	Irish Repeal	William Nugent Macnamara	723	28.8	−15.8
	Irish Repeal	Cornelius O'Brien	584	23.3	−21.0
	Conservative	William Fitzgerald	395	15.7	+13.8
Turnout			1,256 (est)	56.7 (est)	−15.7
Registered electors			2,216
Majority			86	3.4	N/A
	Conservative gain from Irish Repeal		Swing	+20.7
Majority			139	5.5	−29.6
	Irish Repeal hold		Swing	−17.1

Elections in the 1850s

General election 1852: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Whig	John Forster FitzGerald	1,152	33.0	New
	Independent Irish	Cornelius O'Brien	1,141	32.7	+9.4
	Conservative	Crofton Moore Vandeleur	1,139	32.6	+0.4
	Conservative	William Stackpoole	60	1.7	−14.0
Turnout			2,286 (est)	88.6 (est)	+31.9
Registered electors			2,581
Majority			11	0.3	N/A
	Whig gain from Irish Repeal		Swing	N/A
Majority			2	0.1	N/A
	Independent Irish gain from Conservative		Swing	+8.1

On petition, Fitzgerald and O'Brien were unseated, due to a "system of intimidation" being present at the 1852 election, and a writ was moved for a by-election.[10]

By-election, 4 July 1853: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Independent Irish	Cornelius O'Brien	1,376	34.2	+1.5
	Whig	John Forster FitzGerald	1,351	33.5	+0.5
	Conservative	Crofton Moore Vandeleur	1,299	32.2	−2.1
	Independent	Henry Stuart Burton	3	0.0	New
Turnout			2,663 (est)	84.7 (est)	−3.9
Registered electors			3,144
Majority			25	0.6	+0.5
	Independent Irish hold		Swing	+1.3
Majority			52	1.3	+1.0
	Whig hold		Swing	+0.8

General election 1857: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Independent Irish	Francis Conyngham	2,894	52.3	N/A
	Independent Irish	Francis Macnamara Calcutt	1,390	25.1	N/A
	Whig	John Forster Fitzgerald	1,249	22.6	−10.4
	Independent Irish	Luke White[11]	1	0.0	N/A
Majority			141	2.5	+2.4
Turnout			2,767 (est)	73.9 (est)	−14.7
Registered electors			3,745
	Independent Irish hold		Swing	N/A
	Independent Irish gain from Whig		Swing	N/A

General election 1859: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Crofton Moore Vandeleur	3,829	47.5	New
	Liberal	Luke White	2,234	27.7	+27.7
	Liberal	Francis Macnamara Calcutt	1,997	24.8	−0.3
Majority			1,595	19.8	N/A
Turnout			4,030 (est)	73.2 (est)	−0.7
Registered electors			5,509
	Conservative gain from Independent Irish		Swing	N/A
	Liberal hold		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1860s

On petition, White was unseated, causing a by-election.

By-election, 13 Apr 1860: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Francis Macnamara Calcutt	2,993	72.3	+47.5
	Liberal	Charles White	1,149	27.7	N/A
Majority			1,844	44.5	N/A
Turnout			4,142	75.2	+2.0
Registered electors			5,509
	Liberal hold		Swing	N/A

Calcutt died, causing a by-election.

By-election, 3 Aug 1863: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Colman O'Loghlen	Unopposed
Registered electors			5,563
	Liberal hold

General election 1865: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Colman O'Loghlen	Unopposed
	Conservative	Crofton Moore Vandeleur	Unopposed
Registered electors			5,465
	Liberal hold
	Conservative hold

General election 1868: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Colman O'Loghlen	Unopposed
	Conservative	Crofton Moore Vandeleur	Unopposed
Registered electors			5,649
	Liberal hold
	Conservative hold

O'Loghlen was appointed Judge Advocate General of the Armed Forces, requiring a by-election.

By-election, 5 Jan 1869: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Colman O'Loghlen	Unopposed
Registered electors			5,649
	Liberal hold

Elections in the 1870s

General election 1874: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Home Rule	Colman O'Loghlen	3,095	44.9	New
	Home Rule	Francis Conyngham	2,565	37.2	New
	Conservative	Crofton Moore Vandeleur	1,240	18.0	N/A
Majority			1,325	19.2	N/A
Turnout			4,070 (est)	74.5 (est)	N/A
Registered electors			5,460
	Home Rule gain from Conservative		Swing	N/A
	Home Rule gain from Liberal		Swing	N/A

O'Loghlen's death caused a by-election.

By-election, 13 Aug 1877: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Home Rule	Bryan O'Loghlen	1,721	47.2	−34.9
	Home Rule	James Patrick Mahon	1,149	31.5	N/A
	Conservative	Robert William Cary Reeves	764	20.9	+2.9
	Liberal-Conservative	Francis Nathaniel Burton	15	0.4	New
Majority			572	15.7	−3.5
Turnout			3,649	67.2	−7.3
Registered electors			5,427
	Home Rule hold		Swing	−18.9

• O'Loghlen was a Liberal home rule supporter, while The O'Gorman Mahon was a Nationalist home rule supporter. Burton also supported home rule.[12]

O'Loghlen was declared to have resigned after accepting office as Attorney General of Victoria, Australia, causing a by-election.

By-election, 13 Aug 1879: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Home Rule	James Patrick Mahon	1,661	41.5	−40.6
	Conservative	Hector Stewart Vandeleur	1,531	38.3	+20.3
	Liberal	Peter O'Brien	807	20.2	New
Majority			130	3.3	−15.9
Turnout			3,999	73.6	−0.9
Registered electors			5,430
	Home Rule hold		Swing	−30.5

Elections in the 1880s

General election 1880: Clare[4]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Home Rule League (Parnellite)	James Patrick Mahon	3,283	44.8	−0.1
	Home Rule League (Parnellite)	William O'Shea	3,133	42.8	+5.6
	Conservative	Hector Stewart Vandeleur	912	12.4	−5.6
Majority			2,221	30.4	+11.2
Turnout			4,195 (est)	74.3 (est)	−0.2
Registered electors			5,643
	Home Rule hold		Swing	+1.4
	Home Rule hold		Swing	+2.8

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

There was a notorious riot at Sixmilebridge on polling day in 1852, in which soldiers shot dead seven protesters.

The Clare by-election in 1828 was notable as this was the first time since the reformation that an openly Roman Catholic MP, Daniel O'Connell was elected.

References

1. Smith, Henry Stooks (1842). The Register of Parliamentary Contested Elections (Second ed.). Simpkin, Marshall & Company. p. 219. Retrieved 23 September 2018 – via Google Books.
2. Fisher, David R. "VESEY FITZGERALD (formerly FITZGERALD), William (?1782-1843), of Inchicronan, co. Clare". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
3. Farrell, Stephen. "O'BRIEN, Lucius (1800-1872)". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
4. Walker, B.M., ed. (1978). Parliamentary Election Results in Ireland, 1801-1922. Dublin: Royal Irish Academy. ISBN 0901714127.
5. "Clare". Coventry Standard. 30 July 1852. p. 4. Retrieved 23 September 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
6. "Dublin Evening Post". 28 March 1857. pp. 5–6. Retrieved 23 September 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
7. "Clare Election". Dublin Weekly Nation. 4 April 1857. p. 16. Retrieved 23 September 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
8. Farrell, Stephen. "Co. Clare". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 10 May 2020.
9. Accounts and Papers of the House of Commons, Volume 50. 1843. Retrieved 25 August 2019 – via Google Books.
10. "Kilkenny Journal, and Leinster Commercial and Literary Advertiser". 15 June 1853. p. 4. Retrieved 23 September 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
11. "The Irish Elections". Freeman's Journal. 4 April 1857. p. 4. Retrieved 23 September 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
12. "Clare Election". Newcastle Journal. 7 August 1877. p. 3. Retrieved 28 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.

• The Parliaments of England by Henry Stooks Smith (1st edition published in three volumes 1844-50), 2nd edition edited (in one volume) by F.W.S. Craig (Political Reference Publications 1973)
• Parliamentary Election Results in Ireland, 1801-1922, edited by B.M. Walker (Royal Irish Academy 1978)
• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "C" (part 4)