Epping (UK Parliament constituency)
Epping was a parliamentary constituency represented in the House of Commons of the UK Parliament from 1885 to 1974. It elected one Member of Parliament (MP) by the first past the post system of election.
Epping | |
---|---|
Former County constituency for the House of Commons | |
County | Essex |
1885–1974 | |
Number of members | One |
Replaced by | Chingford, Epping Forest and Harlow |
Created from | West Essex |
During its existence contributed to new seat(s) of: | Woodford and Chigwell |
History
Epping was one of eight single-member divisions of Essex (later classified as county constituencies) created by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, replacing the three two member divisions of East, South and West Essex.
The seat underwent a significant loss of territory at the 1945 boundary review, with the majority of the electorate forming the new constituency of Woodford. It was abolished for the February 1974 general election when it was divided between the new seats of Chingford, Epping Forest and Harlow.
Its most prominent MP was Winston Churchill, who served as Prime Minister twice, the local MP for twenty-one years from 1924 to 1945, spanning the middle part of his long service as an MP. From 1945, he was the MP for Woodford.
In the 1955 and 1959 general elections, the celebrated cricket commentator and journalist John Arlott stood as the Liberal Party candidate.
Boundaries and boundary changes
1885–1918: The Sessional Divisions of Epping, Harlow, and Ongar, and part of the Sessional Division of Dunmow.[1]
Formed from part of the abolished West Division. See below for areas covered.
1918–1945: The Urban Districts of Buckhurst Hill, Chingford, Epping, Loughton, Waltham Holy Cross, Wanstead, and Woodford, and the Rural District of Epping.[2]
Gained Woodford from the abolished Walthamstow Division of Essex and Wanstead from the Romford Division. Lost eastern part of Division, including Chipping Ongar, to Chelmsford, and northern part of Division, including Great Dunmow and Hatfield Broad Oak, to Saffron Walden.
1945–1974: The Borough of Chingford, the Urban Districts of Epping and Waltham Holy Cross, and the Rural District of Epping.[2]
The House of Commons (Redistribution of Seats) Act 1944 set up Boundaries Commissions to carry out periodic reviews of the distribution of parliamentary constituencies. It also authorised an initial review to subdivide abnormally large constituencies in time for the 1945 election.[3] This was implemented by the Redistribution of Seats Order 1945 under which Epping was divided into two constituencies. As a consequence, the Municipal Borough of Wanstead and Woodford (created from amalgamating the two separate Urban Districts) and the Urban District of Chigwell (previously a parish in the Rural District of Epping which had also absorbed the former Urban Districts of Buckhurst Hill and Loughton), formed as the new Parliamentary Borough of Woodford.
The seat was abolished in 1974 following the Second Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies. The Urban District of Chingford had been absorbed into the London Borough of Waltham Forest on its creation within Greater London and now formed the basis for the new Borough Constituency of Chingford within that Borough. The Urban District of Harlow, which had been created from the Rural District of Epping, together with neighbouring parishes (now part of the merged Rural District of Epping and Ongar), formed the new County Constituency of Harlow. Remaining parts included in the new County Constituency of Epping Forest.
Areas covered
Area | 1885 | 1918 | 1945 | 1955 | 1974 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Great Dunmow, Hatfield Broad Oak | Epping | Saffron Walden (part) | |||
Chipping Ongar | Chelmsford (part) | Chigwell | Brentwood and Ongar (part) | ||
Harlow | Epping | Epping | Epping | Harlow | |
Chingford | Chingford | ||||
Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Epping | Epping Forest | ||||
Loughton, Buckhurst Hill, Chigwell | Woodford | Chigwell | |||
Woodford | Walthamstow (part) | Woodford1 | Wanstead and Woodford | ||
Wanstead | Romford (part) |
1Renamed Wanstead and Woodford, with minor boundary changes, for the 1964 general election (S.I. 1960/454).[2]
Members of Parliament
Year | Member | Party | Notes | |
---|---|---|---|---|
1885 | Henry Selwin-Ibbetson | Conservative | ||
1892 | Amelius Lockwood | Conservative | ||
1917 | Richard Colvin | Unionist | ||
1923 | Leonard Lyle | Unionist | ||
1924 | Rt Hon Winston Churchill | Constitutionalist | ||
1924 | Conservative | Prime Minister 1940-1945 | ||
1945 | Leah Manning | Labour | ||
1950 | Nigel Davies | Conservative | ||
1951 | Graeme Finlay | Conservative | ||
1964 | Stan Newens | Labour | ||
1970 | Norman Tebbit | Conservative | ||
1974 | constituency abolished |
Election results
Elections in the 1880s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Henry Selwin-Ibbetson | 4,668 | 61.5 | N/A | |
Liberal | Edmund Barnard | 2,915 | 38.5 | N/A | |
Majority | 1,744 | 23.0 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 7,574 | 82.0 | N/A | ||
Registered electors | 9,239 | ||||
Conservative win (new seat) |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Henry Selwin-Ibbetson | Unopposed | |||
Conservative hold |
Elections in the 1890s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Amelius Lockwood | 4,536 | 62.4 | N/A | |
Liberal | Spencer Barclay Heward | 2,738 | 37.6 | N/A | |
Majority | 1,798 | 24.8 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 7,274 | 76.8 | N/A | ||
Registered electors | 9,476 | ||||
Conservative hold | Swing | N/A |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Amelius Lockwood | Unopposed | |||
Conservative hold |
Elections in the 1900s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Amelius Lockwood | Unopposed | |||
Conservative hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Amelius Lockwood | 5,204 | 56.4 | N/A | |
Liberal | Spencer Barclay Howard | 4,030 | 43.6 | N/A | |
Majority | 1,174 | 12.8 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 9,234 | 81.2 | N/A | ||
Registered electors | 11,374 | ||||
Conservative hold | Swing | N/A |
Elections in the 1910s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Amelius Lockwood | 6,578 | 63.1 | +6.7 | |
Liberal | Israel Alexander Symmons | 3,845 | 36.9 | −6.7 | |
Majority | 2,733 | 26.2 | +13.4 | ||
Turnout | 10,423 | 85.7 | +4.5 | ||
Registered electors | 12,164 | ||||
Conservative hold | Swing | +6.7 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Amelius Lockwood | 5,990 | 64.1 | +1.0 | |
Liberal | Israel Alexander Symmons | 3,361 | 35.9 | −1.0 | |
Majority | 2,629 | 28.2 | +2.0 | ||
Turnout | 9,351 | 76.9 | −8.8 | ||
Registered electors | 12,164 | ||||
Conservative hold | Swing | +1.0 |
General Election 1914/15:
Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;
- Unionist: Amelius Lockwood
- Liberal:
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | Richard Colvin | Unopposed | |||
Unionist hold |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
C | Unionist | Richard Colvin | 14,668 | 72.6 | +8.5 |
Liberal | Arthur Leonard Horner | 4,164 | 20.6 | −15.3 | |
People's Progressive Coalition | J. Conoley | 1,367 | 6.8 | N/A | |
Majority | 10,504 | 52.0 | +23.8 | ||
Turnout | 20,199 | 52.4 | −24.5 | ||
Registered electors | 38,519 | ||||
Unionist hold | Swing | +11.9 | |||
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government. |
Elections in the 1920s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | Richard Colvin | 15,300 | 59.9 | −12.7 | |
Liberal | Gilbert Granville Sharp | 10,228 | 40.1 | +19.5 | |
Majority | 5,072 | 19.8 | −32.8 | ||
Turnout | 25,528 | 63.5 | +11.1 | ||
Registered electors | 40,209 | ||||
Unionist hold | Swing | −16.1 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | Leonard Lyle | 14,528 | 52.9 | −7.0 | |
Liberal | Gilbert Granville Sharp | 12,954 | 47.1 | +7.0 | |
Majority | 1,574 | 5.8 | −14.0 | ||
Turnout | 27,482 | 66.4 | +2.9 | ||
Registered electors | 41,404 | ||||
Unionist hold | Swing | −7.0 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Constitutionalist | Winston Churchill | 19,843 | 58.9 | New | |
Liberal | Gilbert Granville Sharp | 10,080 | 29.9 | −17.2 | |
Labour | J R McPhie | 3,768 | 11.2 | N/A | |
Majority | 9,763 | 29.0 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 33,691 | 78.3 | +11.9 | ||
Registered electors | 43,055 | ||||
Constitutionalist gain from Unionist | Swing | N/A | |||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Unionist | Winston Churchill | 23,972 | 48.5 | −10.4 | |
Liberal | Gilbert Granville Sharp | 19,005 | 38.4 | +8.5 | |
Labour | Walton Newbold | 6,472 | 13.1 | +1.9 | |
Majority | 4,967 | 10.1 | −18.9 | ||
Turnout | 49,449 | 75.2 | −3.1 | ||
Registered electors | 65,758 | ||||
Unionist gain from Constitutionalist | Swing | −9.5 | |||
Elections in the 1930s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Winston Churchill | 35,956 | 63.8 | +15.3 | |
Liberal | Arthur Comyns Carr | 15,670 | 27.8 | -10.6 | |
Labour | James Ranger | 4,713 | 8.4 | -4.7 | |
Majority | 20,286 | 36.0 | +25.9 | ||
Turnout | 56,339 | 77.3 | +2.1 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Winston Churchill | 34,849 | 59.0 | -4.8 | |
Liberal | Gilbert Granville Sharp | 14,430 | 24.4 | -3.4 | |
Labour | James Ranger | 9,758 | 16.5 | +8.1 | |
Majority | 20,419 | 34.6 | -1.4 | ||
Turnout | 59,037 | 67.7 | -9.6 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing |
Elections in the 1940s
General Election 1939/40:
Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place from 1939 and by the end of this year, the following candidates had been selected;
- Conservative: Winston Churchill
- Labour: Leon MacLaren[9]
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Leah Manning | 15,993 | 44.1 | +19.3 | |
Conservative | Roy Wise | 15,006 | 41.3 | -17.8 | |
Liberal | Sydney Robinson | 5,134 | 14.6 | -1.9 | |
Majority | 987 | 2.8 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 36,313 | 71.4 | +3.7 | ||
Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +18.6 | |||
Elections in the 1950s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Nigel Davies | 24,292 | 49.1 | +7.8 | |
Labour | Leah Manning | 20,385 | 41.2 | +3.9 | |
Liberal | Peter Edwin Lewis | 4,755 | 9.6 | -5.0 | |
Majority | 3,907 | 7.9 | +5.1 | ||
Turnout | 49,432 | 86.6 | +15.5 | ||
Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | ||||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Graeme Finlay | 27,392 | 54.8 | +5.7 | |
Labour | Leah Manning | 22,598 | 45.2 | +4.0 | |
Majority | 4,794 | 9.6 | +1.7 | ||
Turnout | 49,990 | 85.1 | −1.5 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | +0.9 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Graeme Finlay | 26,065 | 46.4 | −8.4 | |
Labour | Leah Manning | 22,542 | 40.2 | −5.0 | |
Liberal | John Arlott | 7,528 | 13.4 | New | |
Majority | 3,523 | 6.3 | -3.3 | ||
Turnout | 56,135 | 82.3 | −2.8 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | −1.7 |
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Graeme Finlay | 31,507 | 44.7 | −1.8 | |
Labour Co-op | Donald F W Ford | 27,114 | 38.4 | −1.7 | |
Liberal | John Arlott | 11,913 | 16.9 | +3.5 | |
Majority | 4,393 | 6.2 | -0.1 | ||
Turnout | 70,534 | 84.3 | +2.0 | ||
Conservative hold | Swing | −0.1 |
Elections in the 1960s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Stan Newens | 34,991 | 44.4 | +5.9 | |
Conservative | Graeme Finlay | 31,753 | 40.3 | −4.4 | |
Liberal | Nancy Seear | 12,093 | 15.3 | −1.6 | |
Majority | 3,238 | 4.1 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 78,837 | 83.3 | −1.0 | ||
Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +5.2 | |||
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Labour | Stan Newens | 38,914 | 48.4 | +4.0 | |
Conservative | E Michael Ogden | 31,406 | 39.0 | −1.3 | |
Liberal | Derek A McKie | 10,162 | 12.6 | −2.7 | |
Majority | 7,508 | 9.3 | +5.2 | ||
Turnout | 80,482 | 82.4 | −0.9 | ||
Labour hold | Swing | +2.7 |
Elections in the 1970s
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ± | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Conservative | Norman Tebbit | 43,615 | 51.5 | +12.5 | |
Labour | Stan Newens | 41,040 | 48.5 | +0.1 | |
Majority | 2,575 | 3.0 | N/A | ||
Turnout | 84,655 | 73.3 | −9.1 | ||
Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | +6.2 | |||
References
- Great Britain, Incorporated Council of Law Reporting for England and Wales. The public general acts. unknown library. Proprietors of the Law Journal Reports, 1884.
- Craig, Fred W. S. (1972). Boundaries of parliamentary constituencies 1885-1972;. Chichester: Political Reference Publications. ISBN 0900178094. OCLC 539011.
- Gay, Oonagh (2010-07-28). "The Rules for the Redistribution of Seats- history and reform". Cite journal requires
|journal=
(help) - British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, FWS Craig
- The Liberal Year Book, 1907
- Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1901
- Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1916
- Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.
- Report of the Annual Conference of the Labour Party, 1939
Sources
Parliament of the United Kingdom | ||
---|---|---|
Preceded by Essex South |
UK Parliament constituency Representative for Wanstead, Woodford 1885–1945 |
Succeeded by Woodford |
UK Parliament constituency Representative for Loughton, Buckhurst Hill, Chigwell 1885–1950 |
Succeeded by Woodford | |
UK Parliament constituency Representative for Chingford 1885–1974 |
Succeeded by Chingford | |
UK Parliament constituency Representative for Harlow 1885–1974 |
Succeeded by Harlow | |
UK Parliament constituency Representative for Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Epping 1885–1974 |
Succeeded by Epping Forest | |
Preceded by Colne Valley |
Constituency represented by the Chancellor of the Exchequer 1924–1929 |
Succeeded by Colne Valley |
Preceded by Birmingham Edgbaston |
Constituency represented by the Prime Minister 1940–1945 |
Succeeded by Limehouse |