Rossendale (UK Parliament constituency)

Rossendale was a parliamentary constituency in the Lancashire, England. Created in 1885, it elected one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system. When created it comprised the districts of Rawtenstall, Bacup, and Haslingden; Ramsbottom district was added to the constituency in 1950.

Rossendale
Former County constituency
for the House of Commons
Rossendale in Lancashire, showing boundaries used from 1974-1983
CountyLancashire
Major settlementsRawtenstall
1885–1983
Number of membersOne
Replaced byRossendale and Darwen
Bury North
Created fromNorth East Lancashire

The constituency ceased to exist with the implementation of the 1983 boundary changes and was replaced by the Rossendale and Darwen constituency. The exact nature of the changes were as follows: 9,882 electors of the Rossendale seat were transferred to Bury North. 25,918 electors were added from the abolished Darwen constituency and 5,267 from Heywood and Royton.

Boundaries

1885–1918: The Sessional Division of Rossendale, and part of the Borough of Bacup.

1918–1950: The Boroughs of Bacup, Haslingden, and Rawtenstall.

1950–1983: The Boroughs of Bacup, Haslingden, and Rawtenstall, and the Urban District of Ramsbottom.

Members of Parliament
ElectionMemberParty
1885 Spencer Cavendish Liberal
1886 Liberal Unionist
1892 by-electionJohn MadenLiberal
1900 by-electionSir William MatherLiberal
1904 by-electionLewis HarcourtLiberal
1917 by-electionSir John MadenLiberal
1918Robert WaddingtonCoalition Conservative
1922David HalsteadConservative
1923Robert WaddingtonConservative
1929Arthur LawLabour
1931Ronald CrossConservative
1945George WalkerLabour
1950Tony GreenwoodLabour
1970Ronald BrayConservative
Oct 1974Michael NobleLabour
1979David TrippierConservative
1983constituency abolished: see Rossendale and Darwen

Elections

Elections in the 1880s
Hartington
General election 1885: Rossendale [1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Spencer Cavendish 6,060 58.9 N/A
Conservative William Farrer Ecroyd 4,228 41.1 N/A
Majority 1,832 17.8 N/A
Turnout 10,288 89.9 N/A
Registered electors 11,450
Liberal win (new seat)
General election 1886: Rossendale [2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Unionist Spencer Cavendish 5,399 57.8 +16.7
Liberal Thomas Newbigging 3,949 42.2 −16.7
Majority 1,450 15.6 N/A
Turnout 9,348 81.6 −8.3
Registered electors 11,450
Liberal Unionist gain from Liberal Swing +16.7

Elections in the 1890s

Cavendish succeeded to the peerage, becoming Duke of Devonshire and causing a by-election.

1892 Rossendale by-election [3][4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal John Maden 6,066 55.6 +13.4
Liberal Unionist Thomas Brooks 4,841 44.4 −13.4
Majority 1,225 11.2 N/A
Turnout 10,907 93.4 +11.8
Registered electors 11,679
Liberal gain from Liberal Unionist Swing +13.4
General election 1892: Rossendale [5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal John Maden 6,058 58.3 +16.1
Conservative Arthur Goldsmith Sparrow 4,334 41.7 −16.1
Majority 1,724 16.6 N/A
Turnout 10,392 89.0 +7.4
Registered electors 11,679
Liberal gain from Liberal Unionist Swing +16.1
General election 1895: Rossendale [6]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal John Maden Unopposed
Liberal hold

Elections in the 1900s
William Mather
1900 Rossendale by-election [7]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal William Mather 5,936 56.5 N/A
Conservative George Kingsbury 4,564 43.5 N/A
Majority 1,372 13.0 N/A
Turnout 10,500 86.4 N/A
Registered electors 12,148
Liberal hold Swing N/A
General election 1900: Rossendale [8] Electorate 12,148
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal William Mather Unopposed
Liberal hold
Lewis Harcourt
1904 Rossendale by-election
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Lewis Harcourt Unopposed
Liberal hold
General election 1906: Rossendale [9]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Lewis Harcourt 6,881 59.6 N/A
Conservative John Kebty-Fletcher 4,662 40.4 N/A
Majority 2,219 19.2 N/A
Turnout 11,543 90.4 N/A
Registered electors 12,765
Liberal hold Swing N/A

Elections in the 1910s
General election January 1910: Rossendale [10] Electorate 12,765
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Lewis Harcourt 7,185 57.4 −2.2
Conservative John Kebty-Fletcher 4,695 37.5 −2.9
Women's Suffrage Arthur Bulley 639 5.1 N/A
Majority 2,490 19.9 +0.7
Turnout 12,519 94.7 +4.3
Registered electors 13,217
Liberal hold Swing +0.4
General election December 1910: Rossendale [11] Electorate 12,765
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal Lewis Harcourt 6,619 56.0 −1.4
Conservative Joshua Craven Hoyle 5,206 44.0 +6.5
Majority 1,413 12.0 −7.9
Turnout 11,825 89.5 −5.2
Registered electors 13,217
Liberal hold Swing −4.0

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;

  • Liberal: Lewis Harcourt
  • Unionist:
1917 Rossendale by-election [12][13]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Liberal John Maden 6,019 76.9 +20.9
Independent Labour and Peace by Negotiation Albert Taylor 1,804 23.1 N/A
Majority 4,215 53.8 +41.8
Turnout 7,823 57.2 −32.3
Registered electors 13,682
Liberal hold Swing N/A
General election 1918: Rossendale[14]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
C Unionist Robert Waddington 8,907 39.2 −4.8
Labour Gilbert Wright Jones 7,984 35.1 N/A
Liberal John Maden 5,837 25.7 −30.3
Majority 923 4.1 N/A
Turnout 22,728 63.6 −25.9
Unionist gain from Liberal Swing +12.8
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

Elections in the 1920s
General election 1922: Rossendale[15]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Unionist David Halstead 12,881 42.6
Labour Gilbert Wright Jones 11,029 36.5
Liberal Richard Durning Holt 6,327 20.9
Majority 1,852 6.1
Turnout 85.0
Unionist hold Swing
Norman Angell
General election 1923: Rossendale [16]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Unionist Robert Waddington 11,362 37.6 -5.0
Liberal Ernest Young 9,592 31.8 +10.9
Labour Norman Angell 9,230 30.6 -5.9
Majority 1,770 5.8 -0.3
Turnout 83.8 -1.2
Unionist hold Swing -8.0
General election 1924: Rossendale[17]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Unionist Robert Waddington 12,836 41.7
Labour James Bell 9,951 32.4
Liberal Ernest Young 7,958 25.9
Majority 2,885 9.3
Turnout
Unionist hold Swing
General election 1929: Rossendale[18]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Arthur Law 14,624 36.0 +3.6
Liberal Edwin Bayliss 13,747 33.9 +8.0
Unionist Wilfrid Sugden 12,225 30.1 -11.6
Majority 877 2.1 11.4
Turnout 87.7
Labour gain from Unionist Swing -2.2
  • Furness Dean was Liberal candidate but withdrew at the last minute for health reasons.[19]

Elections in the 1930s
General election 1931: Rossendale [20]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Ronald Cross 16,206 40.1
Liberal William Furness Dean 13,089 32.4
Labour Arthur Law 11,135 27.5
Majority 3,117 7.7
Turnout 40,430 87.6
Conservative gain from Labour Swing
General election 1935: Rossendale [21]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Ronald Cross 15,650 39.4
Labour Evelyn Walkden 14,769 37.1
Liberal Arthur Holgate 9,343 23.5
Majority 881 2.2
Turnout 39,762 86.1
Conservative hold Swing

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 and by the Autumn of 1939, the following candidates had been selected;

Election in the 1940s
General election 1945: Rossendale[23]
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour George Walker 15,741 43.6
Conservative Ronald Cross 10,153 28.1
Liberal Arthur Ward Jones 8,542 23.7
Communist William Whittaker 1,663 4.6
Majority 5,588 15.5
Turnout 83.2
Labour gain from Conservative Swing

Elections in the 1950s
General election 1950: Rossendale
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Tony Greenwood 21,596 45.15
Conservative Thomas Mercer Backhouse 19,483 40.73
Liberal LM Tomlinson 6,757 14.13
Majority 2,113 4.42
Turnout 88.94
Labour hold Swing
General election 1951: Rossendale
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Tony Greenwood 24,814 51.74
Conservative Thomas Mercer Backhouse 23,144 48.26
Majority 1,670 3.48
Turnout 88.59
Labour hold Swing
General election 1955: Rossendale
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Tony Greenwood 23,472 53.31
Conservative John E Parkinson 20,561 46.69
Majority 2,911 6.61
Turnout 84.21
Labour hold Swing
General election 1959: Rossendale
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Tony Greenwood 20,743 47.52
Conservative James Richard Trist Holt 18,152 41.59
Liberal Alan Cooper 4,752 10.89
Majority 2,591 5.94
Turnout 86.30
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1960s
General election 1964: Rossendale
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Tony Greenwood 21,371 53.97
Conservative Colin Clive Baillieu 18,230 46.03
Majority 3,141 7.93
Turnout 81.83
Labour hold Swing
General election 1966: Rossendale
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Tony Greenwood 21,093 55.40
Conservative Colin Clive Baillieu 16,984 44.60
Majority 4,109 10.79
Turnout 80.40
Labour hold Swing

Elections in the 1970s
General election 1970: Rossendale
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Ronald Bray 20,448 52.4
Labour Betty Boothroyd 18,568 47.6
Majority 1,880 4.8
Turnout 78.2
Conservative gain from Labour Swing
General election February 1974: Rossendale
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative Ronald Bray 16,040 38.4
Labour Michael Noble 15,243 36.5
Liberal JA Hamilton 10,478 25.09
Majority 797 1.91
Turnout 83.50
Conservative hold Swing
General election October 1974: Rossendale
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Labour Michael Noble 16,156 39.6
Conservative Ronald Bray 15,953 39.1
Liberal J.A. Hamilton 8,693 21.3
Majority 203 0.5
Turnout 40,802 80.9
Labour gain from Conservative Swing
General election 1979: Rossendale
Party Candidate Votes % ±
Conservative David Trippier 20,370 48.0 +8.9
Labour Michael Noble 18,497 43.6 +4.0
Liberal P. Arnold 3,534 8.3 −13.0
Majority 1,873 4.4
Turnout 42,401 83.8
Conservative gain from Labour Swing
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See also

References
  1. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  2. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  3. The Times, 25 January 1892 p7
  4. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  5. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  6. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  7. The Times, 14 February 1900 p8
  8. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  9. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  10. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  11. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  12. The Times, 14 February 1917 p8
  13. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
  14. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
  15. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, F W S Craig
  16. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
  17. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, F W S Craig
  18. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, F W S Craig
  19. The Times House of Commons, 1931
  20. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
  21. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
  22. Report of the Annual Conference of the Labour Party, 1939
  23. British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, F W S Craig
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