Tiverton was a constituency located in Tiverton in east Devon, formerly represented in the House of Commons of England until 1707, Great Britain until 1800 and after 1801 the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Enfranchised as a parliamentary borough in 1615 and first represented in 1621, it elected two Members of Parliament (MPs) by the first past the post system of election until 1885. The name was then transferred to a county constituency electing one MP. (Between 1885 and 1918, the constituency was alternatively called Devon, North East.)
In 1997, it was merged with the neighbouring constituency of Honiton to form the Tiverton and Honiton constituency.
Prime Minister Lord Palmerston was a former MP for the seat. __TOC__
Boundaries 1885–1918: The Municipal Borough of Tiverton, and the Sessional Divisions of Cullompton and Wonford.
1918–1950: The Municipal Borough of Tiverton, the Urban Districts of Bampton and Dawlish, the Rural Districts of Oulmstock and Tiverton, and parts of the Rural Districts of Newton Abbot and St Thomas.
1950–1974: The Municipal Borough of Tiverton, the Urban Districts of Dawlish and Teignmouth, the Rural District of Tiverton, and part of the Rural District of St Thomas.
1974–1983: The Municipal Borough of Tiverton, the Urban Districts of Crediton, Dawlish, and Teignmouth, the Rural Districts of Crediton and Tiverton, and part of the Rural District of St Thomas.
1983–1997: The District of Mid Devon wards of Boniface, Bradninch, Cadbury, Canal, Canonsleigh, Castle, Clare, Cullompton Outer, Cullompton Town, Culm, East Creedy, Halberton, Lawrence, Lowman, Newbrooke, Paullet, Sandford, Shuttern, Silverton, Upper Culm, Upper Yeo, Westexe North, Westexe South, Willand, and Yeo, and the District of East Devon wards of Broadclyst, Clystbeare, Clyst Valley, Exe Valley, Ottery St Mary Rural, Ottery St Mary Town, and Tale Vale.
Members of Parliament
Tiverton borough, 1621–1885 YearFirst memberFirst partySecond memberSecond party1621–1622John BampfieldJohn Davie1624-March 1625Sir George ChudleighHumphrey WereApril–August 1625Rowland St JohnJohn FrancisDecember 1625 – 1626John Drake sat for Devon replaced by Richard OliverPeter Ball1628–1629John BluettNo Parliament summoned 1629-40April 1640Peter Sainthill RoyalistPeter BallNovember 1640George HartnallRoyalistJanuary 1644Sainthill and Hartnall disabled from sitting - both seats vacant1646Robert ShapcoteJohn ElfordDecember 1648Shapcote excluded in Pride's Purge - seat vacantElford not recorded as sitting after Pride's Purge1653Tiverton was unrepresented in the Barebones Parliament1654Robert Shapcote Tiverton had only one seat in the First and Second Parliaments of the Protectorate1656January 1659Francis WarnerSir Coplestone BampfyldeMay 1659Not represented in the restored RumpApril 1660Robert Shapcote Thomas Bampfylde July 1660Roger Colman November 1660Henry Newte 1661 Sir Thomas Carew, Bt Sir Thomas Stucley 1664 Sir Henry Ford 1673Samuel Foote 1685Sir Hugh Acland William Colman 1689 Samuel Foote 1690 Thomas Bere 1691 Sir Anthony Keck 1695Lord Spencer Whig1702Robert Burridge 1708Richard Mervin 1710 At the general election of 1710, three candidates - Thomas Bere, Richard Mervin and John Worth - all received an equal number of votes and the returning officer made a double return. The House of Commons resolved on 1 December 1710 that the election was void, and a new poll was held at which Worth and Sir Edward Northey were elected (Bere having in the interim been appointed a Commissioner of the Victualling Office). Sir Edward Northey John Worth 1715 Thomas Bere 1722 Arthur Arscott 1726George Deane 1727Sir William Yonge, BtYonge was also elected for Honiton, which he chose to represent, and did not sit for Tiverton in this Parliament Whig1728 by-electionJames Nelthorpe 1734 (Sir) Dudley Ryder July 1747Sir William Yonge, Bt WhigDecember 1747 by-electionHenry ConynghamCreated The Lord Mountcharles (in the peerage of Ireland), September 1753 1754Sir William Yonge, Bt Whig Henry Pelham 1755 by-electionThomas Ryder 1756 by-election Nathaniel Ryder 1758 by-electionSir Edward Hussey-Montagu 1762 by-electionCharles Gore 1768 Sir John Duntze, Bt 1776 by-electionJohn Eardley Wilmot 1784 Hon. Dudley Ryder Tory1795 by-election Hon. Richard Ryder Tory1803 by-electionWilliam FitzhughTory1819 by-election Viscount Sandon Tory1830 Hon. Granville Ryder Tory1831Spencer Perceval Tory1832 John HeathcoatWhigJames KennedyKennedy's election in 1832 was declared void "due to lack of qualification". A by-election was held on 4 May 1833, when he was re-elected Radical1835 by-election The Viscount PalmerstonWhig1859Hon. George Denman LiberalLiberal1865 John Walrond, of Bradfield, Uffculme Conservative1866 by-election Hon. George Denman Liberal1868 John Heathcoat-Amory Liberal1872 by-election William Nathaniel Massey Liberal1881 by-electionViscount Ebrington Liberal1885Reduced to one member
County constituency, 1885–1997
ElectionMemberParty 1885 Sir William Walrond Conservative 1906 Hon. William Walrond Conservative 1915 by-election Charles Carew Conservative 1922 Herbert Sparkes Conservative 1923 by-election Sir Francis Dyke Acland, Bt Liberal 1924 Gilbert Acland-Troyte Conservative 1945 Derick Heathcoat-Amory Conservative 1960 by-election Robin Maxwell-Hyslop Conservative 1992 Angela Browning Conservative1997 constituency abolished: see Tiverton & Honiton
Election results Elections in the 1830s
Kennedy's election was declared void on petition, causing a by-election.
Kennedy resigned, causing a by-election.
Elections in the 1840s
Palmerston was appointed Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, requiring a by-election.
Elections in the 1850s
Palmerston was appointed Home Secretary, requiring a by-election.
Palmerston became Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury, requiring a by-election.
Palmerston became Prime Minister and First Lord of the Treasury, requiring a by-election.
Elections in the 1860s Temple was appointed Constable of Dover Castle and Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, requiring a by-election.
Lord Palmerston's death in October 1865 caused a by-election.
Elections in the 1870s Denman resigned after being appointed a Judge of Court of Common Pleas.
Elections in the 1880s
Massey's death caused a by-election.
Representation was reduced to one member.
Walrond was appointed a Lord Commissioner of the Treasury, requiring a by-election.
Elections in the 1890s
Elections in the 1900s
Elections in the 1910s
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 July 1914, the following candidates had been selected; Unionist: Lionel Walrond Liberal:
Elections in the 1920s
8
Elections in the 1930s
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: Gilbert Acland-Troyte Independent Progressive: Michael Pinney
Elections in the 1950s
Elections in the 1960s
Elections in the 1970s
Elections in the 1980s
Elections in the 1990s
See also List of parliamentary constituencies in Devon
Notes and references
Sources Robert Beatson, A Chronological Register of Both Houses of Parliament (London: Longman, Hurst, Res & Orme, 1807) 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) F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885 (2nd edition, Aldershot: Parliamentary Research Services, 1989) Henry Stooks Smith, The Parliaments of England from 1715 to 1847, Volume 1 (London: Simpkin, Marshall & Co, 1844)