Epping (UK Parliament constituency)

Last updated

Epping
Former county constituency
for the House of Commons
County Essex
18851974 (1974)
SeatsOne
Created from West Essex
Replaced by Chingford, Epping Forest and Harlow
During its existence contributed to new seat(s) of: Woodford and Chigwell

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.

Contents

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

Formed from part of the abolished West Division. See below for areas covered.

Epping in Essex, boundaries 1918-45 Epping1918.png
Epping in Essex, boundaries 1918-45

1918–1945

Gained Woodford from the abolished Walthamstow Division of Essex and Wanstead from the Romford Division. Lost eastern areas, including Chipping Ongar, to Chelmsford, and northern areas, including Great Dunmow and Hatfield Broad Oak, to Saffron Walden.

Epping in Essex, boundaries 1945-50 Epping1945.png
Epping in Essex, boundaries 1945-50

1945–1974

Epping in Essex 1955-74 Epping1955.PNG
Epping in Essex 1955-74

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 new Parliamentary Borough of Woodford was formed from 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).

Abolition

The seat was abolished in 1974 following the Second Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies. The Borough 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 constituency of Chingford within that Borough; the Urban District of Harlow, which had been created out of the Rural District of Epping, together with neighbouring parishes (now part of the merged Rural District of Epping and Ongar), formed the new constituency of Harlow; and remaining parts were included in the new constituency of Epping Forest.

Areas covered

Area18851918194519551974
Great Dunmow, Hatfield Broad Oak Epping Saffron Walden (part)
Chipping Ongar Chelmsford (part) Chigwell Brentwood and Ongar (part)
Harlow EppingEppingEpping 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

YearMemberPartyNotes
1885 Henry Selwin-Ibbetson Conservative
1892 Amelius Lockwood Conservative
1917 by-election 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

General election 1885: Epping [4] [5]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Henry Selwin-Ibbetson 4,668 61.5
Liberal Edmund Barnard 2,91538.5
Majority1,74423.0
Turnout 7,57482.0
Registered electors 9,239
Conservative win (new seat)
General election 1886: Epping [4] [5]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Henry Selwin-Ibbetson Unopposed
Conservative hold

Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Epping [4] [5]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Amelius Lockwood 4,536 62.4 N/A
Liberal Spencer Barclay Heward2,73837.6New
Majority1,79824.8N/A
Turnout 7,27476.8N/A
Registered electors 9,476
Conservative hold Swing N/A
General election 1895: Epping [4] [5] [6]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Amelius Lockwood Unopposed
Conservative hold

Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: Epping [4] [5] [6]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Amelius Lockwood Unopposed
Conservative hold
General election 1906: Epping [4] [5]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Amelius Lockwood 5,204 56.4 N/A
Liberal Spencer Barclay Howard4,03043.6New
Majority1,17412.8N/A
Turnout 9,23481.2N/A
Registered electors 11,374
Conservative hold Swing N/A

Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Epping [4] [7]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Amelius Lockwood 6,578 63.1 +6.7
Liberal Israel Alexander Symmons3,84536.96.7
Majority2,73326.2+13.4
Turnout 10,42385.7+4.5
Registered electors 12,164
Conservative hold Swing +6.7
General election December 1910: Epping [4] [7]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Amelius Lockwood 5,990 64.1 +1.0
Liberal Israel Alexander Symmons3,36135.91.0
Majority2,62928.2+2.0
Turnout 9,35176.98.8
Registered electors 12,164
Conservative hold Swing +1.0

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:

This election was suspended by the Parliament and Registration Act 1916 (royal assent 27 January 1916), which was extended five times, due to the First World War. A general election was finally allowed in December 1918 after the war was over; but first, Amelius Lockwood was disqualified as an MP by being raised to the peerage in 1917, necessitating a by-election. The Liberals, in wartime coalition with the Conservatives and Unionists, did not oppose the Unionist candidate.

By-election, 1917: Epping [4]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Unionist Richard Colvin Unopposed
Unionist hold
General election 1918: Epping [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
C Unionist Richard Colvin 14,66872.6+8.5
Liberal Arthur Leonard Horner4,16420.615.3
People's Progressive CoalitionJ. Conoley1,3676.8New
Majority10,50452.0+23.8
Turnout 20,19952.424.5
Registered electors 38,519
Unionist hold Swing +11.9
Cindicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: Epping [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Unionist Richard Colvin 15,300 59.9 12.7
Liberal Gilbert Granville Sharp 10,22840.1+19.5
Majority5,07219.832.8
Turnout 25,52863.5+11.1
Registered electors 40,209
Unionist hold Swing 16.1
General election 1923: Epping [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Unionist Leonard Lyle 14,528 52.9 7.0
Liberal Gilbert Granville Sharp 12,95447.1+7.0
Majority1,5745.814.0
Turnout 27,48266.4+2.9
Registered electors 41,404
Unionist hold Swing 7.0

General election 1924: Epping [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Constitutionalist Winston Churchill 19,843 58.9 N/A
Liberal Gilbert Granville Sharp 10,08029.917.2
Labour J R McPhie3,76811.2New
Majority9,76329.0N/A
Turnout 33,69178.3+11.9
Registered electors 43,055
Constitutionalist gain from Unionist Swing

General election 1929: Epping [8]
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Unionist Winston Churchill 23,972 48.5 10.4
Liberal Gilbert Granville Sharp 19,00538.4+8.5
Labour Walton Newbold 6,47213.1+1.9
Majority4,96710.118.9
Turnout 49,44975.23.1
Registered electors 65,758
Unionist gain from Constitutionalist Swing 9.5

Elections in the 1930s

Comyns Carr Arthur Comyns Carr.jpg
Comyns Carr

General election 1931: Epping
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Winston Churchill 35,956 63.8 +15.3
Liberal Arthur Comyns Carr 15,67027.8−10.6
Labour James Ranger 4,7138.4−4.7
Majority20,28636.0+25.9
Turnout 56,33977.3+2.1
Conservative hold Swing

General election 1935: Epping
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Winston Churchill 34,849 59.0 −4.8
Liberal Gilbert Granville Sharp 14,43024.4−3.4
Labour James Ranger 9,75816.5+8.1
Majority20,41934.6−1.4
Turnout 59,03767.7−9.6
Conservative hold Swing

Elections in the 1940s

A 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:

The election was suspended by the Prolongation of Parliament Act 1940 (royal assent 6 November 1940), which was extended four times, due to the Second World War.

General election 1945: Epping
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Leah Manning 15,993 44.1 +19.3
Conservative Roy Wise 15,00641.3−17.8
Liberal Sydney Robinson 5,13414.6−1.9
Majority9872.8N/A
Turnout 36,31371.4+3.7
Labour gain from Conservative Swing +18.6

Elections in the 1950s

General election 1950: Epping
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Nigel Davies 24,292 49.1 +7.8
Labour Leah Manning 20,38541.2+3.9
Liberal Peter Edwin Lewis 4,7559.6−5.0
Majority3,9077.9N/A
Turnout 49,43286.6+15.2
Conservative gain from Labour Swing
General election 1951: Epping
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Graeme Finlay 27,392 54.8 +5.7
Labour Leah Manning 22,59845.2+4.0
Majority4,7949.6+1.7
Turnout 49,99085.1−1.5
Conservative hold Swing +0.9
General election 1955: Epping
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Graeme Finlay 26,065 46.4 −8.4
Labour Leah Manning 22,54240.2−5.0
Liberal John Arlott 7,52813.4New
Majority3,5236.2−3.4
Turnout 56,13582.3−2.8
Conservative hold Swing −1.7
General election 1959: Epping
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Graeme Finlay 31,507 44.7 −1.7
Labour Co-op Donald F W Ford27,11438.4−1.8
Liberal John Arlott 11,91316.9+3.5
Majority4,3936.20.0
Turnout 70,53484.3+2.0
Conservative hold Swing −0.1

Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Epping
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Stan Newens 34,991 44.4 +6.0
Conservative Graeme Finlay 31,75340.3−4.4
Liberal Nancy Seear 12,09315.3−1.6
Majority3,2384.1N/A
Turnout 78,83783.3−1.0
Labour gain from Conservative Swing +5.2
General election 1966: Epping
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Labour Stan Newens 38,914 48.4 +4.0
Conservative E Michael Ogden 31,40639.0−1.3
Liberal Derek A McKie10,16212.6−2.7
Majority7,5089.4+5.3
Turnout 80,48282.4−0.9
Labour hold Swing +2.7

Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Epping
PartyCandidateVotes%±%
Conservative Norman Tebbit 43,615 51.5 +12.5
Labour Stan Newens 41,04048.5+0.1
Majority2,5753.0N/A
Turnout 84,65573.3−9.1
Conservative gain from Labour Swing +6.2

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References

  1. Great Britain, Incorporated Council of Law Reporting for England and Wales. The public general acts. unknown library. Proprietors of the Law Journal Reports, 1884.
  2. 1 2 3 Craig, Fred W. S. (1972). Boundaries of parliamentary constituencies 1885-1972;. Chichester: Political Reference Publications. ISBN   0900178094. OCLC   539011.
  3. Gay, Oonagh (28 July 2010). "The Rules for the Redistribution of Seats- history and reform".{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, FWS Craig
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 The Liberal Year Book, 1907
  6. 1 2 Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1901
  7. 1 2 Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1916
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918–1949 (3rd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN   0-900178-06-X.
  9. Report of the Annual Conference of the Labour Party, 1939

Sources

Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by UK Parliament constituency
Representative for Wanstead, Woodford
1885–1945
Succeeded by
UK Parliament constituency
Representative for Loughton, Buckhurst Hill, Chigwell
1885–1950
Succeeded by
UK Parliament constituency
Representative for Chingford
1885–1974
Succeeded by
UK Parliament constituency
Representative for Harlow
1885–1974
Succeeded by
UK Parliament constituency
Representative for Waltham Abbey, Theydon Bois, Epping
1885–1974
Succeeded by
Preceded by Constituency represented by the chancellor of the Exchequer
1924–1929
Succeeded by
Preceded by Constituency represented by the prime minister
1940–1945
Succeeded by