The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 (which followed on from the Representation of the People Act 1884) abolished the parliamentary borough and it gave its name to one of four divisions of the abolished three-member Parliamentary County of Hertfordshire, and was formally named as the Eastern or Hertford Division of Hertfordshire.
As well as the Borough of Hertford, the enlarged constituency included the towns of Ware, Bishop's Stortford and Hoddesdon. It remained largely unchanged until 1955, but was radically altered for the 1955 general election. It was abolished in 1974.
Boundaries and boundary changes
1885–1918
The Borough of Hertford;
The Sessional Divisions of Bishop's Stortford and Cheshunt;
Parts of the Sessional Divisions of Hertford and Ware; and
In the Sessional Division of Aldbury, the parishes of Great Hadham and Little Hadham.[2]
1918–1950
The Borough of Hertford;
The Urban Districts of Bishop's Stortford, Cheshunt, Hoddesdon, Sawbridgeworth, and Ware;
The Rural Districts of Hadham and Ware; and
The Rural District of Hertford parishes of Bayford, Bengeo Rural, Bengeo Urban, Bramfield, Brickendon Liberty, Brickendon Rural, Hertingfordbury, Little Amwell, Little Berkhamsted, St Andrew Rural, St John Rural, Stapleford, and Tewin.[3]
Minor changes to boundaries.
1950–1955
The Borough of Hertford;
The Urban Districts of Bishop's Stortford, Cheshunt, Hoddesdon, Sawbridgeworth, and Ware;
The Rural District of Ware;
The Rural District of Braughing parishes of Albury, Braughing, Brent Pelham, Furneux Pelham, High Wych, Little Hadham, Much Hadham, Stocking Pelham, and Thorley; and
The Rural District of Hertford parishes of Bayford, Bengeo Rural, Bengeo Urban, Bramfield, Brickendon Liberty, Brickendon Rural, Hertingfordbury, Little Amwell, Little Berkhamsted, St Andrew Rural, St John Rural, Stapleford, and Tewin.[4]
Nominal changes only to reflect restructuring of rural districts.
1955–1974
The Borough of Hertford;
The Urban District of Welwyn Garden City; and
The Rural Districts of Hatfield, Hertford, and Welwyn.[5]
Significant changes with only the Municipal Borough and the part of the Rural District of Hertford retained. The remainder of the constituency formed the basis of the new County Constituency of East Hertfordshire. The Urban District of Welwyn Garden City and the Rural District of Welwyn were transferred from St Albans; the Rural District of Hatfield from Barnet; and the remainder of the Rural District of Hertford from Hitchin.
The constituency was abolished in the redistribution taking effect for the February 1974 general election. The Municipal Borough and Rural District of Hertford were included in the new constituency of Hertford and Stevenage, with remaining areas forming the new constituency of Welwyn and Hatfield.
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;
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;
↑ Great Britain, Incorporated Council of Law Reporting for England and Wales. The public general acts. unknown library. Proprietors of the Law Journal Reports, 1884.
↑ S., Craig, Fred W. (1972). Boundaries of parliamentary constituencies 1885-1972;. Chichester: Political Reference Publications. ISBN0900178094. OCLC539011.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
↑ At the general election of 1715, Caesar and Goulston were initially declared re-elected, but on petition the result was overturned and their opponents, Clarke and Boteler, were seated in their place
↑ On petition, Caesar was adjudged not to have been duly elected and his opponent, Clarke, was declared elected in his place
1 2 3 4 Fisher, David R. "Hertford". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 14 April 2020.
1 2 At the election of 1832 Ingestrie and Mahon were declared elected, but on petition was their election was declared void, Hertford's writ was suspended and the seats remained vacant until the next general election
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)
F W S Craig, "British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949" (Glasgow: Political Reference Publications, 1969)
Henry Stooks Smith, The Parliaments of England from 1715 to 1847 (2nd edition, edited by FWS Craig - Chichester: Parliamentary Reference Publications, 1973)
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