List of English by-elections (1701–07)

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This is a list of parliamentary by-elections in England held between 1701 and 1707, with the names of the previous incumbent and the victor in the by-election.

By-elections, also spelled bye-elections, are used to fill elected offices that have become vacant between general elections.

Contents

In the absence of a comprehensive and reliable source, for party and factional alignments in this period, no attempt is made to define them in this article. The House of Commons: 1690-1715 provides some guidance to the complex and shifting political relationships, but it is significant that the compilers of that work make no attempt to produce a definitive list of each members allegiances.

Dates

During this period England counted its legal year as beginning on 25 March. For the purposes of this list the year is considered to have started on 1 January.

By-elections

The c/u column denotes whether the by-election was a contested poll or an unopposed return. If the winner was re-elected, at the next general election and any intermediate by-elections, this is indicated by an * following the c or u. In a few cases the winner was elected at the next general election but had not been re-elected in a by-election after the one noted. In those cases no * symbol is used.

4th Parliament of William III (1701)

DateConstituencyc/uFormer IncumbentWinnerCause
19 February 1701 Amersham u* Sir John Garrard John Drake Death
21 February 1701 Hertford c* Thomas Filmer Richard Goulston Death
21 February 1701 Northampton c* William Thursby Thomas Andrew Death
25 February 1701 Droitwich u Thomas Foley Philip Foley Death
3 March 1701 Newport (I.o.W.) u The Lord Cutts Henry Greenhill Chose to sit for Cambridgeshire
4 March 1701 Steyning c Sir John Fagg Sir Robert Fagg Death
4 March 1701 Truro u Hugh Fortescue Sir John Hawles Chose to sit for Tregony
5 March 1701 Wareham u Thomas Erle Sir Edward Ernle Chose to sit for Portsmouth
7 March 1701 Bere Alston u* Sir Rowland Gwynne William Cowper Chose to sit for Breconshire
10 March 1701 Amersham u The Viscount Newhaven Sir Samuel Garrard Chose to sit for Buckinghamshire
17 March 1701 Taunton c* Henry Seymour Portman Sir Francis Warre Chose to sit for Wells
18 March 1701 Bramber u* Thomas Stringer Francis Seymour Conway Chose to sit for Clitheroe
19 March 1701 St Albans c* Joshua Lomax John Gape Void Election
19 March 1701 Thetford u* Joseph Williamson Thomas Hanmer Chose to sit for Rochester
20 March 1701 City of London c Gilbert Heathcote Sir John Fleet Expulsion
21 March 1701 Bossiney u Francis Robartes Thomas Watson Wentworth Chose to sit for Tregony
21 March 1701 Oxford University c* Sir Christopher Musgrave William Bromley Chose to sit for Westmorland
22 March 1701 Saltash u* Alexander Pendarves Thomas Carew Chose to sit for Penryn
2 April 1701 St Germans u John Speccot Daniel Eliot Chose to sit for Cornwall
7 April 1701 Sandwich c Sir Henry Furnese John Michel Expulsion
16 April 1701 Steyning c* Sir Robert Fagg Charles Goring By-election voided 10 April 1701
18 April 1701 Lostwithiel c* John Buller George Booth Death
29 April 1701 Merionethshire u* Hugh Nanney Richard Vaughan Death
30 April 1701 Castle Rising u Thomas Howard Robert Cecil Death
31 May 1701 Morpeth u William Howard Sir Richard Sandford Chose to sit for Northumberland
25 June 1701 Cornwall u Hugh Boscawen Richard Edgcumbe Death
9 July 1701 Salisbury u* Thomas Mompesson Charles Fox Death

5th Parliament of William III (1701–1702)

DateConstituencyc/uFormer IncumbentWinnerCause
27 January 1702 Exeter u* Sir Bartholomew Shower John Snell Death
27 January 1702 Portsmouth u Thomas Erle John Gibson Chose to sit for Wareham
27 January 1702 Seaford u Sir William Thomas Thomas Chowne Chose to sit for Sussex
2 February 1702 Castle Rising u The Earl of Ranelagh Marquess of Hartington Chose to sit for West Looe
2 February 1702 Flint Boroughs u Sir Thomas Hanmer Sir John Conway Chose to sit for Thetford
3 February 1702 Northallerton u Robert Dormer Daniel Lascelles Chose to sit for Buckinghamshire
4 February 1702 Dorchester u* Thomas Trenchard Sir Nathaniel Napier Chose to sit for Dorset
4 February 1702 East Looe u Francis Godolphin George Courtenay Chose to sit for Helston
4 February 1702 Plymouth u* Henry Trelawny John Woolcombe Death
5 February 1702 Milborne Port c* Henry Thynne John Hunt Chose to sit for Tamworth
5 February 1702 Saltash u* James Buller Benjamin Buller Chose to sit for Cornwall
5 February 1702 Weymouth and Melcombe Regis c* Maurice Ashley Anthony Henley Chose to sit for Wiltshire
9 February 1702 Berwick-upon-Tweed u* Francis Blake Jonathan Hutchinson Chose to sit for Northumberland
12 February 1702 Truro u William Scawen Robert Cotton Chose to sit for Grampound
19 February 1702 Cockermouth c* Goodwin Wharton Thomas Lamplugh Chose to sit for Buckinghamshire
7 March 1702 Newport (I.o.W.) u The Lord Cutts James Stanhope Chose to sit for Cambridgeshire
23 March 1702 Calne u* Sir Charles Hedges Henry Chivers Election voided due to a Double Return
Edward Bayntun
13 April 1702 Higham Ferrers u* Thomas Ekins Thomas Pemberton Death

1st Parliament of Anne (1702–1705)

DateConstituencyc/uFormer IncumbentWinnerCause
14 November 1702 Devizes u Sir Francis Child John Child Chose to sit for City of London
21 November 1702 Malmesbury u Sir Charles Hedges Thomas Boucher Chose to sit for Calne
23 November 1702 Hedon u* Sir Charles Duncombe Anthony Duncombe Chose to sit for Downton
23 November 1702 Northallerton u* Sir William Hustler Robert Dormer Chose to sit for Ripon
24 November 1702 Lewes u Thomas Pelham Sir Nicholas Pelham Chose to sit for Sussex
24 November 1702 Wareham u George Pitt Sir Josiah Child Chose to sit for Hampshire
25 November 1702 Marlborough c John Jeffreys Edward Jeffreys Chose to sit for Breconshire
25 November 1702 Southwark c* Charles Cox Charles Cox Void Election
John Cholmley John Cholmley
26 November 1702 Truro u Thomas Powys Philip Meadowes Chose to sit for Ludlow
27 November 1702 Totnes u Sir Christopher Musgrave William Seymour Chose to sit for Westmorland
28 November 1702 Tiverton u* Lord Spencer Robert Burridge Succeeded to a peerage
1 December 1702 Bletchingley c John Evelyn Sir Robert Clayton Death
2 December 1702 Bodmin u* John Grubham Howe Russell Robartes Chose to sit for Gloucestershire
2 December 1702 Flint Boroughs u Sir Roger Mostyn Thomas Mostyn Chose to sit for Cheshire
3 December 1702 West Looe u Sidney Godolphin Richard Hele Chose to sit for Helston
14 December 1702 Colchester u* Isaac Rebow Isaac Rebow Void Election
14 December 1702 Tamworth c* Henry Thynne Joseph Girdler Chose to sit for Weymouth
21 December 1702 Aylesbury c Sir John Pakington Simon Harcourt Chose to sit for Worcestershire
26 December 1702 Stafford u* John Chetwynd Walter Chetwynd Death
29 December 1702 Gloucester c* John Grubham Howe John Hanbury Chose to sit for Gloucestershire
31 December 1702 Newton u John Grubham Howe Thomas Legh Chose to sit for Gloucestershire
31 December 1702 Portsmouth u* Thomas Erle William Gifford Chose to sit for Wareham
11 January 1703 Lancashire u James Stanley Richard Assheton Succeeded to a peerage
25 January 1703 Saltash u Benjamin Buller John Rolle Death
8 February 1703 Sudbury c Joseph Haskin Stiles Joseph Haskin Stiles Void Election
Joseph Haskin Stiles George Dashwood By-election results reversed on petition 6 December 1703
10 February 1703 Lincolnshire u Charles Dymoke Lewis Dymoke Death
3 March 1703 Devizes u John Child Francis Merewether Death
31 March 1703 West Looe u Richard Hele Henry Poley Chose to sit for Plympton Erle
The Earl of Ranelagh Charles Seymour Expelled
22 November 1703 Bury St Edmunds c* John Hervey Sir Robert Davers Elevated to the peerage
22 November 1703 Higham Ferrers u* Thomas Pemberton Thomas Watson Wentworth Death
22 November 1703 Oxford University c* Heneage Finch Sir William Whitelock Elevated to the peerage
24 November 1703 Newcastle-under-Lyme c* John Leveson Gower John Crewe Offley Elevated to the peerage
26 November 1703 Bramber c Francis Seymour Conway John Middleton Elevated to the peerage
26 November 1703 Tavistock c* Lord Robert Russell James Bulteel Death
29 November 1703 Beaumaris u Robert Bulkeley Coningsby Williams Death
30 November 1703 Callington u* John Acland Sir William Coryton Death
7 December 1703 Newton u* Thomas Legh John Ward Death
8 December 1703 Cornwall u* John Granville Sir Richard Vyvyan Elevated to the peerage
22 December 1703 Norwich c(*) Robert Davy Thomas Palgrave Death
13 January 1704 Petersfield u* Richard Markes Leonard Bilson Death
17 January 1704 Camelford u* Henry Manaton William Pole Chose to sit for Tavistock
1 February 1704 Bramber c John Middleton Samuel Sambrooke Void Election
22 February 1704 Wareham u Sir Josiah Child Sir Edward Ernle Death
29 March 1704 Nottinghamshire u Gervase Eyre John Thornhagh Death
18 April 1704 Lancashire u Richard Bold Richard Fleetwood Death
2 November 1704 Northampton c* Bartholomew Tate Francis Arundell Death
3 November 1704 Maidstone c Sir Robert Marsham Heneage Finch Void Election
c* Sir Thomas Roberts Thomas Bliss
4 November 1704 New Romney u* Sir Benjamin Bathurst Walter Whitfield Death
7 November 1704 Hindon c George Morley Thomas Jervoise Void Election
8 November 1704 Buckinghamshire c* Goodwin Wharton Sir Richard Temple Death
8 November 1704 Newcastle-under-Lyme c John Crewe Offley John Crewe Offley By-Election voided 1 February 1704
22 November 1704 Haslemere u Lewis Oglethorpe Thomas Heath Death
24 November 1704 Aylesbury c James Herbert Sir Henry Parker Death
30 November 1704 Anglesey u* The Viscount Bulkeley The Viscount Bulkeley Death
30 November 1704 Westmorland u Sir Christopher Musgrave William Fleming Death

2nd Parliament of Anne (1705–1707)

DateConstituencyc/uFormer IncumbentWinnerCause
26 November 1705 Brackley u John Sidney Harry Mordaunt Succeeded to a peerage
26 November 1705 Chichester u William Elson Thomas Onslow Death
26 November 1705 Chippenham c Walter White Viscount Mordaunt Death
26 November 1705 Reading u Tanfield Vachell Sir William Rich Death
27 November 1705 Marlborough c* Edward Ashe Earl of Hertford Chose to sit for Heytesbury
28 November 1705 Warwickshire u* Sir Charles Shuckburgh Andrew Archer Death
29 November 1705 Castle Rising u* Sir Robert Clayton William Feilding Chose to sit for City of London
30 November 1705 Truro u Hugh Boscawen Peregrine Bertie Chose to sit for Cornwall
1 December 1705 Bere Alston u* William Cowper Spencer Cowper Appointed Lord Keeper of the Great Seal
1 December 1705 Bury St Edmunds u* Sir Robert Davers Aubrey Porter Chose to sit for Suffolk
3 December 1705 Buckingham c Sir Richard Temple Browne Willis Chose to sit for Buckinghamshire
3 December 1705 Northallerton c* Robert Dormer Roger Gale Chose to sit for Buckinghamshire
4 December 1705 St Germans u* Samuel Rolle Edward Eliot Chose to sit for Callington
6 December 1705 Richmond u Wharton Dunch William Walsh Death
7 December 1705 Great Bedwyn u* Sir George Byng Lord Bruce Chose to sit for Plymouth
7 December 1705 Lymington u Thomas Dore Marquess of Winchester Death
15 December 1705 Colchester c* Edward Bullock Sir Thomas Webster Death
2 January 1706 Newcastle-upon-Tyne u* Sir William Blackett Sir Henry Liddell Death
1 February 1706 Cardiff Boroughs u* Thomas Mansel Sir John Aubrey Death
27 February 1706 Buckinghamshire u Robert Dormer William Egerton Appointed Puisne Justice of the Common Pleas
2 March 1706 Wootton Bassett u* John Morton Pleydell Francis Popham Death
5 March 1706 Bishop's Castle u Charles Mason Henry Newport Chose to sit for Montgomery Boroughs
11 December 1706 Devizes c* John Methuen Josiah Diston Death
11 December 1706 Oxford c* Francis Norreys Sir John Walter Death
12 December 1706 Seaford c* Sir William Thomas George Naylor Death
16 December 1706 Sudbury u* Sir Gervase Elwes Sir Hervey Elwes Death
17 December 1706 Bodmin c John Hoblyn Thomas Herne Death
23 December 1706 Nottingham u* William Pierrepont John Plumptre Death
27 December 1706 Clitheroe c(*) Thomas Stringer Daniel Harvey Death (Two MPs elected due to a Double Return)
Christopher Parker
Daniel Harvey Daniel Harvey Harvey declared elected 22 January 1707
Christopher Parker
27 December 1706 Preston c* Edward Rigby Arthur Maynwaring Death
1 January 1707 Yorkshire c Sir John Kaye The Lord Fairfax of Cameron Death
21 January 1707 Essex u* Lord Walden Thomas Middleton Elevated to the peerage
21 January 1707 Newport (Cornwall) u John Sparke Sir John Pole Death
23 January 1707 West Looe u John Mountstephen Francis Palmes Death
20 February 1707 Bath c* Alexander Popham Samuel Trotman Death
20 February 1707 Westmorland u Henry Graham Michael FlemingDeath
25 February 1707 Coventry c* Sir Christopher Hales Sir Orlando Bridgeman Void Election
Thomas Gery Edward Hopkins
3 March 1707 Newport (I.o.W.) u* The Lord Cutts Sir Tristram Dillington Death
5 March 1707 County Durham u Sir William Bowes John Tempest Death
4 April 1707 Horsham u Henry Cowper Henry Goring Death

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The English general election, which began in November 1701, produced substantial gains for the Whigs, who enthusiastically supported the war with France. The Tories had been criticised in the press for their ambivalence towards the war, and public opinion had turned against them; they consequently lost ground as a result of the election. Ninety-one constituencies, 34% of the total in England and Wales, were contested.

After the downfall of the Whig Junto during the previous Parliament, King William III had appointed a largely Tory government, which was able to gain ground at the election, exploiting the decline in Whig popularity follow the end of hostilities with France. During the election, the rival East India Companies attempted to secure the election of MPs sympathetic with their interests by interfering in the electoral process to some extent in at least 86 constituencies. Contests were held in 92 of the constituencies, just over a third of the total. The new Parliament lasted less than a year, and its proceedings were dominated by the attempt to confer the succession of the Crown on the House of Hanover.

The 1695 English general election was the first to be held under the terms of the Triennial Act of 1694, which required parliament to be dissolved and fresh elections called at least every three years. This measure helped to fuel partisan rivalry over the coming decades, with the electorate in a constant state of excitement and the Whigs and Tories continually trying to gain the upper hand. Despite the potential for manipulation of the electorate, as was seen under Robert Walpole and his successors, with general elections held an average of every other year, and local and central government positions frequently changing hands between parties, it was impossible for any party or government to be certain of electoral success in the period after 1694, and election results were consequently genuinely representative of the views of at least the section of the population able to vote.

The 1690 English general election occurred after the dissolution of the Convention Parliament summoned in the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution, and saw the partisan feuds in that parliament continue in the constituencies. The Tories made significant gains against their opponents, particularly in the contested counties and boroughs, as the electorate saw the Whigs increasingly as a source of instability and a threat to the Church of England.

References

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