Merthyr Tydfil (UK Parliament constituency)

Not to be confused with Electoral district of Merthyr.

Merthyr Tydfil
Former Borough constituency for the House of Commons
1832–1918
Created from	Glamorgan
Replaced by	Merthyr Aberdare
1950–1983
Created from	Merthyr
Replaced by	Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney

Merthyr Tydfil was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Merthyr Tydfil in Glamorgan. From 1832 to 1868 it returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, and in 1868 this was increased to two members. The two-member constituency was abolished for the 1918 general election.

A single-member constituency (known as Merthyr) existed from 1918 until 1945 and, by the 1950 general election, it had been renamed Merthyr Tydfil. The constituency was abolished for the 1983 general election, when it was largely replaced by the new Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney constituency.

History

Merthyr was regarded as a Liberal seat throughout the nineteenth century and particularly after the landmark election of 1868. There were tensions within the constituency, however and these were manifested by the rivalry between Merthyr and Aberdare, which became more pronounced as the latter grew in importance after 1850. Increasingly, also, the constituency was affected by the debate about working-class representation. Thomas Halliday contested Merthyr as a 'labour' candidate as early as 1874 and the return of Keir Hardie in 1900 was a notable landmark in the growth of the Labour Party. From 1922 onwards, Merthyr was a safe Labour seat.

1832–1867

The Reform Act 1832 was the first significant review of the arrangements for the election of MPs to the House of Commons, Patterns of representation had remained essentially unchanged for centuries and no recognition was given to the growth of urban settlements in the wake of the industrial revolution. The discontent of the late 1820s, culminating in serious disturbances in 1831, including the Merthyr Rising persuaded the government to take action in favour of reform. Within the Act of 1832 the one significant change in Wales was the carving out of a new parliamentary constituency, centred at Merthyr Tydfil, from the county of Glamorgan.

The Parliamentary Boundaries Act 1832 defined the new Parliamentary Borough of Merthyr Tydvil in great detail: ^[1]

From the Point on the North of Merthyr Tydvil at which the Northern Boundary of the Hamlet of Gellydeg meets the River called the Great Taff, Northward, along the Great Taff, to the Point at which the same is cut by the Southern Fence of Cilsanos Common; thence, Eastward, along the Fence of Cilsanos Common to the Point at which the same cuts the Brecon Road; thence, Southward, along the Brecon Road to the Point at which the same meets the Vainor Road; thence, Eastward, along the Vainor Road to the Point at which the same meets a Bye Road leading to Cefn-coed-y-Cwymner; thence in a straight Line to the Point at which the Little Taff would be cut by a straight Line to be drawn from the Point last described to the Southern Mouth of a Culvert on the Eastern Side of the Little Taff; thence, up the Little Taff, along the Boundary of the Parish of Merthyr Tydvil to the Point at which the Cwm Bargoed Stream is joined by a little Brook from the Coli Ravine; thence in a straight Line to the North eastern Corner of the Stone Fence of Pen-dwy-cae Vawr Farm; thence along the Road which passes Pen-dwy-cae Vawr Farmhouse to the Point at which the same meets the Mountain Track from Dowlais to Quakers Yard; thence, Southward, along the said Track, between the Farms of Pen-dwy-cae Vach and Pen-dwy-cae Vawr, to the Point at which such Track meets a Road running nearly due West, by a Stone Quarry, to Pen-y-rhw Gymra Cottage; thence along the last-mentioned Road to the Point at which the same reaches the Southern Side of Pen-y-rhw Gymra Cottage; thence in a straight Line to the Point at which the Southern Boundary of Troed-y-rhw Farm meets the Cardiff Road; thence along the Southern Boundary of Troed-y-rhw Farm to the Point at which the same meets the Great Taff; thence in a straight Line to the Bridge over the Cardiff Canal called Pont-y-nant Maen; thence, Northward, along the Cardiff Canal to the Point at which the same is intersected by the Cwmdu Brook; thence along the Cwmdu Brook to its Source; thence in a straight Line drawn due West to the Boundary of the Parish of Aberdare; thence, Southward, along the Boundary of the Parish of Aberdare to the Point at which the same meets the Boundary of the Hamlet of Gellydeg; thence, Eastward, along the Boundary of the Hamlet of Gellydeg to the Point first described.

Electoral Politics 1832–67

When the constituency was established the vast majority of the electorate were resident in Merthyr Tydfil and its environs, such as the industrial township of Dowlais. In contrast the electorate of the neighbouring Aberdare Valley was relatively small, numbering 3,691 compared with 22,083 in Merthyr. ^[2] The first member for Merthyr Tydfil was Sir Josiah John Guest who served, albeit with some opposition until his death in 1852.

Guest was succeeded by Henry Austin Bruce who, again, served with little opposition until the Second Reform Act of 1867. Bruce was a prominent Liberal although associated with the less radical wing of the Liberal Party and was criticised for his role in events such as the 1857 Aberdare Strike.

1867–1918

The Representation of the People Act 1867, which increased the number of members returned to two, also widened the constituency boundaries. To the existing parliamentary borough were added some additional parts of the parish of Aberdare, part of the parishes of Merthyr and "Faenor" (Vaynor), and part of the district of Mountain Ash. ^{[3] [4]}

The same boundaries were retained in 1885, and can be seen on the boundary commissioners' map. ^[5]

1868 general election

Merthyr Tydfil saw one of the most remarkable contests of the 1868 general election. Resulting directly from a tenfold increase in the electorate. Henry Richard was returned at the expense of the sitting member, Henry Austin Bruce.

Bruce had served as member since 1832 and his position was secure until the reforms of 1867. Even thereafter, the immediate interest appeared to be in who would occupy the second seat rather than whether or nor Bruce would be re-elected. The Merthyr element of the constituency had dominated the representation since its formation in 1832 but in recent years the population of the neighbouring Aberdare valley had grown considerably, mainly as a result of the development of the steam coal trade, that they should determine the identity of the second member. The Merthyr electorate had traditionally been far larger than that of Aberdare but by 1868, Aberdare's electorate formed almost half the total (11,446 in Aberdare; 13,329 in Merthyr). ^[2] As a result, there was a widespread view amongst the industrialists and tradesmen of the Aberdare Valley that they should have a say in the selection of a second Liberal candidate to contest the seat alongside Bruce.

These commercial interests of the Aberdare Valley soon became allied with the powerful nonconformist interest, which was led by the key figure of Thomas Price, minister of Calfaria, Aberdare. Price, and other nonconformist ministers, were considered to have considerable influence over the largely chapel-going industrial workers who had been newly enfranchised. During 1867 these groupings rallied around Richard Fothergill, owner of the Aberdare Ironworks and also a figure of some influence in Merthyr due to his ownership of the Plymouth Ironworks. It was confidently expected that Fothergill would be returned alongside Bruce.

This remained the position until Henry Richard entered the fray in the summer of 1868. Richard's candidature was also opposed by members of the Irish community, on account of alleged comments by Richard about the Pope during a speech at Brecon. ^[6]

1868–1888

Richard and Fothergill were re-elected in 1874. By 1879, however, Fothergill was in financial difficulties and there were calls for him to step aside. A deputation of tradesmen and working men who attended a meeting at Swansea to request to offer himself once again as a candidate but he eventually declined. ^[7] He was replaced by Charles Herbert James. member of a long-standing politically active family in Merthyr. Both served until 1888 when Richard died and James stood down, leading to two by-elections within a twelve-month period. These led to the return of David Alfred Thomas and William Pritchard Morgan. Thomas and Morgan had much in common. Both were nonconformists, both were wealthy industrialists and both placed Welsh issues high on their list of political priorities. However, they also shared 'a hearty loathing' for each other. ^[8]

Morgan's return, in particular, was significant, as he defeated Foulkes Griffiths, the official candidate of the Liberal Association. The result was also regarded as a defeat for the Cymru Fydd element in the Welsh Liberal Party. The Merthyr Liberal Association broke up after this election and did not function again until 1909. ^[8]

1888–1918

David Thomas

Relations between Thomas and Morgan were not good, leading ultimately to a Liberal split which contributed to the success of Keir Hardie at the 1900 general election. For the first decade of the twentieth century Merthyr was represented by the unusual combination of David Alfred Thomas and Hardie. In 1910, Thomas chose to contest Cardiff instead and was succeeded by Sir Edgar Jones.

1918–1950

The two-member Merthyr Boroughs constituency was replaced at the 1918 general election by two separate constituencies, Aberdare and Merthyr Tydfil.

1950–1983

Merthyr Tydfil Borough Constituency, created by the Representation of the People Act 1948, had an identical area to the County Borough of Merthyr Tydfil. ^[9] The seat was first contested at the 1950 general election. The boundaries were unchanged until 1983.

Members of Parliament

MPs 1832–1868

Election		Member	Party
	1832	Sir John Josiah Guest	Whig [10] [11] [12] [13]
	1852	Henry Bruce	Peelite [14] [15] [16] [17]
	1859		Liberal
	1868	representation increased to two members

MPs 1868–1918

Election	1st Member		1st Party	2nd Member		2nd Party
1868		Henry Richard	Liberal		Richard Fothergill	Liberal
1880					Charles James
1888 by-election (Mar)					D. A. Thomas
1888 by-election (Oct)		William Pritchard-Morgan
1900		Keir Hardie	Labour
1910 (Jan)					Sir Edgar Jones
1915 by-election		Charles Stanton	Ind. Labour [18]
1918	constituency abolished: see Merthyr and Aberdare

MPs 1950–1983

Election		Member	Party
1950		constituency re-established
	1950	S. O. Davies	Labour
	1970		Independent Labour
	1972 by-election	Ted Rowlands	Labour
	1983	constituency abolished: see Merthyr Tydfil & Rhymney

Elections 1832–1867

Elections in the 1830s

General election 1832: Merthyr Tydfil ^{[19] [10]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	John Josiah Guest	Unopposed
Registered electors			502
	Whig win (new seat)

General election 1835: Merthyr Tydfil ^{[19] [10]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	John Josiah Guest	Unopposed
Registered electors			561
	Whig hold

General election 1837: Merthyr Tydfil ^{[19] [10]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	John Josiah Guest	309	69.6
	Conservative	John Bruce Bruce [20]	135	30.4
Majority			174	39.2
Turnout			444	76.3
Registered electors			582
	Whig hold

Elections in the 1840s

General election 1841: Merthyr Tydfil ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	John Josiah Guest	Unopposed
Registered electors			776
	Whig hold

General election 1847: Merthyr Tydfil ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	John Josiah Guest	Unopposed
Registered electors			822
	Whig hold

Elections in the 1850s

General election 1852: Merthyr Tydfil ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	John Josiah Guest	Unopposed
Registered electors			938
	Whig hold

Guest's death caused a by-election.

By-election, 14 December 1852: Merthyr Tydfil ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Peelite	Henry Bruce	Unopposed
	Peelite gain from Whig

General election 1857: Merthyr Tydfil ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Peelite	Henry Bruce	Unopposed
Registered electors			1,263
	Peelite gain from Whig

General election 1859: Merthyr Tydfil ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Henry Bruce	800	88.3	N/A
	Liberal	Edward Merrick Elderton [21]	106	11.7	N/A
Majority			694	76.6	N/A
Turnout			906	67.2	N/A
Registered electors			1,349
	Liberal hold		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1860s

Bruce was appointed Vice-President of the Committee of the Privy Council for Education, requiring a by-election.

By-election, 25 April 1864: Merthyr Tydfil ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Henry Bruce	Unopposed
	Liberal hold

General election 1865: Merthyr Tydfil ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Henry Bruce	Unopposed
Registered electors			1,387
	Liberal hold

Elections 1868–1918

Elections in the 1860s

Seat increased to two members

General election 1868: Merthyr Tydfil ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Henry Richard	11,683	46.9	N/A
	Liberal	Richard Fothergill	7,439	29.9	N/A
	Liberal	Henry Bruce	5,776	23.2	N/A
Majority			1,663	6.7	N/A
Turnout			12,449 (est)	85.4 (est)	N/A
Registered electors			14,577
	Liberal hold		Swing	N/A
	Liberal win (new seat)

Elections in the 1870s

General election 1874: Merthyr Tydfil ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Henry Richard	7,606	39.2	−7.7
	Liberal	Richard Fothergill	6,908	35.6	+5.7
	Lib-Lab	Thomas Halliday	4,912	25.3	N/A
Majority			1,996	10.3	+3.6
Turnout			9,713 (est)	63.0 (est)	−22.4
Registered electors			15,429
	Liberal hold		Swing
	Liberal hold		Swing

Elections in the 1880s

General election 1880: Merthyr Tydfil ^[19]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Henry Richard	8,033	40.2	+1.0
	Liberal	Charles James	7,526	37.6	+2.0
	Conservative	William Lewis [22]	4,445	22.2	New
Majority			3,081	15.4	+5.1
Turnout			12,478 (est)	87.5 (est)	+24.5
Registered electors			14,259
	Liberal hold		Swing
	Liberal hold		Swing

General election 1885: Merthyr Tydfil ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Henry Richard	Unopposed
	Liberal	Charles James	Unopposed
	Liberal hold
	Liberal hold

General election 1886: Merthyr Tydfil ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Henry Richard	Unopposed
	Liberal	Charles James	Unopposed
	Liberal hold
	Liberal hold

James resigned, causing a by-election.

By-election, 14 Mar 1888: Merthyr Tydfil ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	D. A. Thomas	Unopposed
	Liberal hold

Richard died, causing a by-election.

Morgan

By-election, 26 Oct 1888: Merthyr Tydfil ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent Liberal	William Pritchard-Morgan	7,149	59.1	New
	Liberal	Richard Foulkes Griffiths [24]	4,956	40.9	N/A
Majority			2,193	18.2	N/A
Turnout			12,105	78.5	N/A
Registered electors			15,411
	Liberal hold		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1890s

Thomas

General election 1892: Merthyr Tydfil ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	D. A. Thomas	11,948	45.9	N/A
	Liberal	William Pritchard-Morgan	11,756	45.2	N/A
	Conservative	Benjamin Francis Williams	2,304	8.9	New
Majority			9,452	36.3	N/A
Turnout			14,093 (est)	81.6	N/A
Registered electors			17,271
	Liberal hold		Swing	N/A
	Liberal hold		Swing	N/A

General election 1895: Merthyr Tydfil ^{[23] [25]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	D. A. Thomas	9,250	37.1	−8.8
	Liberal	William Pritchard-Morgan	8,554	34.2	−11.0
	Conservative	Herbert Clark Lewis, 2nd Baron Merthyr	6,525	26.1	+17.2
	Independent Liberal-Labour	Allen Upward	659	2.6	New
Majority			2,029	8.1	−28.2
Turnout			14,998 (est)	88.1	+6.5
Registered electors			17,024
	Liberal hold		Swing	−13.0
	Liberal hold		Swing	−14.1

Elections in the 1900s

Hardie

General election 1900: Merthyr Tydfil ^{[23] [25]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	D. A. Thomas	8,598	46.9	+9.8
	Labour Repr. Cmte.	Keir Hardie	5,745	31.3	New
	Liberal	William Pritchard-Morgan	4,004	21.8	−12.4
Majority			1,741	9.5	N/A
Turnout			18,347	73.9	−14.2
Registered electors			15,400
	Liberal hold		Swing
	Labour Repr. Cmte. gain from Liberal		Swing

General election 1906: Merthyr Tydfil ^[23]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	D. A. Thomas	13,971	43.7	−3.2
	Labour Repr. Cmte.	Keir Hardie	10,187	31.9	+0.6
	Liberal	Henry Radcliffe	7,776	24.4	+2.6
Majority			2,411	7.5	−2.0
Turnout			31,934	84.9	+11.0
Registered electors			21,438
	Liberal hold		Swing	−1.9
	Labour Repr. Cmte. hold		Swing	+1.9

Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Merthyr Tydfil ^{[23] [26]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Edgar Jones	15,448	41.0	−2.7
	Labour	Keir Hardie	13,841	36.7	+4.8
	Conservative	Arthur Fox-Davies	4,756	12.6	New
	Independent Liberal	William Pritchard-Morgan	3,639	9.7	New
Majority			10,692	28.4	+9.1
Majority			9,085	24.1	+16.6
Turnout			37,684	93.0	+8.1
	Labour hold		Swing
	Liberal hold		Swing

General election, December 1910: Merthyr Tydfil

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Edgar Jones	12,258	42.2	+1.2
	Labour	Keir Hardie	11,507	39.6	+2.9
	Liberal Unionist	John Henry Watts	5,277	18.2	+5.6
Majority			6,981	24.0	−4.4
Majority			6,230	21.4	−2.7
Turnout			29.042	81.3	−11.7
	Liberal hold		Swing
	Labour hold		Swing

1915 Merthyr Tydfil by-election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent Labour	Charles Stanton	10,286	62.8	New
	Labour	James Winstone	6,080	37.2	−2.4
Majority			4,206	25.6	N/A
Turnout			16,366	67.7	−13.6
	Independent Labour gain from Labour		Swing

Elections 1950–1979

1950s

General election 1950: Merthyr Tydfil

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. O. Davies	29,210	78.91
	Conservative	LF Haddrill	6,294	17.00
	Independent Nationalist	Trefor Morgan	1,511	4.08
Majority			22,916	61.91
Turnout			37,015	85.77
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1951: Merthyr Tydfil

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. O. Davies	28,841	79.57
	Conservative	James F Lynam	7,405	20.43
Majority			21,436	59.14
Turnout			36,246	84.42
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1955: Merthyr Tydfil

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. O. Davies	25,630	77.25
	Conservative	Anthony Arnold	7,548	22.75
Majority			18,082	54.50
Turnout			33,178	77.28
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1959: Merthyr Tydfil

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. O. Davies	26,608	77.14
	Conservative	Miranda MM Greenaway	7,885	22.86
Majority			18,723	54.28
Turnout			34,493	81.83
	Labour hold		Swing

1960s

General election 1964: Merthyr Tydfil

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. O. Davies	23,275	75.27
	Conservative	Sidney W Doxsey	4,767	15.42
	Plaid Cymru	Ioan Bowen Rees	2,878	9.31	New
Majority			18,508	59.85
Turnout			30,920	76.27
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1966: Merthyr Tydfil

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	S. O. Davies	21,737	74.49
	Conservative	Gerald L Preece	4,082	13.99
	Plaid Cymru	Meic Stephens	3,361	11.52
Majority			17,655	60.50
Turnout			29,180	73.92
	Labour hold		Swing

1970s

General election 1970: Merthyr Tydfil

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Independent Labour	S. O. Davies	16,701	51.90	N/A
	Labour	Taliesin J Lloyd	9,234	28.69	−45.80
	Conservative	Edward Jones	3,169	9.85	−4.14
	Plaid Cymru	Chris Rees	3,076	9.56	−1.96
Majority			7,467	23.21	N/A
Turnout			32,180	77.92	+4.00
	Independent Labour gain from Labour		Swing	+40.30

NB: Davies claimed to be 83 in 1970 and his Constituency Labour Party felt that he was too old and ought to stand down. They thus de-selected him in favour of a younger man. However, although his true birth date is unconfirmed, Davies was undoubtedly several years older than he claimed, and was probably close to 90 years old when he fought and won the election as an Independent.

1972 Merthyr Tydfil by-election

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Edward Rowlands	15,562	48.58	+19.89
	Plaid Cymru	Emrys Roberts	11,852	37.00	+27.44
	Conservative	Christopher Barr	2,336	7.29	−2.56
	Communist	Arthur Lewis Jones	1,519	4.74	New
	Liberal	Angus Donaldson	765	2.39	New
Majority			3,710	11.58	N/A
Turnout			32,034	79.5	−1.6
	Labour gain from Independent Labour		Swing

General election February 1974: Merthyr Tydfil

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Edward Rowlands	20,486	64.07
	Plaid Cymru	Emrys Roberts	7,336	22.94
	Conservative	Michael Knowles	2,622	8.20
	Liberal	D Bettell-Higgins	1,002	3.13
	Communist	A Jones	369	1.15	N/A
	Workers Revolutionary	R Battersby	160	0.50	New
Majority			13,150	41.13
Turnout			32,015	81.06
	Labour gain from Independent		Swing

General election October 1974: Merthyr Tydfil

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Edward Rowlands	21,260	70.61
	Plaid Cymru	Emrys Roberts	4,455	14.80
	Conservative	LJ Walters	2,587	8.59
	Liberal	D Bettall-Higgins	1,300	4.32
	Communist	T Roberts	509	1.69
Majority			16,805	55.81
Turnout			30,111	75.82
	Labour hold		Swing

General election 1979: Merthyr Tydfil

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Edward Rowlands	22,386	71.32
	Conservative	AR de Wilde	4,426	14.10
	Plaid Cymru	Eurfyl ap Gwilym	2,962	9.44
	Liberal	RD Oliver	1,275	4.06
	Communist	CC Dennett	223	0.71
	Workers Revolutionary	GT Gould	114	0.36	New
Majority			17,960	57.22
Turnout			31,386	79.10
	Labour hold		Swing

References

1. Schedule O, Parliamentary Boundaries Act 1832, c.64
2. Jones. "Thomas Price (Part Two)": 251.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
3. Mair, Robert Henry (1870). Debrett's Illustrated House of Commons and the Judicial Bench (PDF). London: Dean & Son. p. 341. Retrieved 12 May 2009.
4. "Electoral registers for Merthyr Tydfil: Summary of the Merthyr Tydfil Electoral District". Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council. Retrieved 4 June 2010.
5. "Glamorganshire. New Divisions of County". Report of the Boundary Commissioners for England and Wales. londonancestor.com. 1885.
6. "Helyntion yr Etholiad". Gwladgarwr. 26 September 1868. Retrieved 26 January 2014.
7. "Representation of Merthyr. Conference at Swansea". Merthyr Telegraph. 1 August 1879. Retrieved 9 July 2014.
8. Morgan. "Democratic Politics": 10–11.{{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
9. First Schedule: Parliamentary Constituencies, Part II: Wales, Representation of the People Act, 1948 (11&12 Geo. 6.) C. 65
10. Stooks Smith, Henry (1845). The Parliaments of England, from 1st George I., to the Present Time. Vol II: Oxfordshire to Wales Inclusive. London: Simpkin, Marshall, & Co. p. 193.
11. Stooks Smith, Henry. (1973) [1844–1850]. Craig, F. W. S. (ed.). The Parliaments of England (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p.  72. ISBN   0-900178-13-2 . Retrieved 22 August 2018.
12. Dod, Charles Roger; Dod, Robert Phipps (1847). Dod's Parliamentary Companion, Volume 15. Dod's Parliamentary Companion. p. 177.
13. "General Election, 1841" . Morning Post. 29 June 1841. pp. 2–4. Retrieved 22 August 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
14. "Newcastle Courant" . 17 December 1852. p. 7. Retrieved 22 August 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
15. Parry, J. P. (1986). Democracy & Religion: Gladstone and the Liberal Party, 1867–1875. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 76. ISBN   0-521-30948-4.
16. "John Bull" . 6 December 1852. pp. 12–13. Retrieved 22 August 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
17. "The Elections" . Hereford Times. 28 March 1857. p. 13. Retrieved 22 August 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
18. "Charles Butt Stanton, 1873–1946" (PDF). The National Library of Wales. p. 163. Retrieved 9 January 2022.
19. Craig, F. W. S., ed. (1977). British Parliamentary Election Results 1832–1885 (e-book) (1st ed.). London: Macmillan Press. ISBN   978-1-349-02349-3.
20. "Page 3" . The Welshman. 28 July 1837. Retrieved 5 May 2020– via British Newspaper Archive.
21. "Merthyr Tydfil Election" . Merthyr Telegraph, and General Advertiser for the Iron Districts of South Wales. 7 May 1859. p. 1. Retrieved 22 August 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
22. "The General Election" . Western Mail . 30 March 1880. p. 5. Retrieved 4 December 2017– via British Newspaper Archive.
23. British Parliamentary Election Results, 1885–1918 FWS Craig
24. "The Political Unity of Wales" . South Wales Daily News. 27 September 1888. p. 7. Retrieved 4 December 2017– via British Newspaper Archive.
25. Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1901
26. Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1916

• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "M" (part 2)

Bibliography

• Jones, Ieuan Gwynedd (1965). "Dr Thomas Price and the election of 1868 in Merthyr Tydfil: a study in nonconformist politics (Part Two)" (PDF). Welsh History Review . 2 (3): 251–70.
• Morgan, Kenneth O. (1960). "Democratic Politics in Glamorgan, 1884–1914". Morgannwg. 4: 5–27.