Monmouthshire (UK Parliament constituency)

Not to be confused with other constituencies listed at Monmouth constituency.

Monmouthshire
constituency for the House of Commons
Show location of constituency Show location within Wales Interactive map of the constituency.
Location of the constituency within Wales
Electorate	72,681 (March 2020) [1]
Major settlements	Abergavenny, Monmouth, Chepstow, Caldicot, Usk
Current constituency
Created	2024
Member of Parliament	Catherine Fookes (Labour)
Seats	one
Created from	Monmouth and Newport East
1536–1885
Seats	one
Type of constituency	County constituency
Replaced by	North Monmouthshire, South Monmouthshire, West Monmouthshire

Monmouthshire (Welsh : Sir Fynwy) is a constituency of the House of Commons in the UK Parliament, and was first contested at the 2024 general election, following the 2023 review of Westminster constituencies. Its current MP is Catherine Fookes, a member of the Labour Party.

It previously existed as a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England from 1536 until 1707, of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1801, and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1885. It elected two Members of Parliament (MPs).

In 1885 the Monmouthshire constituency was divided to create North Monmouthshire, South Monmouthshire and West Monmouthshire.

Boundaries

The historic Monmouthshire constituency covered the county of Monmouth, except that from 1832 there was a borough constituency, Monmouth Boroughs, within the county.

The constituency was re-established as part of the 2023 review for the 2024 general election under the June 2023 final proposals of the Boundary Commission for Wales. ^[2] The boundaries were defined as being coterminous with the unitary authority of the County of Monmouthshire. ^[3]

It was created from the abolished constituency of Monmouth (excluding the small part in Torfaen County Borough) expanded to include those parts of Monmouthshire County previously in the Newport East constituency, including Caldicot and Magor.

Members of Parliament

MPs 1542–1885

Year	First member	Second member
1542	No names known
1545	Walter Herbert	Charles Herbert [4]
1547	Sir Thomas Morgan	William Herbert [4]
1553 (Mar)
1553 (Oct)	Sir Charles Herbert	Thomas Somerset [4]
1554 (Apr)	Thomas Herbert	James Gunter [4]
1554 (Nov)	Thomas Somerset	David Lewis [4]
1555	William Herbert	William Morgan [4]
1558	Francis Somerset	William Morgan [4]
1559 (Jan)	William Morgan I	Thomas Herbert [5]
1562–1563	Matthew Herbert	George Herbert [5]
1571	Charles Somerset	William Morgan [5]
1572 (May)	Charles Somerset	Henry Herbert [5]
1584 (Sep)	Sir William Herbert	Edward Morgan [5]
1586 (Sep)	Sir William Herbert	Edward Morgan [5]
1588 (Oct)	Thomas Morgan II	William John Proger [5]
1593	Sir William Herbert (died in office, 1593)	Edward Kemeys [5]
1597 (Sep)	Henry Herbert	John Arnold [5]
1601 (Oct)	Thomas Somerset	Henry Morgan [5]
1604	Thomas Somerset	Sir John Herbert
1614	Walter Montagu	William Jones
1621	Sir Edmund Morgan	Charles Williams
1624	Robert Viscount Lisle	Sir William Morgan
1625	Robert Viscount Lisle	Sir William Morgan
1626	Nicholas Arnold	William Herbert
1628	Nicholas Arnold	Nicholas Kemeys
1629–1640	No Parliaments convened
Apr 1640	William Morgan	Walter Rumsey
Nov 1640	Sir Charles Williams repl. 1642 by Henry Herbert	William Herbert, disabled 1644
1645	John Herbert	Henry Herbert
1648	John Herbert	Henry Herbert
1653	Philip Jones

MPs 1654–1660

Year	First member	Second member	Third member
1654	Richard Cromwell, sat for Hampshire repl. by Thomas Morgan	Philip Jones sat for Glamorgan repl. by Thomas Hughes	Henry Herbert
1656	Major General James Berry, sat for Worcestershire repl. by Nathaniel Waterhouse	John Nicholas	Edward Herbert
1659	William Morgan	John Nicholas

MPs 1660–1885

Year		First member	First party		Second member	Second party
1660 (CP)		Henry Somerset, 1st Duke of Beaufort			William Morgan
1661
1667		Sir Trevor Williams, Bt	Whig
Feb 1679		Charles, Lord Herbert
Aug 1679		Sir Trevor Williams, Bt	Whig
1680					Sir Edward Morgan, Bt
1681
1685		Charles, Marquess of Worcester			Sir Charles Kemeys, Bt
1689 (CP)					Sir Trevor Williams, Bt	Whig
1690					Thomas Morgan
1695		Sir Charles Kemeys, Bt
1698		Sir John Williams, Bt
1700
1701 (Jan)					John Morgan	Whig
1705		Sir Hopton Williams, Bt
1708		Thomas Windsor
1710
1712		James Gunter
Apr 1713		Thomas Lewis
Sep 1713		Sir Charles Kemeys, Bt
1715		Thomas Lewis
1720					John Hanbury	Whig
1722		William Morgan, the Elder	Whig
1727
1731		Lord Charles Somerset
1734		Thomas Morgan, the Elder
1735					Charles Hanbury Williams
1741
1747		William Morgan, the Younger	Whig		Capel Hanbury
1754
1761
1763		Thomas Morgan, the Younger
1766					John Hanbury	Whig
1768
1771		John Morgan
1774
1780
1784					Henry, Viscount Nevill
1785					James Rooke
1790
1792		Robert Salusbury
1796		Lt Col Sir Charles Morgan	Whig [6]
1802
1805					Capt Lord Arthur Somerset
1806
1807
1812
1816					Lord Granville Somerset	Tory [6]
1818
1820
1826
1830
1831		William Addams Williams	Whig [6]
1832
1834						Conservative
1835
1837
1841		Octavius Morgan	Conservative [6]
1847
1848					Edward Arthur Somerset	Conservative
1852
1857
1859					Col Poulett Somerset	Conservative
1865
1868
1871					Lord Henry Somerset	Conservative
1874		Col Frederick Morgan	Conservative
1880					John Rolls	Conservative
1885	Constituency divided into: North Monmouthshire, South Monmouthshire, and West Monmouthshire

MPs since 2024

Monmouth and Newport East prior to 2024

Election		Member [7]	Party
	2024	Catherine Fookes	Labour

Election results

Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: Monmouthshire ^[8]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	Catherine Fookes	21,010	41.3	+9.7
	Conservative	David TC Davies	17,672	34.8	−17.3
	Reform UK	Max Windsor-Peplow	5,438	10.7	+9.8
	Green	Ian Chandler	2,357	4.6	+2.1
	Liberal Democrats	William Powell	2,279	4.5	−5.1
	Plaid Cymru	Ioan Rhys Bellin	1,273	2.5	+0.1
	Independent	Owen Lewis	457	0.9	N/A
	True & Fair	June Davies	255	0.5	N/A
	Heritage	Emma Meredith	103	0.2	N/A
Majority			3,338	6.5
Turnout			50,844	68.0
Registered electors			74,823
	Labour win (new seat)

Elections in the 1880s

General election 1880: Monmouthshire ^{[9] [10]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Frederick Courtenay Morgan	3,529	27.6	N/A
	Conservative	John Rolls	3,294	25.8	N/A
	Liberal	George Charles Brodrick	3,019	23.6	N/A
	Liberal	Marshall Warmington	2,927	22.9	N/A
Majority			275	2.2	N/A
Turnout			6,385 (est)	75.0 (est)	N/A
Registered electors			8,518
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1870s

1874 Monmouthshire by-election ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Henry Somerset	Unopposed
Registered electors			7,630
	Conservative hold

Somerset was appointed Comptroller of the Household, triggering a by-election.

General election 1874: Monmouthshire ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Frederick Courtenay Morgan	Unopposed
	Conservative	Henry Somerset	Unopposed
Registered electors			7,630
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

1871 Monmouthshire by-election ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Lord Henry Somerset	Unopposed
Registered electors
	Conservative hold

Somerset resigned, triggering a by-election.

Elections in the 1860s

General election 1868: Monmouthshire ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Octavius Morgan	3,761	39.1	N/A
	Conservative	Poulett Somerset	3,525	36.6	N/A
	Liberal	Henry Morgan-Clifford	2,338	24.3	N/A
Majority			1,187	12.3	N/A
Turnout			5,981 (est)	75.0 (est)	N/A
Registered electors			7,971
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

General election 1865: Monmouthshire ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Octavius Morgan	Unopposed
	Conservative	Poulett Somerset	Unopposed
Registered electors			4,909
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

Elections in the 1850s

1859 Monmouthshire by-election ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Poulett Somerset	Unopposed
Registered electors
	Conservative hold

Somerset resigned by accepting the office of Steward of the Manor of Hempholme, triggering a by-election.

General election 1859: Monmouthshire ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Octavius Morgan	Unopposed
	Conservative	Edward Arthur Somerset	Unopposed
Registered electors			5,073
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

General election 1857: Monmouthshire ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Octavius Morgan	Unopposed
	Conservative	Edward Arthur Somerset	Unopposed
Registered electors			5,099
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

General election 1852: Monmouthshire ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Octavius Morgan	Unopposed
	Conservative	Edward Arthur Somerset	Unopposed
Registered electors			4,973
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

Elections in the 1840s

1848 Monmouthshire by-election ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Edward Arthur Somerset	Unopposed
Registered electors
	Conservative hold

Somerset's death caused a by-election.

General election 1847: Monmouthshire ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Octavius Morgan	2,334	34.6	N/A
	Conservative	Granville Somerset	2,230	33.0	N/A
	Conservative	Edward Arthur Somerset	2,187	32.4	N/A
Majority			43	0.6	N/A
Turnout			3,376 (est)	63.9 (est)	N/A
Registered electors			5,286
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A

September 1841 Monmouthshire by-election ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Granville Somerset	Unopposed
Registered electors
	Conservative hold

Somerset was appointed Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, triggering a by-election.

General election 1841: Monmouthshire ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Granville Somerset	Unopposed
	Conservative	Octavius Morgan	Unopposed
Registered electors			4,393
	Conservative hold
	Conservative gain from Whig

February 1841 Monmouthshire by-election ^[9]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Octavius Morgan	Unopposed
Registered electors
	Conservative gain from Whig

Williams resigned by accepting the office of Steward of the Chiltern Hundreds, triggering a by-election

Elections in the 1830s

General election 1837: Monmouthshire ^{[6] [9]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Granville Somerset	Unopposed
	Whig	William Addams Williams	Unopposed
Registered electors			4,347
	Conservative hold
	Whig hold

General election 1835: Monmouthshire ^{[6] [9]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Granville Somerset	Unopposed
	Whig	William Addams Williams	Unopposed
Registered electors			3,714
	Conservative hold
	Whig hold

General election 1832: Monmouthshire ^{[6] [9]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Tory	Granville Somerset	Unopposed
	Whig	William Addams Williams	Unopposed
Registered electors			3,738
	Tory hold
	Whig hold

General election 1831: Monmouthshire ^{[6] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Tory	Granville Somerset	Unopposed
	Whig	William Addams Williams	Unopposed
Registered electors			c. 2,000
	Tory hold
	Whig hold

General election 1830: Monmouthshire ^{[6] [11]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Tory	Granville Somerset	Unopposed
	Whig	Charles Morgan	Unopposed
Registered electors			c. 2,000
	Tory hold
	Whig hold

References

1. Mrs Justice Jefford; Thomas, Huw Vaughan; Hartley, Sam A (June 2023). "Appendix 1: Recommended Constituencies" (PDF). The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituencies in Wales. Cardiff: Boundary Commission for Wales. p. 250. ISBN   978-1-5286-3901-9 . Retrieved 13 July 2024.
2. 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituencies – The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituencies in Wales (PDF). Boundary Commission for Wales. 28 June 2023.
3. "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023". Schedule 4 (Wales).
4. "History of Parliament" . Retrieved 30 August 2011.^{[ dead link ‍]}
5. "History of Parliament" . Retrieved 30 August 2011.
6. Stooks Smith, Henry. (1973) [1844–1850]. Craig, F. W. S. (ed.). The Parliaments of England (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. pp.  217–218. ISBN   0-900178-13-2.
8. "Election of the Member of Parliament for the Monmouthshire Constituency – Statement of Persons Nominated and Notice of Poll" (PDF). Monmouthshire County Council. 7 June 2024.
9. Craig, F. W. S., ed. (1977). British Parliamentary Election Results 1832–1885 (1st ed.). London: Macmillan Press. pp. 528–529. ISBN   978-1-349-02349-3.
10. "The Liberal Candidates for Monmouthshire" . South Wales Daily News. 22 August 1885. p. 3. Retrieved 21 December 2017– via British Newspaper Archive.
11. Escott, Margaret. "Monmouthshire". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 6 May 2020.

External links

• Browne Willis (1750). Notitia Parliamentaria, Or, An History of the Counties, Cities, and Boroughs in England and Wales: ... The Whole Extracted from Mss. and Printed Evidences ... R. Gosling.
• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "M" (part 3)
• W R Williams Parliamentary History of the Principality of Wales
• Monmouthshire UK Parliament constituency (boundaries from June 2024) at MapIt UK

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