Rye (UK Parliament constituency)

Rye
Former county constituency for the House of Commons
County	East Sussex
Major settlements	Rye
1955–1983
Seats	One
Created from	Hastings
Replaced by	Hastings and Rye, Bexhill and Battle and Wealden [1]
1885–1950
Type of constituency	County constituency
Replaced by	Eastbourne, East Grinstead and Hastings
1366–1885
Seats	1366–1640: One 1640–1832: Two 1832–1885: One
Type of constituency	Borough constituency

Rye was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Rye in East Sussex. It returned two Members of Parliament to the Parliament of England before 1707, Parliament of Great Britain until 1801 and the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom until its representation was halved under the Reform Act 1832.

From the 1832 general election, Rye returned one Member of Parliament until its abolition for the 1950 general election, when the town of Rye itself was transferred to the redrawn Hastings constituency.

The constituency was re-created for the 1955 general election, and abolished again for the 1983 general election when it was largely replaced by the Bexhill and Battle parliamentary constituency. ^[1]

Boundaries

1885–1918: The Municipal Boroughs of Hastings and Rye, the Sessional Divisions of Battle, Burwash, Frant, Hastings, and Rye, the ancient town of Winchelsea, and the Liberty of the Sluice and Petit Iham.

1918–1950: The Municipal Boroughs of Bexhill and Rye, the Urban District of Battle, the Rural Districts of Battle, Hastings, Rye, and Ticehurst, and in the Rural District of Hailsham the civil parishes of Heathfield, Herstmonceux, Hooe, Ninfield, Warbleton, and Wartling.

1955–1983: The Municipal Boroughs of Bexhill and Rye, the Rural District of Battle, and part of the Rural District of Hailsham.

Members of Parliament

MPs 1366–1640

Parliament	First Member	Second Member
1372	John Salerne
1373	John Salerne
1381	Simon Lunceford [2]
1386	Stephen Elyot	John Baddyng [3]
1388 (Feb)	Stephen Elyot	William Marchaunt [3]
1388 (Sep)	William atte Vawte	John Macop [3]
1390 (Jan)	Laurence Lunceford	Laurence Corboyle [3]
1390 (Nov)
1391	John Salerne	Laurence Lunceford [3]
1393	John Baddyng	John Bertelot [3]
1394
1395	John Baddyng	William Ormed [3]
1397 (Jan)	Richard Tichebourne	John Langeport [3]
1397 (Sep)
1399	John Baddyng	William atte Vawte [3]
1401
1402	John Baddyng	John Roberd [3]
1404 (Jan)
1404 (Oct)
1406	William atte Vawte	Laurence Mersey [3]
1407	John Baddyng	Thomas Long [3]
1410	John Shelley	William Long
1411
1413 (Feb)
1413 (May)	William Long	Robert Onewyn [3]
1414 (Apr)
1414 (Nov)	William Long	Robert Onewyn [3]
1415
1416 (Mar)
1416 (Oct)
1417	John Shelley	Richard Posterf [3]
1419	Robert Onewyn	William Long [3]
1420	John Shelley	William Long [3]
1421 (May)	Robert Onewyn	Thomas Piers [3]
1421 (Dec)	William Thirlwall	John Shelley [3]
1504	Richard Berkeley
1510	Nicholas Sutton	Richard Berkeley [3]
1512	Nicholas Sutton	Robert Mede [3]
1515	Robert Mede	Nicholas Sutton [3]
1523	Thomas Cheseman alias Baker	Thomas Basseden [3]
1529	Nicholas Sutton, died and replaced by 1534 by Richard Inglet	John Fletcher [3]
1536	Richard Inglet	John Fletcher [3]
1539	Thomas Birchet	William Mede [3]
1542	John Fletcher	William Oxenbridge [3]
1545	Alexander Welles	Robert Wymond [3]
1547	Alexander Welles	George Reynolds [3]
1553 (Mar)	Richard Fletcher	John Holmes [3]
1553 (Oct)	Clement Heigham	John Holmes [3]
1554 (Apr)	John Holmes	Richard Fletcher [3]
1554 (Nov)	John Holmes	Thomas Smith [3]
1555	John Holmes	Reginald Mohun [3]
1558	Thomas Fletcher	Thomas Cheyne [3]
1559	Richard Fletcher I	Robert Marche [4]
1562–3	George Reynolds I	John Bredes [4]
1571	John Donning	Thomas Fanshawe [4]
1572	Clement Cobbe, died and replaced July 1575 by Robert Carpenter	Henry Gaymer [4]
1584	John Hammond	Robert Carpenter [4]
1586	Henry Gaymer	Robert Carpenter [4]
1588–9	Audley Dannett	Robert Carpenter [4]
1593	Henry Gaymer	Robert Carpenter [4]
1597	Sampson Lennard	Thomas Hamon [4]
1601	Sir Arthur Gorges	Thomas Colepeper [4]
1604–1611	Thomas Hamon, died and replaced by Heneage Finch	John Young
1614	Edward Hendon	Thomas Watson
1621–1622	Emanuel Gifford	John Angell
1624	Thomas Conway	Sir Edward Conway, sat for Warwick and replaced by John Angel
1625	Thomas Fotherley	Sir John Sackville
1626	Thomas Fotherley	Sir John Sackville
1628	Richard Tufton	Thomas Fotherley
1629–1640	No Parliaments summoned

MPs 1640–1832

Year		First member	First party		Second member	Second party
April 1640		John Culpepper
November 1640		Sir John Jacob [5]	Royalist		John White	Royalist
1641		William Hay	Parliamentarian
February 1644				White disabled from sitting - seat vacant
1645					John Fagg
1653	Rye was unrepresented in the Barebones Parliament
1654		Herbert Morley		Rye had only one seat in the First and Second Parliaments of the Protectorate
1656		William Hay
January 1659					Mark Thomas
May 1659	Not represented in the restored Rump
April 1660		Herbert Morley			William Hay
May 1661					Richard Spencer
November 1661					Sir John Robinson, 1st Baronet
1667		Sir John Austen, 2nd Baronet
February 1679		Thomas Frewen
October 1679					Sir John Darrel
1685					Sir Thomas Jenner
January 1689					Sir John Darrel
April 1689		Sir John Austen, 2nd Baronet
1694					Thomas Frewen
1698					Joseph Offley	Country Whig
1699		Sir Robert Austen, 3rd Baronet
1701		Thomas Fagg
1702					Edward Southwell
1705		Philip Herbert
1707		Phillips Gybbon	Whig
1708					Admiral Sir John Norris
1722					The Lord Aylmer
1727					John Norris
1733					Matthew Norris
1734					Admiral Sir John Norris
1749					Thomas Pelham
1754					George Onslow
1761					Captain John Bentinck
1762		John Norris
1768					Rose Fuller
1774		Middleton Onslow
1775		Hon. Thomas Onslow
1777					William Dickinson
1784		Charles Wolfran Cornwall
1789		Charles Long	Tory
1790					Hon. Robert Jenkinson [6]	Tory [7]
1796		Robert Dundas	Tory [7]
1801		The Lord de Blaquiere	Tory [7]
1802		Thomas Davis Lamb	Tory [7]
1803 by-election					Sir Charles Talbot	Tory [7]
April 1806 by-election		Major General the Hon. Sir Arthur Wellesley	Tory [7]
November 1806		Patrick Craufurd Bruce	Whig [7]		Michael Angelo Taylor	Whig [7]
May 1807		Sir John Nicholl	Tory [7]		The Earl of Clancarty	Tory [7]
July 1807 by-election		Sir William Elford	Tory [7]		Stephen Rumbold Lushington	Tory [7]
1808 by-election		William Jacob	Tory [7]
October 1812		Thomas Phillipps Lamb	Tory [7]		Sir Henry Sullivan also elected at Lincoln	Tory [7]
December 1812 by-election					Charles Wetherell	Tory [7]
1813 by-election					Richard Arkwright	Tory [7]
1816 by-election		John Maberly	Whig [7]
1818		Charles Arbuthnot [8]	Tory		Peter Browne	Tory [7]
February 1819 by-election		Thomas Phillipps Lamb	Tory [7]
July 1819		John Dodson	Tory [7]
1823 by-election		Robert Knight	Whig [7]
1826		Richard Arkwright	Tory [7]		Henry Bonham	Tory [7]
March 1830 by-election					Philip Pusey [9]	Tory [7]
May 1830					De Lacy Evans	Radical [7]
August 1830		Hugh Duncan Baillie	Whig [7]		Francis Robert Bonham	Tory [7]
1831		Thomas Pemberton	Tory [7]		De Lacy Evans	Radical [7]
1832	Representation reduced to one member

MPs 1832–1950

Election		Member	Party
	1832	Edward Barrett Curteis	Whig [10] [7]
	1837	Thomas Gybbon Monypenny	Conservative [7]
	1841	Herbert Barrett Curteis	Whig [11] [7] [12]
	1847 by-election	Herbert Mascall Curteis	Whig
	1852	William Alexander Mackinnon (younger)	Whig
	1853 by-election	William Alexander Mackinnon (elder)	Peelite [13] [14] [15]
	1859		Liberal
	1865	Lauchlan Bellingham Mackinnon	Liberal
	1868	John Gathorne-Hardy	Conservative
	1880	Frederick Inderwick	Liberal
	1885	Arthur Montagu Brookfield	Conservative
	1903 by-election	Charles Frederick Hutchinson	Liberal
	1906	George Courthope	Conservative
	1945	William Cuthbert	Conservative
	1950	constituency abolished

MPs 1955–1983

Election		Member	Party
	1955	Godman Irvine	Conservative
1983		constituency abolished

Elections

Elections in the 1830s

Bonham resigned, causing a by-election.

By-election, 1 March 1830: Rye ^{[7] [16]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Tory	Philip Pusey	10	83.3
	Radical	George de Lacy Evans	2	16.7
Majority			8	66.6
Turnout			12	c. 60.0
Registered electors			c. 20
	Tory hold		Swing	N/A

• 15 votes for De Lacy Evans were rejected but, after petition, he was declared elected on 17 May 1830 and Pusey's election was declared void. ^{[7] [16]}

General election 1830: Rye ^{[16] [7]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Hugh Duncan Baillie	12	33.3
	Tory	Francis Robert Bonham	12	33.3
	Radical	George de Lacy Evans	6	16.7
	Whig	Benjamin Smith	6	16.7
Turnout			18	c. 90.0
Registered electors			c. 20
Majority			0	0.0	N/A
	Whig gain from Tory		Swing
Majority			6	16.6
	Tory hold		Swing

• 200 inhabitants voted for Evans and Smith, but these were rejected ^[7]

General election 1831: Rye ^{[16] [7]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Radical	George de Lacy Evans	7	41.2	+24.5
	Tory	Thomas Pemberton	5	29.4	+12.8
	Tory	Philip Pusey	3	17.6	+1.0
	Whig	Benjamin Smith	2	11.8	−21.5
	Whig	Alexander Donovan	0	0.0	−16.7
Turnout			10	c. 50.0	c. −40.0
Registered electors			c. 20
Majority			5	29.4	N/A
	Radical gain from Whig		Swing	+21.8
Majority			2	11.8	−4.8
	Tory hold		Swing	+16.0

• A riot broke out during the poll and it was then agreed that Pusey withdrew from the contest on the condition that De Lacy Evan's party would protect the peace of the town. Just three electors polled on the second day. ^[7]

General election 1832: Rye ^{[17] [7]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Edward Barrett Curteis	162	55.9	+44.1
	Radical	George de Lacy Evans	128	44.1	+2.9
Majority			34	11.8	N/A
Turnout			290	68.7	c. +18.7
Registered electors			422
	Whig gain from Radical		Swing	+20.6

General election 1835: Rye ^{[17] [7]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Edward Barrett Curteis	211	67.6	+11.7
	Conservative	Thomas Gybbon Monypenny	101	32.4	New
Majority			110	35.2	+23.4
Turnout			312	66.2	−2.5
Registered electors			471
	Whig hold		Swing	+11.7

General election 1837: Rye ^{[17] [7]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Thomas Gybbon Monypenny	Unopposed
Registered electors			523
	Conservative gain from Whig

Elections in the 1840s

General election 1841: Rye ^{[7] [17]}

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Herbert Barrett Curteis	262	70.8	New
	Conservative	Charles Frewen	108	29.2	N/A
Majority			154	41.6	N/A
Turnout			370	64.7	N/A
Registered electors			572
	Whig gain from Conservative		Swing	N/A

General election 1847: Rye ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Herbert Barrett Curteis	239	67.9	−2.9
	Conservative	Benjamin Bacon Williams [18]	113	32.1	+2.9
Majority			126	35.8	−5.8
Turnout			352	61.3	−3.4
Registered electors			574
	Whig hold		Swing	−2.9

Curteis' death caused a by-election.

By-election, 23 December 1847: Rye ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Herbert Mascall Curteis	Unopposed
	Whig hold

Curteis' election was declared void on petition on 27 March 1848, due to insufficient notice being given of the election, causing a by-election. ^[19]

By-election, 6 April 1848: Rye ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	Herbert Mascall Curteis	Unopposed
	Whig hold

Elections in the 1850s

General election 1852: Rye ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	William Alexander Mackinnon (younger)	240	53.6	−14.3
	Conservative	Richard Curteis Pomfret [20]	208	46.4	+14.3
Majority			32	7.2	−28.6
Turnout			448	79.7	+18.4
Registered electors			562
	Whig hold		Swing	−14.3

Mackinnon was unseated when his election was declared void on petition due to bribery and treating, causing a by-election. ^[21] £220 was left behind a sofa cushion at the Red Lion to pay for a dinner. ^[22]

By-election, 23 May 1853: Rye ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Peelite	William Alexander Mackinnon (elder)	216	54.0	+0.4
	Conservative	Richard Curteis Pomfret	184	46.0	−0.4
Majority			32	8.0	+0.8
Turnout			400	78.7	−1.0
Registered electors			508
	Peelite gain from Whig		Swing	+0.4

General election 1857: Rye ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Peelite	William Alexander Mackinnon (elder)	Unopposed
Registered electors			462
	Peelite gain from Whig

General election 1859: Rye ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	William Alexander Mackinnon (elder)	Unopposed
Registered electors			470
	Liberal hold

Elections in the 1860s

General election 1865: Rye ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Lauchlan Bellingham Mackinnon	180	51.1	N/A
	Conservative	William Macdonald Macdonald [23]	172	48.9	New
Majority			8	2.2	N/A
Turnout			352	94.4	N/A
Registered electors			373
	Liberal hold		Swing	N/A

General election 1868: Rye ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	John Hardy	513	50.7	+1.8
	Liberal	William Jones-Loyd [24]	499	49.3	−1.8
Majority			14	1.4	N/A
Turnout			1,012	83.8	−10.6
Registered electors			1,208
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing	+1.8

Elections in the 1870s

General election 1874: Rye ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	John Hardy	597	52.6	+1.9
	Liberal	Albert Fytche [25]	539	47.4	−1.9
Majority			58	5.2	+3.8
Turnout			1,136	88.3	+4.5
Registered electors			1,287
	Conservative hold		Swing	+1.9

Elections in the 1880s

General election 1880: Rye ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Frederick Inderwick	626	50.3	+2.9
	Conservative	John Gathorne-Hardy	618	49.7	−2.9
Majority			8	0.6	N/A
Turnout			1,244	89.6	+1.3
Registered electors			1,389
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing	+2.9

Inderwick

General election 1885: Rye ^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Arthur Montagu Brookfield	4,526	51.3	+1.6
	Liberal	Frederick Inderwick	4,303	48.7	−1.6
Majority			223	2.6	N/A
Turnout			8,829	85.7	−3.9
Registered electors			10,304
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing	+1.6

General election 1886: Rye ^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Arthur Montagu Brookfield	4,592	59.7	+8.4
	Liberal	George Julius de Reuter	3,094	40.3	−8.4
Majority			1,498	19.4	+16.8
Turnout			7,686	74.6	−11.1
Registered electors			10,304
	Conservative hold		Swing	+8.4

Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: Rye ^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Arthur Montagu Brookfield	4,699	54.1	−5.6
	Lib-Lab	George M. Ball	3,988	45.9	+5.6
Majority			711	8.2	−11.2
Turnout			8,687	77.8	+3.2
Registered electors			11,159
	Conservative hold		Swing	-5.6

General election 1895: Rye ^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Arthur Montagu Brookfield	Unopposed
	Conservative hold

Elections in the 1900s

Hutchinson

General election 1900: Rye ^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Arthur Montagu Brookfield	5,376	65.1	N/A
	Liberal	Charles Frederick Hutchinson	2,887	34.9	New
Majority			2,489	30.2	N/A
Turnout			8,263	69.7	N/A
Registered electors			11,856
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A

1903 Rye by-election ^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Liberal	Charles Frederick Hutchinson	4,910	52.9	+18.0
	Conservative	Edward Boyle	4,376	47.1	−18.0
Majority			534	5.8	N/A
Turnout			9,286	74.0	+4.3
Registered electors			12,543
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing	+18.0

General election 1906: Rye ^[26]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George Courthope	6,122	55.2	−9.9
	Liberal	Charles Frederick Hutchinson	4,964	44.8	+9.9
Majority			1,158	10.4	−19.8
Turnout			11,086	86.3	+16.6
Registered electors			12,842
	Conservative hold		Swing	−9.9

Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: Rye ^[27]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George Courthope	7,352	60.8	+5.6
	Liberal	St John Hutchinson	4,750	39.2	−5.6
Majority			2,602	21.6	+11.2
Turnout			12,102	88.0	+1.7
	Conservative hold		Swing	+5.6

General election December 1910: Rye ^[27]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George Courthope	6,673	59.9	−0.9
	Liberal	St John Hutchinson	4,461	40.1	+0.9
Majority			2,212	19.8	−1.8
Turnout			11,134	81.0	−7.0
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1918: Rye ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
C	Unionist	George Courthope	10,378	72.0	+12.1
	Liberal	George Ellis	4,034	28.0	−12.1
Majority			6,344	44.0	+23.2
Turnout			14,412	53.1	−27.9
	Unionist hold		Swing
Cindicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

Elections in the 1920s

General election 1922: Rye ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	George Courthope	10,922	59.3	−12.7
	Liberal	George Ellis	7,488	40.7	+12.7
Majority			3,434	18.6	−25.4
Turnout			18,480	62.4	+11.3
	Unionist hold		Swing	-12.7

General election 1923: Rye ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	George Courthope	11,167	53.6	−5.7
	Liberal	George Ellis	9,651	46.4	+5.7
Majority			1,516	7.2	−11.4
Turnout			20,818	69.4	+7.0
	Unionist hold		Swing	-5.7

General election 1924: Rye ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	George Courthope	14,871	67.1	+13.5
	Liberal	George Ellis	7,289	32.9	−13.5
Majority			7,582	34.2	+27.0
Turnout			22,160	71.2	+1.8
	Unionist hold		Swing

General election 1929: Rye ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Unionist	George Courthope	18,061	56.9	−10.2
	Liberal	William Stanley Osborn	10,198	32.1	−0.8
	Labour	George A. Greenwood	3,505	11.0	New
Majority			7,863	24.8	−9.4
Turnout			31,764	72.2	+1.0
	Unionist hold		Swing	-4.7

Elections in the 1930s

General election 1931: Rye ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George Courthope	Unopposed	N/A	N/A
	Conservative hold

General election 1935: Rye ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	George Courthope	22,604	71.2	N/A
	Liberal	Dorothy Frances Osborn	9,162	28.8	New
Majority			13,442	42.4	N/A
Turnout			31,766	64.2	N/A
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A

Elections in the 1940s

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;

• Conservative: George Courthope
• Independent Progressive: John Langdon-Davies ^[29]

General election 1945: Rye ^[28]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	William Cuthbert	19,701	58.6	−12.6
	Labour	B Simmons	7,414	22.0	New
	Liberal	Ronald Ogden	6,530	19.4	−9.4
Majority			12,287	36.6	−5.8
Turnout			33,645	70.8	+6.6
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1950s

General election 1955: Rye ^[30]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Godman Irvine	28,500	72.96
	Labour	Trevor L Payne	10,560	27.04
Majority			17,940	45.92
Turnout			39,060	73.39
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election 1959: Rye ^[31]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Godman Irvine	27,465	64.8	−8.2
	Liberal	John R Murray	7,549	17.8	New
	Labour	Douglas Sidney Tilbé	7,359	17.4	−9.6
Majority			19,916	47.0	+1.1
Turnout			42,373
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1960s

General election 1964: Rye ^[31]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Godman Irvine	27,240	59.8	−5.0
	Liberal	Kenneth Grenville Wellings	10,264	22.6	+4.8
	Labour	Anthony Edmund Arblaster	8,014	17.6	+0.2
Majority			16,976	37.2	−9.8
Turnout			45,518	77.5
	Conservative hold		Swing	-4.9

General election 1966: Rye ^[30]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Godman Irvine	27,056	58.6	−1.2
	Liberal	Kenneth Grenville Wellings	9,957	21.6	−1.0
	Labour	David R Collins	9,155	19.8	+2.2
Majority			17,099	37.0	−0.2
Turnout			46,168	75.7	−1.8
	Conservative hold		Swing	-0.1

Elections in the 1970s

General election 1970: Rye ^[30]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Godman Irvine	32,300	64.2	+5.6
	Labour	Henry Arthur Fountain	9,031	18.0	−1.8
	Liberal	Robin Kenneth John Frederick Young	8,947	17.8	−3.8
Majority			23,269	46.2	+9.2
Turnout			50,278	73.0	−2.7
	Conservative hold		Swing	+3.6

General election February 1974: Rye ^[32]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Godman Irvine	33.591	57.9	−6.3
	Liberal	Douglas Roland S Moore	17,456	30.1	+12.3
	Labour	Robert W Harris	6,967	12.0	−6.0
Majority			16,135	27.8	−18.4
Turnout			58,014	80.8	+7.8
	Conservative hold		Swing

General election October 1974: Rye ^[32]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Godman Irvine	30,511	56.9	−1.0
	Liberal	Douglas Roland S Moore	14,828	27.6	−2.5
	Labour	David W Threlfall	8,303	15.5	+3.5
Majority			15,683	29.3	+1.5
Turnout			53,642	74.2	−6.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	+0.7

General election 1979: Rye

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Godman Irvine	35,516	62.7	+5.8
	Liberal	Douglas Roland S Moore	12,438	22.0	−5.6
	Labour	Derek Smyth	6,852	12.1	−3.4
	Ecology	Anne Rix	1,267	2.2	New
	National Front	T. Duesbury	552	1.0	New
Majority			23,078	40.7	+11.4
Turnout			56,625	77.1	+2.9
	Conservative hold		Swing	+5.9

See also

• Bexhill and Battle parliamentary constituency

Notes

1. "'Rye', Feb 1974 – May 1983". ElectionWeb Project. Cognitive Computing Limited. Archived from the original on 3 April 2016. Retrieved 24 March 2016.
2. LUNCEFORD, Simon (d.c.1390), of Rye, Suss. and New Romney, Kent. | History of Parliament Online
3. "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
4. "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 30 November 2011.
5. Expelled 1641 for being a tobacco monopolist
6. Styled Lord Hawkesbury from 1796
7. 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. pp. 90–92. Retrieved 29 November 2018– via Google Books.
8. Arbuthnot was also elected for St Germans, which he chose to represent, and never sat for Rye
9. Pusey was originally declared elected, but by an order of the House of Commons on 17 May 1830 his name was erased from the return and that of De Lacy Evans was substituted
10. Crosby, George (1843). Crosby's Political Record of Parliamentary Elections in Great Britain and Ireland: With Select Biographical Notices and Speeches of Distinguished Statesmen. York: George Crosby. p. 116. Retrieved 7 July 2018.
11. "The Late Failures" . Bell's Weekly Messenger . 20 December 1847. pp. 4–5. Retrieved 7 July 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
12. Dod, Charles Roger; Dod, Robert Phipps (1847). Dod's Parliamentary Companion, Volume 15. Dod's Parliamentary Companion. p. 153. Retrieved 29 November 2018– via Google Books.
13. "John Stewart". Legacies of British Slave-ownership. University College London. Retrieved 21 May 2018.
14. "The New Parliament" . Reading Mercury. 7 August 1847. p. 2. Retrieved 21 May 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
15. Roberts, David (2016). Paternalism in Early Victorian England. Abingdon: Routledge. p. 255. ISBN   978-1-315-61965-1 . Retrieved 21 May 2018.
16. Fisher, David R. "Rye". The History of Parliament. Retrieved 22 April 2020.
17. 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.
18. "English Cities and Boroughs" . Globe. 20 August 1847. p. 1. Retrieved 30 November 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
19. "Election Committees" . Morning Post. 27 March 1848. p. 2. Retrieved 29 November 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
20. "Sussex Advertiser" . 6 July 1852. pp. 4–5. Retrieved 7 July 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
21. "Rye" . Shipping and Mercantile Gazette. 20 May 1853. p. 8. Retrieved 7 July 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
22. Morning Chronicle 3 March 1854
23. "Rye" . Brighton Guardian. 19 July 1865. p. 7. Retrieved 17 March 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
24. "Rye" . Brighton Gazette. 19 November 1868. p. 7. Retrieved 17 March 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
25. "Albert Fytche" . Hastings and St Leonards Observer. 7 February 1874. p. 8. Retrieved 18 January 2018– via British Newspaper Archive.
26. British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
27. British parliamentary election results 1885-1918, Craig, F.W.S.
28. British parliamentary election results, 1918-1949 (Craig)
29. Bexhill-on-Sea Observer, 22 July 1939
30. British parliamentary election results, 1950-1973 by FWS Craig
31. F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1950-1973; Political Reference Publications, Glasgow 1973
32. British parliamentary election results, 1974-1977 by FWS Craig

References

• 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) titles A-Z
• F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1832–1885 (Aldershot, UK: Parliamentary Research Services, 1989, 2nd edition)
• J E Neale, The Elizabethan House of Commons (London: Jonathan Cape, 1949)
• J Holladay Philbin, Parliamentary Representation 1832 – England and Wales (New Haven, CT: Yale University Press, 1965)
• Robert Walcott, English Politics in the Early Eighteenth Century (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1956)
• Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "R" (part 2)