Sussex (UK Parliament constituency)

Sussex
Former County constituency
for the House of Commons
County Sussex
1290–1832
Number of members Two
Replaced by East Sussex and West Sussex

Sussex was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of England then of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1832. It was represented by two Knights of the Shire, elected by the bloc vote system.

Under the Reform Act 1832 the constituency was split into two two-member divisions, for Parliamentary purposes, at the 1832 general election. The county was then represented by the East Sussex and West Sussex divisions.

Boundaries

The constituency comprised the whole historic county of Sussex. (Although Sussex contained nine boroughsArundel, Bramber, Chichester, East Grinstead, Horsham, Lewes, Midhurst, New Shoreham and Steyning – and four Cinque PortsHastings, Rye, Seaford and Winchelsea – each of which elected two MPs in their own right, these were not excluded from the county constituency, and owning property within the boroughs or ports could confer a vote at the county election.)

Members of Parliament

Two Members

1290–1660

ParliamentFirst memberSecond member
1334 Roger Hussey
1344 Roger Hussey
1351 Andrew Peverell
1353 Andrew Peverell
1356 Andrew Peverell
1361 Andrew Peverell
1366 Andrew Peverell
1373 Andrew Peverell
1377 (Oct) Nicholas Wilcombe
1378 Sir Edmund FitzHerbert
1380 (Nov)Sir William Waleys
1381 Sir Edmund FitzHerbert
1382 (May) Sir Edmund FitzHerbert
1382 (Oct)Sir William WaleysSir Edmund FitzHerbert
1383 (Feb)Sir William Waleys
1386 Sir Edmund FitzHerbert Sir Edward Dallingridge [1]
1388 (Feb) Sir William Waleys Sir Edward Dallingridge [1]
1388 (Sep) Nicholas Wilcombe Robert Ore [1]
1390 (Jan) Sir William Percy Thomas Jardyn [1]
1390 (Nov) Sir William Percy Sir William Waleys [1]
1391 Sir William Percy Robert Tauk [1]
1393 Sir William Percy John Broke [1]
1394 Sir William Percy Sir Thomas Sackville II [1]
1395 Hugh Quecche Sir Thomas Sackville [1]
1397 (Jan) Sir William Percy John Ashburnham [1]
1397 (Sep) Sir Thomas Sackville II John Ashburnham [1]
1399 John Pelham John Preston [1]
1401 Sir John Pelham Sir Henry Hussey [1]
1402 Sir John Dallingridge Sir Henry Hussey [1]
1404 (Jan) Sir John Pelham Robert Lewknor [1]
1404 (Oct) Sir John Dallingridge Sir John Pelham [1]
1406 Sir John Dallingridge Sir John Pelham [1]
1407 Sir John Dallingridge Sir John Pelham [1]
1410
1411
1413 (Feb)
1413 (May) Richard Wayville Richard Wakehurst[1]
1414 (Apr) William Bramshott Thomas St. Cler[1]
1414 (Nov) Richard Wayville John Babelake[1]
1415 Richard Styuecle William Weston II[1]
1416 (Mar) Richard Styuecle Sir Roger Fiennes[1]
1416 (Oct)
1417 John Halle Richard Styuecle[1]
1419 Richard Bannebury Richard Bitterley[1]
1420 William Ryman Ralph Rademylde[1]
1421 (May) William Ryman John Halle[1]
1421 (Dec) Ralph Rademylde Richard Bitterley[1]
1442 Sir Roger Fiennes
1445 Sir Roger Fiennes
1449John Wood [2]
1450 Robert Poynings
1456 Nicholas Hussey
1483 John Wood
1491 Sir David Owen [3]
1495 Edmund Dudley
1510–1523No names known[4]
1529 Sir John Gage Sir Richard Shirley [4]
1536
1539 Sir John Gage Sir William Goring [4]
1542 ?Sir John Gage ? [4]
1545 ?Sir John Gage ? [4]
1547 Sir William Goring John Palmer [4]
1553 (Mar) ?Sir Richard Sackville ? [4]
1553 (Oct) John Caryll John Covert [4]
1554 (Apr) Sir Robert Oxenbridge Sir Thomas Palmer [4]
1554 (Nov) John Covert John Ashburnham II [4]
1555 Sir Robert Oxenbridge John Caryll [4]
1558 Sir Nicholas Pelham Sir Robert Oxenbridge [4]
1559 (Jan) Sir Richard Sackville John Caryll[5]
1562/3 Sir Richard Sackville, died
and replaced 1566 by
John Apsley
William Dawtrey [5]
1571 John Pelham Thomas Palmer [5]
1572 John Jeffrey, died
and replaced Jan 1581 by
Walter Covert
Thomas Shirley [5]
1584 Robert Sackville Sir Thomas Shirley [5]
1586 Walter Covert Thomas Pelham [5]
1588 (Oct) Sir Thomas Palmer Henry Neville [5]
1593 Robert Sackville Sir Thomas Shirley [5]
1597 (Sep) Robert Sackville Sir Nicholas Parker [5]
1601 Charles Howard Robert Sackville [5]
1604 Charles Howard Robert Sackville
1614 Sir Walter Covert Sampson Lennard
1621 Sir Edward Sackville Christopher Neville
1624 Algernon Lord Peircy Thomas Pelham
1625 Sir Thomas Pelham, 2nd Baronet Sir John Shurley
1626 Sir Walter Covert Sir Alexander Temple
1628 Sir William Goring, 1st Baronet Richard Lewknor
1629–1640No Parliaments summoned
1640 (Apr) Sir Thomas Pelham Bt Anthony Stapley
1640 (Nov) Sir Thomas Pelham Bt Anthony Stapley
1645 Sir Thomas Pelham Bt Anthony Stapley
1648 Anthony Stapley One seat only
1653 Anthony Stapley William Spence
Nathaniel Studeley
1654Herbert Morley Sir Thomas Pelham, 2nd Baronet
Anthony Stapley
John Stapley
John Fagg
William Hay
John Pelham
Francis Lord Dacres
Herbert Springet
1656 Herbert Morley John Pelham
John Fagg
John Stapley
Anthony Shirley
George Courthope
Sir Thomas Rivers, 2nd Baronet
Sir Thomas Parker
Samuel Gott
1659 Herbert Morley John Fagg

1640–1832

YearFirst memberFirst partySecond memberSecond party
1660 Sir John Pelham, Bt Henry Goring
1661 John Ashburnham
1667 Sir William Morley
February 1679 John Lewknor
August 1679 Sir Nicholas Pelham
1681 Sir William Thomas, Bt Sir John Fagg, Bt
1685 Sir Henry Goring, Bt Sir Thomas Dyke, Bt
1689 Sir John Pelham, Bt Sir William Thomas, Bt
1698 Robert Orme
January 1701 Henry Lumley John Miller
December 1701 Sir William Thomas, Bt Sir Henry Peachey
1702 Sir Thomas Pelham, Bt Whig Henry Lumley
1705 John Morley Trevor Sir George Parker, Bt
1708 Sir Henry Peachey, Bt Peter Gott
1710 Charles Eversfield Sir George Parker, Bt
1713 Henry Campion John Fuller
1715 James Butler Hon. Spencer Compton Whig
1722 Hon. Henry Pelham
1728 James Butler
1742 Earl of Middlesex
1747 John Butler
1754 Thomas Pelham Whig
1767 Lord George Henry Lennox
1768 Richard Harcourt
1774 Sir Thomas Spencer Wilson
1780 Thomas Pelham
1790 Charles Lennox
1801 John 'Mad Jack' Fuller Tory
1807 Charles William Wyndham
1812 Sir Godfrey Webster, Bt Walter Burrell Tory
1820 Edward Jeremiah Curteis
1830 Herbert Barrett Curteis
1831 Lord John Lennox Whig
1832 Constituency divided into East and West Sussex.

Elections

The county franchise, from 1430, was held by the adult male owners of freehold land valued at 40 shillings or more. Each elector had as many votes as there were seats to be filled. Votes had to be cast by a spoken declaration, in public, at the hustings, which took place in the county town of Chichester. The expense and difficulty of voting at only one location in the county, together with the lack of a secret ballot contributed to the corruption and intimidation of electors, which was widespread in the unreformed British political system.

The expense, to candidates, of contested elections encouraged the leading families of the county to agree on the candidates to be returned unopposed whenever possible. Contested county elections were therefore unusual.

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See also

References

Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "D" (part 1)

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 "History of Parliament". Retrieved 2011-09-16.
  2. "Wood, Sir John, speaker of the House of commons". Oxford DNB. Retrieved 2011-12-01.
  3. Cavill. The English Parliaments of Henry VII 1485–1504.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 "History of Parliament". Retrieved 2011-09-16.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "History of Parliament". Retrieved 2011-09-16.
Parliament of the United Kingdom
Preceded by
vacant. Last was King's Lynn in 1742
Constituency represented by the Prime Minister
1743–1754
Succeeded by
vacant. Next was Buckingham in 1763
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