St Austell (UK Parliament constituency)

St Austell was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of St Austell in Cornwall. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

St Austell
Former borough constituency
for the House of Commons
18851918
SeatsOne
Created fromEast Cornwall and West Cornwall
Replaced byPenryn and Falmouth, North Cornwall

The constituency was created for the 1885 general election, and abolished for the 1918 general election.

Boundaries

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The Sessional Divisions of Powder East and South, and Ryder, and the civil parishes of Ladock and St Blazey.

Members of Parliament

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Election Member Party
1885 William Copeland Borlase Liberal
1887 William Alexander McArthur Liberal
1908 Thomas Agar-Robartes Liberal
1915 Sir Francis Layland-Barratt Liberal
1918 constituency abolished

Election results

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Elections in the 1880s

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Borlase
General election 1885: St Austell [1][2][3]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal William Copeland Borlase 4,464 67.2
Conservative John Heywood Johnstone 2,183 32.8
Majority 2,281 34.4
Turnout 6,647 75.0
Registered electors 8,860
Liberal win (new seat)
General election 1886: St Austell [1][2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal William Copeland Borlase Unopposed
Liberal hold

Borlase's resignation caused a by-election.

 
McArthur
By-election 18 May 1887: St Austell[1][2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal William Alexander McArthur 3,540 51.5 N/A
Liberal Unionist Edward Brydges Willyams 3,329 48.5 New
Majority 211 3.0 N/A
Turnout 6,869 77.3 N/A
Registered electors 8,883
Liberal hold Swing N/A

Elections in the 1890s

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Westlake
General election 1892: St Austell [1][2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal William Alexander McArthur 4,201 61.8 N/A
Liberal Unionist John Westlake 2,593 38.2 N/A
Majority 1,608 23.6 N/A
Turnout 6,794 75.4 N/A
Registered electors 9,005
Liberal hold Swing N/A

McArthur was appointed a Lord Commissioner of the Treasury, requiring a by-election.

By-election, 23 Aug 1892[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal William Alexander McArthur Unopposed
Liberal hold
General election 1895: St Austell [1][2][4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal William Alexander McArthur 4,193 57.6 −4.2
Liberal Unionist Michael Williams 3,092 42.4 +4.2
Majority 1,101 15.2 −8.4
Turnout 7,285 79.1 +3.7
Registered electors 9,213
Liberal hold Swing −4.2

Elections in the 1900s

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General election 1900: St Austell [1][2][4]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal William Alexander McArthur Unopposed
Liberal hold
 
General election 1906: St Austell [1][2]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal William Alexander McArthur 5,667 69.3 N/A
Liberal Unionist Richard Garnett 2,516 30.7 New
Majority 3,151 38.6 N/A
Turnout 8,183 80.0 N/A
Registered electors 10,235
Liberal hold Swing N/A
1908 St Austell by-election[1]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Thomas Agar-Robartes Unopposed
Liberal hold

Elections in the 1910s

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Agar-Robartes
General election January 1910: St Austell [1][5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Thomas Agar-Robartes 6,225 66.5 −2.8
Liberal Unionist Francis Tyringham Higgins Bernard 3,138 33.5 +2.8
Majority 3,087 33.0 −5.6
Turnout 9,363 85.4 +5.4
Registered electors 10,968
Liberal hold Swing −2.8
General election December 1910: St Austell [1][5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Thomas Agar-Robartes Unopposed
Liberal hold

General Election 1914–15:

 
Layland-Barratt

Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;

1915 St Austell by-election[1][5]
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Liberal Francis Layland-Barratt Unopposed
Liberal hold

References

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  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l British Parliamentary Election Results 1885-1918, FWS Craig
  2. ^ a b c d e f g The Liberal Year Book, 1907
  3. ^ Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1886
  4. ^ a b Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1901
  5. ^ a b c Debrett's House of Commons & Judicial Bench, 1916