Rochester (UK Parliament constituency)

Rochester
Former Borough constituency for the House of Commons
County	Kent
1295–1918
Number of members	1295–1885: Two 1885–1918: One
Replaced by	Chatham Gillingham

Rochester was a parliamentary constituency in Kent. It returned two members of parliament (MPs) to the House of Commons of England from 1295 to 1707, then to the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1708 to 1800, and finally to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 until the 1885 general election, when its representation was reduced to one seat.

In 1918, it was split between Chatham and Gillingham. The Chatham seat became Rochester and Chatham in 1950, and then Medway in 1983. When the boroughs of Rochester upon Medway and Gillingham merged to form the larger unitary Borough of Medway in 1998, the Parliamentary constituency of Medway only covered part of the new borough, so for the 2010 election it was renamed Rochester and Strood.

Members of Parliament

MPs 1295–1640

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Parliament	First member	Second member
1386	John Fleming	Peter Pope^[1]
1388 (Feb)	William Gillingham I	John Marchaunt I^[1]
1388 (Sep)	Richard Crowborough	Thomas White^[1]
1390 (Jan)	Richard Bolour	John Mateshale^[1]
1390 (Nov)
1391	Thomas Dudmere	William Gillingham II^[1]
1393	William Chylynden	William Osbourne^[1]
1394
1395	Richard Broke	Thomas Taverner^[1]
1397 (Jan)	John Plomer II	John Precy^[1]
1397 (Sep)
1399	William Frere	John Precy^[1]
1401	Richard Berde	Reynold Shrewsbury^[1]
1402	Thomas Dudmere	Reynold Shrewsbury^[1]
1404 (Jan)	Thomas Dunston	William Frere^[1]
1404 (Oct)	Thomas Dudmere	Richard Lorkyn^[1]
1406	Thomas Chertsey	Reynold Shrewsbury^[1]
1407	John Everard I	John Bosom^[1]
1410	John Alcate	Thomas Chertsey^[1]
1411	John Everard I	Roger Landford^[1]
1413 (Feb)
1413 (May)	John Deeping	Roger Landford^[1]
1414 (Apr)
1414 (Nov)	John Deeping	Richard Lorkyn^[1]
1415
1416 (Mar)	Robert Bury	John Potager^[1]
1416 (Oct)
1417	Thomas Bolour	John Marchaunt III^[1]
1419	William Hunt I	Robert Kela^[1]
1420	John Draper	Thomas Turner^[1]
1421 (May)
1421 (Dec)	John Deeping	John Marchaunt III^[1]
1510–1523	No names known^[2]
1529	Nicholas Hurleston, died and repl. by 1533 by Edmund Page	Robert Fisher^[2]
1536	?
1539	?
1542	?
1545	Sir Thomas Moyle	William Roper^[2]
1547	Sir Thomas Moyle	William Roper^[2]
1553 (Mar)	Sir John Norton	Christopher Roper^[2]
1553 (Oct)	Sir Thomas Moyle	Robert Darknall^[2]
1554 (Apr)	Sir Thomas Moyle	William Roper^[2]
1554 (Nov)	William Roper	Edward Baeshe^[2]
1555	Sir George Howard	Sir William Brooke alias Cobham^[2]
1558	Hugh Cartwright	Thomas Page^[2]
1559	Edward Baeshe	Thomas Brooke alias Cobham^[3]
1562/3	Edward Baeshe	Richard Watts^[3]
1571	William Holstock	George Catlyn^[3]
1572	George Catelyn	William Partridge, sick and repl. 1579 by Samuel Coxe^[3]
1584	William Brooke alias Cobham	George Byng^[3]
1586	William Brooke alias Cobham	William Lewin^[3]
1588	William Lewin	John Stanhope^[3]
1593	William Lewin	George Chowne^[3]
1597	Sir Edward Hoby	Sir Thomas Walsingham^[3]
1601	Sir Edward Hoby	Sir Thomas Walsingham^[3]
1604	Sir Edward Hoby	Sir Thomas Walsingham
1614	Sir Edward Hoby	Sir Anthony Aucher refused to serve and replaced by Sir Edwin Sandys
1621–1622	Sir Thomas Walsingham (younger)	Henry Clerke
1624	Maximilian Dallison	Sir Thomas Walsingham (elder)
1625	Henry Clerke	Sir Thomas Walsingham (elder)
1626	Henry Clerke	Sir Thomas Walsingham (elder)
1628	Sir Thomas Walsingham (younger)	William Brooke
1629–1640	No Parliaments summoned

MPs 1640–1885

Year		First member	First party		Second member	Second party
April 1640		Sir Thomas Walsingham			John Clerke
November 1640		Sir Thomas Walsingham	Parliamentarian		Richard Lee	Parliamentarian
December 1648		Sir Thomas Walsingham	Parliamentarian	Lee excluded in Pride's Purge – seat vacant
1653	Rochester was unrepresented in the Barebones Parliament
1654		John Parker		Rochester had only one seat in the First and Second Parliaments of the Protectorate
1656		John Parker
January 1659		Peter Pett			Richard Hutchinson
May 1659		Sir Thomas Walsingham		One seat vacant
1660		Peter Pett			John Marsham
1661		Sir Francis Clerke			Sir William Batten
1667		Sir Francis Clerke			Sir Richard Head
February 1679		Sir John Banks			Sir Richard Head
August 1679					Francis Barrell
1681					Sir Francis Clerke
1689					Sir Roger Twisden
1690		Sir Joseph Williamson			Francis Clerke
1691					Caleb Banks
1695					Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell
1701		Francis Barrell			William Bokenham
1702		Edward Knatchbull			William Cage
1705		Admiral Sir Cloudesley Shovell			Admiral Sir Stafford Fairborne
1708		Admiral Sir John Leake			Admiral Sir Stafford Fairborne
1710		Admiral Sir John Leake			William Cage
1715		Sir Thomas Palmer, Bt			Admiral Sir John Jennings
1724		Sir Thomas Colby
1727		David Polhill
1734		David Polhill			Admiral Nicholas Haddock
1741		Admiral Edward Vernon^[4]
1743		David Polhill
1746					Admiral Sir Chaloner Ogle
1751					Admiral The Hon. John Byng
1754		Nicholas Haddock			Admiral The Hon. John Byng
1757		Nicholas Haddock			Admiral Isaac Townsend
1761		Viscount Parker
1764		Admiral Sir Charles Hardy
1765		Admiral Sir Charles Hardy			Grey Cooper
1768		John Calcraft			William Gordon
1771		John Calcraft			Admiral Thomas Pye
1772		George Finch-Hatton			Admiral Thomas Pye
1774		George Finch-Hatton			Robert Gregory
1784		Captain Sir Charles Middleton^[5]			Nathaniel Smith
1790		George Best			Admiral Sir Richard Bickerton
1792					Nathaniel Smith
1794					Admiral Sir Richard King
1796		Hon. Henry Tufton			Admiral Sir Richard King
1802		Captain Sir Sidney Smith^[6]			James Hulkes
1806		John Calcraft	Whig		James Barnett
1807					Sir Thomas Boulden Thompson
1816					James Barnett
1818		Lord Binning	Tory		James Barnett
1820		Lord Binning	Tory		Ralph Bernal
1826		Captain Henry Dundas
1830		Lord Villiers
1831		John Mills	Tory
1835		Thomas Twisden Hodges
1837		Thomas Benjamin Hobhouse
1841		James Douglas Stoddart Douglas			William Henry Bodkin
1847		Ralph Bernal			Thomas Twisden Hodges
1852		Hon. Francis Child Villiers			Sir Thomas Maddock
1856 by-election		Philip Wykeham Martin			Sir Thomas Maddock
1857					John Alexander Kinglake
1870 by-election					Julian Goldsmid	Liberal
1878 by-election		Sir Arthur Otway			Julian Goldsmid	Liberal
1880		Sir Arthur Otway			Roger Leigh
1885	Representation reduced to one-member

MPs 1885–1918

	Member	Party
1885	Francis Charles Hughes-Hallett	Conservative
1889 by-election	Edward Knatchbull-Hugessen	Liberal
1892	Horatio David Davies	Conservative
1893 by-election	Viscount Cranborne	Conservative
1903 by-election	Charles Tuff	Conservative
1906	Ernest Lamb	Liberal
1910	Samuel Forde Ridley	Conservative
1910	Sir Ernest Lamb	Liberal
1918	constituency abolished: see Chatham and Gillingham

Elections

Elections in the 1880s

J.P. Edwards

General Election 1885: Rochester^[7]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Francis Charles Hughes-Hallett	1,627	54.0	n/a
	Liberal	John Passmore Edwards	1,386	46.0	n/a
Majority			241	8.0	n/a
Turnout				91.2	n/a
	Conservative win

General Election 1886: Rochester^[7]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Francis Charles Hughes-Hallett	1,602	54.2	+0.2
	Liberal	Francis Flint Belsey	1,353	45.8	-0.2
Majority			249	8.4
Turnout				89.4
	Conservative hold		Swing	+0.2

Rochester by-election, 1889^[7]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Liberal	Hon. Edward Knatchbull-Hugessen	1,655	51.2
	Conservative	Horatio David Davies	1,580	48.8
Majority			75	2.4
Turnout				91.1
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing

Elections in the 1890s

Horatio Davies

General Election 1892: Rochester^[7]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Horatio David Davies	2,119	55.3	+6.5
	Liberal	F.B. Maddison	1,712	44.7	-6.5
Majority			407	10.6	13.0
Turnout				91.0	-0.1
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing	+6.5

unseated on petition.

Cranborne

Rochester by-election, 1893^[7]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Viscount Cranborne	unopposed	n/a	n/a
	Conservative hold		Swing	n/a

Cecil Grenfell

General Election 1895: Rochester^[7]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Viscount Cranborne	2,152	56.3	n/a
	Liberal	Cecil Alfred Grenfell	1,673	43.7	n/a
Majority			479	12.6	n/a
Turnout				87.4	n/a
	Conservative hold		Swing	n/a

Elections in the 1900s

General Election 1900: Rochester^[7]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Viscount Cranborne	unopposed	n/a	n/a
	Conservative hold		Swing	n/a

Sir H.H. Johnston

Rochester by-election, 1903
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Charles Tuff	2,504	55.8	n/a
	Liberal	Sir Henry Hamilton Johnston	1,983	44.2	n/a
Majority			521	11.6	n/a
Turnout			4,487	86.2	n/a
	Conservative hold		Swing	n/a

Ernest Lamb

General Election 1906: Rochester^[8]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Liberal	Ernest Henry Lamb	2,967	55.6
	Conservative	Charles Tuff	2,374	44.4
Majority			593	11.2
Turnout				92.7
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing

Elections in the 1910s

General Election January 1910: Rochester^[9]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Conservative	Samuel Forde Ridley	2,675	51.3
	Liberal	Ernest Henry Lamb	2,543	48.7
Majority			132	2.6
Turnout				92.7
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing

General Election December 1910: Rochester^[9]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Ernest Henry Lamb	2,609	51.5	+2.8
	Conservative	Samuel Forde Ridley	2,456	48.5	-2.8
Majority			153	3.6	5.6
Turnout				90.0
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing	+2.8

General Election 1914/15:

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 the July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;

Liberal: Sir Ernest Henry Lamb
Unionist:

References

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 16 November 2011.
↑ Vernon was also elected for Ipswich, which he chose to represent, and did not sit for Rochester
↑ Rear Admiral from 1787
↑ Rear Admiral from 1805
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 British parliamentary election results, 1885-1918 (Craig)
↑ The Liberal Year Book, 1908
1 2 Debrett's House of Commons 1916

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)
Maija Jansson (ed.), Proceedings in Parliament, 1614 (House of Commons) (Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1988)
J E Neale, The Elizabethan House of Commons (London: Jonathan Cape, 1949)
Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "R" (part 2)

Coordinates: 51°23′N 0°30′E / 51.383°N 0.500°E / 51.383; 0.500

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