Wenlock — UK General Election Results
Wenlock elected 2 MPs at the 1880 general election: Alexander Hargreaves Brown (Liberal) and Cecil Theodore Weld-Forester (Conservative). This page covers every general election in Wenlock from 1832 to 1880.
This constituency elected more than one MP at once in some years. Before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 (and in a shrinking number of boroughs through 1948), most UK constituencies elected two or more MPs together by "multi-member plurality" (block vote): each elector could cast one vote per available seat, and the top vote-getters overall were all elected. In those elections below, "Elected" lists every MP returned, "Votes" is the count that secured the last seat, and "Majority" is the gap between that seat and the first candidate who missed out.
Full Election History, 1832–1880
| Election | Elected | Votes | Vote Share | Runner-up | Majority | Turnout |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1832 | George Cecil Weld-Forester (Conservative); James Milnes Gaskell (Conservative) | 330 | 41.3% (top seat) | Matthew Bridges (Radical) | 22 (2.0 pts) | 78.6% |
| 1835 | George Cecil Weld-Forester (Conservative); James Milnes Gaskell (Conservative) | 422 | 41.1% (top seat) | William Meredyth Somerville (Whig) | 99 (7.8 pts) | 78.1% |
| 1837 | George Cecil Weld-Forester (Conservative); James Milnes Gaskell (Conservative) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1841 | George Cecil Weld-Forester (Conservative); James Milnes Gaskell (Conservative) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1847 | George Cecil Weld-Forester (Conservative); James Milnes Gaskell (Conservative) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1852 | George Cecil Weld-Forester (Conservative); James Milnes Gaskell (Conservative) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1857 | George Cecil Weld-Forester (Conservative); James Milnes Gaskell (Conservative) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1859 | George Cecil Weld-Forester (Conservative); James Milnes Gaskell (Conservative) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1865 | George Cecil Weld-Forester (Conservative); James Milnes Gaskell (Conservative) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1868 | George Cecil Weld-Forester (Conservative); Alexander Hargreaves Brown (Liberal) | Elected unopposed — no other candidate stood, no vote count on record | 0.0% | |||
| 1874 | George Cecil Weld-Forester (Conservative); Alexander Hargreaves Brown (Liberal) | 1,575 | 41.4% (top seat) | Charles George Milnes Gaskell (Conservative) | 729 (17.7 pts) | 58.3% |
| 1880 | Alexander Hargreaves Brown (Liberal); Cecil Theodore Weld-Forester (Conservative) | 1,358 | 46.5% (top seat) | Ralph Augustus Benson (Conservative) | 345 (7.8 pts) | 63.6% |
Full Result Breakdown by Election
1832 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Cecil Weld-Forester | Conservative | 448 | 41.3% | Yes |
| James Milnes Gaskell | Conservative | 330 | 30.4% | Yes |
| Matthew Bridges | Radical | 308 | 28.4% | No |
1835 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Cecil Weld-Forester | Conservative | 519 | 41.1% | Yes |
| James Milnes Gaskell | Conservative | 422 | 33.4% | Yes |
| William Meredyth Somerville | Whig | 323 | 25.6% | No |
1837 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Cecil Weld-Forester | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
| James Milnes Gaskell | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
1841 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Cecil Weld-Forester | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
| James Milnes Gaskell | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
1847 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Cecil Weld-Forester | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
| James Milnes Gaskell | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
1852 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Cecil Weld-Forester | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
| James Milnes Gaskell | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
1857 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Cecil Weld-Forester | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
| James Milnes Gaskell | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
1859 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Cecil Weld-Forester | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
| James Milnes Gaskell | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
1865 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Cecil Weld-Forester | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
| James Milnes Gaskell | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
1868 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Cecil Weld-Forester | Conservative | Unopposed | Yes | |
| Alexander Hargreaves Brown | Liberal | Unopposed | Yes | |
1874 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| George Cecil Weld-Forester | Conservative | 1,708 | 41.4% | Yes |
| Alexander Hargreaves Brown | Liberal | 1,575 | 38.1% | Yes |
| Charles George Milnes Gaskell | Conservative | 846 | 20.5% | No |
1880 (2 seats)
| Candidate | Party | Votes | Share | Elected |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alexander Hargreaves Brown | Liberal | 2,058 | 46.5% | Yes |
| Cecil Theodore Weld-Forester | Conservative | 1,358 | 30.7% | Yes |
| Ralph Augustus Benson | Conservative | 1,013 | 22.9% | No |
Margin Over Time
Winning margin (percentage points) at each election, coloured by the winning party.
Trend
Wenlock has been contested at 12 general elections on record since 1832. Parties that have won a seat here over that span: Conservative, Liberal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who won Wenlock in the 1880 general election?
Alexander Hargreaves Brown (Liberal), Cecil Theodore Weld-Forester (Conservative) won Wenlock in 1880.
Which parties have won Wenlock since 1832?
Since 1832, Wenlock has been won by: Conservative, Liberal.
What was the closest result in Wenlock?
The closest result on record for Wenlock was 1832, when Conservative beat Radical by just 22 votes (2.0 percentage points).
Did Wenlock ever elect more than one MP at a time?
Yes -- like most UK constituencies before the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, Wenlock elected multiple MPs at once in some elections on this page (a system called multi-member plurality, or 'block vote'), each voter casting one vote per available seat.