County Waterford (UK Parliament constituency)
| Waterford | |
|---|---|
|
Former County constituency for the House of Commons | |
| 1801–1885 | |
| Replaced by | East Waterford and West Waterford |
| 1918–1922 | |
| Created from | East Waterford and West Waterford |
Waterford was a parliamentary constituency in Ireland, represented in the British House of Commons.
Boundaries and boundary changes
This constituency once comprised the whole of County Waterford, except for the Parliamentary boroughs of Dungarvan (1801–1885) and Waterford City (1801–1885 and 1918–1922). It returned two Members of Parliament 1801–1885 and one 1918–1922.
It was an original constituency represented in Parliament when the Union of Great Britain and Ireland took effect on 1 January 1801.
Between 1885 and 1918 the area had been divided between the constituencies of East Waterford and West Waterford. From 1922 it was no longer represented in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom.
Politics
In the 1918 election Sinn Féin defeated by 3 to 1 the Nationalist candidate J. J. O'Shee representing the Irish Parliamentary Party.
The newly elected Sinn Féin MP for the constituency was Cathal Brugha. Like other Sinn Féin MPs elected that year, he did not take his seat at Westminster but instead, took a seat in the revolutionary First Dáil which assembled in Dublin on 21 January 1919. As better known figures were under arrest, Brugha became the first presiding officer (with the title of Ceann Comhairle) and a day later the first head of government (with the title of President of Dáil Éireann), of the Irish Republic.
The First Dáil
Sinn Féin contested the general election of 1918 on the platform that instead of taking up any seats they won in the United Kingdom Parliament, they would establish a revolutionary assembly in Dublin. In republican theory every MP elected in Ireland was a potential Deputy to this assembly. In practice only the Sinn Féin members accepted the offer.
The revolutionary First Dáil assembled on 21 January 1919 and last met on 10 May 1921. The First Dáil, according to a resolution passed on 10 May 1921, was formally dissolved on the assembling of the Second Dáil. This took place on 16 August 1921.
In 1921 Sinn Féin decided to use the UK authorised elections for the Northern Ireland House of Commons and the House of Commons of Southern Ireland as a poll for the Irish Republic's Second Dáil. This area, in republican theory, was incorporated in the five member Dáil constituency of Waterford–Tipperary East.
Members of Parliament
MPs 1801–1885
| Year | 1st Member | 1st Party | 2nd Member | 2nd Party | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1801 | Hon. John Beresford | Richard Power | ||||
| 21 Jul 1802 | Edward Lee | Whig | ||||
| 6 Jan 1806 | John Claudius Beresford | |||||
| 18 Nov 1806 | Richard Power | |||||
| 28 Jun 1811 | Sir William Beresford | |||||
| 25 Apr 1814 | Richard Power | |||||
| 25 May 1814 | Lord George Beresford | |||||
| 1 Jul 1826 | Henry Villiers-Stuart | |||||
| 2 Mar 1830 | Lord George Beresford | |||||
| 13 Aug 1830 | Daniel O'Connell | |||||
| 11 May 1831 | Sir Richard Musgrave, Bt | Robert Power | ||||
| 26 Dec 1832 | John Matthew Galwey | Sir Richard Keane, Bt | ||||
| 19 Jan 1835 | Sir Richard Musgrave, Bt | Patrick Power | ||||
| 21 Sep 1835 | William Villiers-Stuart | |||||
| 9 Aug 1837 | John Power | |||||
| 24 Aug 1840 | Hon. Robert Carew | |||||
| 11 Aug 1847 | Nicholas Mahon Power | Robert Keating | ||||
| 26 Jul 1852 | Sir John Esmonde, Bt | |||||
| 12 May 1859 | Walter Cecil Talbot | |||||
| 18 Jul 1865 | Earl of Tyrone | |||||
| 31 Dec 1866 | Edmond de la Poer | |||||
| 5 Jul 1873 | Henry Villiers-Stuart | |||||
| 10 Feb 1874 | Lord Charles Beresford | |||||
| 24 Jan 1877 | James Delahunty | |||||
| 9 Apr 1880 | Henry Villiers-Stuart | John Aloysius Blake | ||||
| 25 Aug 1884 | Patrick Joseph Power | |||||
| 1885 | Constituency divided: see East Waterford and West Waterford | |||||
MPs 1918–1922
| Election | Member | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1918 | Cathal Brugha | Sinn Féin | |
| 1922 | constituency abolished | ||
Elections
The single-member elections in this constituency took place using the first past the post electoral system. Multi-member elections used the plurality-at-large voting system.
| General Election 14 December 1918: Waterford County | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Sinn Féin | Cathal Brugha | 12,890 | 75.35 | N/A | |
| Irish Parliamentary | James John O'Shee | 4,217 | 24.65 | N/A | |
| Majority | 8,673 | 50.70 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 24,439 | 70.00 | N/A | ||
| Sinn Féin gain from Irish Parliamentary | Swing | N/A | |||
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References
- The Parliaments of England by Henry Stooks Smith (1st edition published in three volumes 1844–50), 2nd edition edited (in one volume) by F.W.S. Craig (Political Reference Publications 1973)
- Parliamentary Election Results in Ireland, 1801–1922, edited by B.M. Walker (Royal Irish Academy 1978)
- Who's Who of British Members of Parliament: Volume II 1886–1918, edited by M. Stenton and S. Lees (The Harvester Press 1978)
- Who's Who of British Members of Parliament: Volume III 1919–1945, edited by M. Stenton and S. Lees (The Harvester Press 1979)
- Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "W" (part 1)
External links
- http://www.oireachtas.ie/members-hist/default.asp?housetype=0
- http://historical-debates.oireachtas.ie/en.toc.dail.html
See also
- List of UK Parliament Constituencies in Ireland and Northern Ireland
- Redistribution of Seats (Ireland) Act 1918
- MPs elected in the UK general election, 1918
- List of Dáil Éireann constituencies in Ireland (historic)
- Members of the 1st Dáil
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