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St Germans (UK Parliament constituency)

{{Short description|Former rotten borough in Cornwall, England}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=January 2021}}

{{Infobox UK constituency

|name = St Germans

|type = Borough

|parliament = uk

|year = 1562

|abolished = 1832

|elects_howmany = Two

|previous =

|next = East Cornwall

|}}

St Germans was a rotten borough in Cornwall which returned two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons in the English and later British Parliament from 1562 to 1832, when it was abolished by the Great Reform Act.

History

The borough consisted of part of St Germans parish in South-East Cornwall, a coastal town too small to have a mayor and corporation, where the chief economic activity was fishing. Like most of the Cornish boroughs enfranchised or re-enfranchised during the Tudor period, it was a rotten borough from the start.

The right to vote rested in theory with all (adult male) householders, but in practice only a handful (who called themselves freemen) exercised the right; there were only seven voters in 1831. The Eliot family had exercised complete control over the choice of MPs for many years, as was also true at nearby Liskeard.Page 147, Lewis Namier, The Structure of Politics at the Accession of George III (2nd edition - London: St Martin's Press, 1957)

In 1831, the borough had a population of 672, and 99 houses. The boundaries excluded part of the town, which consisted of 124 houses in total, but this was still far too small to justify its retaining its representation, and St Germans was disfranchised by the Reform Act in 1832. The decision, however, was controversial: the whole parish (of which the town made up only a fraction) had a population in the 1821 census of 2,404, and the initial proposal was that St Germans should lose only one of its two MPs. But the borough covered only {{convert|40|acre|m2}}, and the town 50, in a parish of more than 9,000 acres (36 km2). The Whig government decided that the availability in a surrounding parish of sufficient population should not save a borough from disfranchisement, unless a substantial part of that population was already within the borough boundaries. The bill's schedules were amended so as to extinguish both of the St Germans MPs, saving instead the second MP at Penryn (where the boundaries had been extended to take in the neighbouring town of Falmouth). The Tory opposition attacked the decision as politically motivated (St Germans was a Tory borough), and the vote in the Commons was one of the narrowest in the entire reform bill debates.

Members of Parliament

= MPs 1563–1629 =

class="wikitable"
ParliamentFirst memberSecond member
Parliament of 1563–1567

|William Mohun

|William Hyde

Parliament of 1571

|Charles Glemham

|Thomas Cosgrave

Parliament of 1572–1581

|Thomas Ayshe

|Richard Eliot

Parliament of 1584–1585

|George Carew

|Henry Denny

Parliament of 1586–1587

|Thomas Bodley

|Edward Barker

Parliament of 1588–1589

|William Barrington

|William Langham

Parliament of 1593

|Sampson Lennard

|John Glanville

Parliament of 1597–1598

|Robert Hatchman

|John Chamberlain

Parliament of 1601

|rowspan="2"|(Sir) George Carew

|John Osborne

Parliament of 1604–1611

|rowspan="2"|John Trott

Addled Parliament (1614)

|Sir John Eliot

Parliament of 1621–1622

|Richard Tisdale

|Sir Richard Buller

Happy Parliament (1624–1625)

|rowspan="2"| (Sir) John Coke

| Sir John Stradling

Useless Parliament (1625)

|rowspan="2"|Sir Henry Marten

Parliament of 1625–1626

|Sir John Eliot

Parliament of 1628–1629

| Thomas Cotton

|Benjamin Valentine

colspan="4"|No Parliament summoned 1629–1640

= MPs 1640–1832 =

class="wikitable"
YearFirst memberFirst partySecond memberSecond party
April 1640

|style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

|William Scawen

|style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| John Eliot

November 1640

|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Roundhead}}" |

|rowspan="2"|Benjamin Valentine

rowspan="2"|Parliamentarian

|style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Roundhead}}" |

|John MoyleA writ was issued for a by-election in November 1646, apparently in the mistaken belief that Moyle had died. William Scawen was elected, but does not appear to have attempted to take his seat

Parliamentarian
December 1648

|rowspan="2" colspan="3"|Moyle excluded in Pride's Purge – seat vacant

1652

|colspan="3"|Valentine died 1652 – seat vacant

1653

|colspan="6"|St Germans was unrepresented in the Barebones Parliament and the First and Second Parliaments of the Protectorate

January 1659

|style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

|John Glanville

|style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

|John St Aubyn

May 1659

|colspan="6"|Not represented in the restored Rump

1660

|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

|rowspan="2"| John Eliot

|rowspan="2"|

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Richard Knightley

|

1661

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Edward Eliot

|

1679

|rowspan="6" style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

|rowspan="6"| Daniel Eliot

|rowspan="6"|

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Richard Eliot

|

1685

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Sir Thomas Higgons

|

1689

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Sir Walter Moyle

|

1690

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Henry Fleming

|

1698

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| John Tanner

|

1700

|rowspan="7" style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

|rowspan="7"| Henry Fleming

|rowspan="7"|

January 1701

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| John Speccot

|

April 1701

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Daniel Eliot

|

December 1701

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Whigs (British political party)}}" |

| Richard Edgcumbe

| Whig

1702

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| John Anstis

|

May 1705

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Samuel Rolle

|

December 1705

|rowspan="3" style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

|rowspan="3"| Edward Eliot

|rowspan="3"|

1708

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Francis Scobell

|

1710

|rowspan="3" style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Whigs (British political party)}}" |

|rowspan="3"| John Knight

|rowspan="3"| Whig

January 1715

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Waller BaconBacon was also elected for Norwich, which he chose to represent, and never sat for St Germans

|

May 1715

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Whigs (British political party)}}" |

| Lord Stanhope

| Whig

1722

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Lord Binning

|

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Philip Cavendish

|

1727

|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Whigs (British political party)}}" |

|rowspan="2"| Sir Gilbert Heathcote

|rowspan="2"| Whig

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Sidney Godolphin

|

January 1733

|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

|rowspan="2"| Richard Eliot

|rowspan="2"|

March 1733

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Dudley Ryder

|

1734

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| The Lord Baltimore

|

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Charles Montagu

|

1741

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| John Hynde Cotton

|

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| James Newsham

|

1747

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Richard Eliot

|

|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

|rowspan="2"| Thomas Potter

|rowspan="2"|

1748

|rowspan="5" style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Whigs (British political party)}}" |

|rowspan="5"| Edward EliotEliot was re-elected in 1768 but had also been elected for Liskeard, which he chose to represent, and did not for St Germans in that Parliament

|rowspan="5"| Whig

1754

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Anthony Champion

|

1761

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Philip Stanhope

|

1765

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| William Hussey

|

March 1768

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Samuel SaltSalt was also elected for Liskeard, which he chose to represent, and never sat for St Germans

|

December 1768

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| George Jennings

|

|rowspan="4" style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

|rowspan="4"| Benjamin Langlois

|rowspan="4"|

1774

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Whigs (British political party)}}" |

| Edward Eliot

| Whig

1775

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| John Pownall

|

1776

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| John Peachey

|

1780

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Edward James Eliot

|

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Whigs (British political party)}}" |

| Dudley Long

| Whig

1784

|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

|rowspan="2"| John Hamilton

|rowspan="2"| Tory

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Abel Smith

|

1788

|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

|rowspan="2"| Samuel Smith

|rowspan="2"|

February 1790

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Sir Charles Hamilton

|

June 1790

|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Whigs (British political party)}}" |

|rowspan="2"| The Marquess of Lorne

|rowspan="2"| Whig

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| Hon. Edward James EliotEliot was also elected for Liskeard, which he chose to represent, and did not sit for St Germans in this Parliament

|

1791

|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

|rowspan="2"| Hon. William Eliot

|rowspan="2"| Tory

1796

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Whigs (British political party)}}" |

| Lord Grey

| Whig

1802

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

| Lord Binning

| Tory

| style="color:inherit;background-color: white" |

| James Langham

|

1806

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

| Sir Joseph Yorke

| Tory

|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

|rowspan="2"| Matthew Montagu

|rowspan="2"| Tory

1810

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

| Charles Philip Yorke

| Tory

1812

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

| William Henry Pringle

| Tory

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

| Henry Goulburn

| Tory

1818

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

| Hon. Seymour Thomas Bathurst

| Tory

|rowspan="2" style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

|rowspan="2"| Charles Arbuthnot

|rowspan="2"| Tory

1826

|rowspan="4" style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

|rowspan="4"| Charles Ross

|rowspan="4"| Tory

1827

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Whigs (British political party)}}" |

| James Loch

| Whig

July 1830

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

| Sir Henry HardingeHardinge was also elected for Newport (Cornwall), which he chose to represent, and never sat for St Germans

| Tory

December 1830

| style="color:inherit;background-color: {{party color|Tories (British political party)}}" |

| Winthrop Mackworth Praed

| Tory

1832

|colspan="6"| Constituency abolished

Notes

{{reflist}}

References

{{Portal|Cornwall}}

  • Michael Brock, The Great Reform Act (London: Hutchinson, 1973)
  • 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) [http://www2.odl.ox.ac.uk/gsdl/cgi-bin/library?e=p-000-00---0modhis06--00-0-0-0prompt-10---4------0-1l--1-en-50---20-about---00001-001-1-1isoZz-8859Zz-1-0&a=d&cl=CL1]
  • J E Neale, The Elizabethan House of Commons (London: Jonathan Cape, 1949)
  • J Holladay Philbin, Parliamentary Representation 1832 – England and Wales (New Haven: Yale University Press, 1965)
  • Henry Stooks Smith, The Parliaments of England from 1715 to 1847 (2nd edition, edited by FWS Craig – Chichester: Parliamentary Reference Publications, 1973)
  • {{Cite Notitia Parliamentaria|converted=1|part=2|page=1}}
  • {{Rayment-hc|s|1|date=March 2012}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Germans UK Parliament constituency}}

Category:Parliamentary constituencies in Cornwall (historic)

Category:Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1562

Category:Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom disestablished in 1832

Category:Rotten boroughs