Bosworth is a

constituency An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other poli ...

represented in the

House of Commons The House of Commons is the name for the elected lower house of the bicameral parliaments of the United Kingdom and Canada. In both of these countries, the Commons holds much more legislative power than the nominally upper house of parliament. T ...

of the

UK Parliament The Parliament of the United Kingdom is the supreme legislative body of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies and the British Overseas Territories. It meets at the Palace of Westminster, London. It alone possesses legislative suprem ...

since

2019 File:2019 collage v1.png, From top left, clockwise: Hong Kong protests turn to widespread riots and civil disobedience; House of Representatives votes to adopt articles of impeachment against Donald Trump; CRISPR gene editing first used to experim ...

Luke Evans Luke George Evans (born 15 April 1979) is a Welsh actor and singer. He began his career on the stage, performing in many of London's West End productions such as ''Rent'', ''Miss Saigon'', and '' Piaf'' before making his film breakthrough in ...

, a

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

Boundaries

1885–1918: The Sessional Divisions of Ashby-de-la-Zouch (except the parishes of Bardon, Breedon, Thringstone, Osgathorpe, and Whitwick) and Market Bosworth. 1918–1950: The Urban Districts of Coalville and Hinckley, the Rural Districts of Hinckley and Market Bosworth, and the parish of Bardon in the Rural District of Ashby-de-la-Zouch. 1950–1955: The Urban Districts of Coalville and Hinckley, and the Rural District of Market Bosworth. 1955–1974: The Urban District of Coalville as constituted by the County of Leicester (Coalville Urban District) Confirmation Order 1953, the Urban District of Hinckley, and the Rural District of Market Bosworth. 1974–1983: The Urban Districts of Coalville and Hinckley as altered by the West Midland Counties Order 1965, and the Rural District of Market Bosworth. 1983–1997: The Borough of Hinckley and Bosworth, and the Borough of Charnwood ward of Bradgate. 1997–2010: The Borough of Hinckley and Bosworth wards of Ambien, Bagworth, Barleston, Nailstone and Osbaston, Barwell, Burbage, Cadeby, Carlton and Market Bosworth, Castle, Clarendon, De Montfort, Desford and Peckleton, Earl Shilton, Markfield, Newbold Verdon, Sheepy and Witherley, Trinity, and Twycross and Shackerstone. 2010–present: The Borough of Hinckley and Bosworth wards of Ambien, Barlestone, Nailstone and Osbaston, Barwell, Burbage St Catherines and Lash Hill, Burbage Sketchley and Stretton, Cadeby, Carlton and Market Bosworth with Shackerstone, Earl Shilton, Hinckley Castle, Hinckley Clarendon, Hinckley De Montfort, Hinckley Trinity, Markfield, Stanton and Fieldhead, Newbold Verdon with Desford and Peckleton, Ratby, Bagworth and Thornton, and Twycross and Witherley with Sheepy.

History

The Western, or Bosworth, division was created in 1885, and included part of the Ashby de la Zouch and all of the Market Bosworth

petty sessional division A petty sessional division was, in England and Wales, the area that a magistrates' court had jurisdiction over (before the abolition of quarter sessions, specifically the petty sessions). Petty sessional divisions were gradually consolidated in ...

s. It was redefined in 1918 to cover the urban districts of

Coalville Coalville is an industrial town in the district of North West Leicestershire, Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England, with a population at the 2011 census of 34,575. It lies on the A511 trunk road between Leicester and Burton upon Tr ...

and

Hinckley Hinckley is a market town in south-west Leicestershire, England. It is administered by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council. Hinckley is the third largest settlement in the administrative county of Leicestershire, after Leicester and Loughbo ...

, the rural districts of

and

Market Bosworth Market Bosworth is a market town and civil parish in western Leicestershire, England. At the 2001 Census, it had a population of 1,906, increasing to 2,097 at the 2011 census. It is most famously near to the site of the decisive final battle o ...

and the

civil parish In England, a civil parish is a type of administrative parish used for local government. It is a territorial designation which is the lowest tier of local government below districts and counties, or their combined form, the unitary authorit ...

of Bardon from Ashby RD. Hinckley RD was abolished in the 1930s and in 1948 and 1970 the Bosworth constituency by which date it was shaped to eventually all of Coalville, Hinckley and Market Bosworth RD. Coalville has been part of

North West Leicestershire North West Leicestershire is a local government district in Leicestershire, England. The population of the Local Authority at the 2011 census was 93,348. Its main towns are Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Castle Donington, Coalville and Ibstock. The d ...

since the 1983 election. The seat was held by Labour for 25 years until the Conservatives gained it in the 1970 general election and they have represented it since then.

expanded greatly after

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

and is the most economically significant town other than

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

Leicestershire Leicestershire ( ; postal abbreviation Leics.) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East Midlands, England. The county borders Nottinghamshire to the north, Lincolnshire to the north-east, Rutland to the east, Northamptonshire ...

however unlike the borough the constituency retains under the independent Boundary Commission the poetic name of Bosworth, alluding to the

Battle of Bosworth The Battle of Bosworth or Bosworth Field was the last significant battle of the Wars of the Roses, the civil war between the houses of Lancaster and York that extended across England in the latter half of the 15th century. Fought on 22 Au ...

of the medieval

Wars of the Roses The Wars of the Roses (1455–1487), known at the time and for more than a century after as the Civil Wars, were a series of civil wars fought over control of the throne of England, English throne in the mid-to-late fifteenth century. These w ...

which is recreated annually on the battlefield. The seat had a

coal mining Coal mining is the process of extracting coal from the ground. Coal is valued for its energy content and since the 1880s has been widely used to generate electricity. Steel and cement industries use coal as a fuel for extraction of iron from ...

tradition; however, other industry, such as defence, trade and retail supports the residential town of Hinckley and its rural hinterland. The area of strongest Labour support is the former mining village of

Earl Shilton Earl Shilton is a market town in Leicestershire, England, about from Hinckley and about from Leicester. The 2011 Census recorded its population as 10,047. Toponymy The town's name derives from the Old English for 'farm/settlement on a she ...

, which is now in local elections generally over-shadowed by surrounding areas with majority-Conservative support. The constituency was once held for Labour by

Woodrow Wyatt Woodrow may refer to: People *Woodrow (name) Woodrow is an English given name which was originally an English surname which may originally derive from a toponym meaning "row of houses by a wood" in Old English. Other sources suggest the nam ...

, who later left the party and became one of its most voluble critics in the 1980s. During the 2015 count, a police car outside the Hinckley Leisure Centre, where the count was taking place, caught fire then exploded while being hosed down by firefighters. Five men were arrested.

Members of Parliament

Elections

Elections in the 2010s

Going into the 2015 general election, this was the 180th most marginal constituency in Great Britain, the Liberal Democrats requiring a swing from the Conservatives of 4.6% to take the seat (based on the result of the 2010 general election).

Elections in the 2000s

Elections in the 1990s

Elections in the 1980s

Elections in the 1970s

Elections in the 1960s

Elections in the 1950s

Elections in the 1940s

Elections in the 1930s

Election in the 1920s

*% change and swing from 1924

Election in the 1910s

Election results 1885–1918

Elections in the 1880s

Elections in the 1890s

Elections in the 1900s

Elections in the 1910s

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 July 1914, the following candidates had been selected; *Liberal: Henry McLaren *Unionist:

Notes

References

External links

nomis Constituency Profile for Bosworth
– presenting data from the ONS annual population survey and other official statistics. {{DEFAULTSORT:Bosworth (Uk Parliament Constituency) Parliamentary constituencies in Leicestershire Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1885