Canterbury is a constituency in

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

represented in the

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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 suprema ...

since

2017 File:2017 Events Collage V2.png, From top left, clockwise: The War Against ISIS at the Battle of Mosul (2016-2017); aftermath of the Manchester Arena bombing; The Solar eclipse of August 21, 2017 ("Great American Eclipse"); North Korea tests a s ...

Rosie Duffield Rosemary Clare Duffield (born 1 July 1971) is a British Labour Party politician who has served as Member of Parliament (MP) for Canterbury since 2017. Early life Rosemary Clare Duffield was born on 1 July 1971 in Norwich, Norfolk, England and l ...

of the Labour Party. The seat dates to the earliest century of regular parliaments, in 1295; it elected two MPs until 1885, electing one thereafter, before being altered by the later-termed Fourth Reform Act in 1918 (the first being in 1832). Currently, the electorate (the total of people eligible to vote) is much greater than the average nationwide (the electoral quota); this is termed under-apportionment of representation.

Constituency profile

The seat takes in the cathedral and university city of Canterbury, rural villages to the south, and the seaside resort of Whitstable to the north. Full time students make up around a quarter of the electorate.

History

;Constitutional status of seat The widened Canterbury constituency was formed from an expansion of the narrow parliamentary borough (or simply

borough A borough is an administrative division in various English-speaking countries. In principle, the term ''borough'' designates a self-governing walled town, although in practice, official use of the term varies widely. History In the Middle A ...

) of the same name that existed from 1295 to 1918. This had elected two MPs from 1295 (the

Model Parliament The Model Parliament is the term, attributed to Frederic William Maitland, used for the 1295 Parliament of England of King Edward I. History This assembly included members of the clergy and the aristocracy, as well as representatives from the v ...

) until 1885, and then one until 1918. ;Political history Before the seat was reformed the politics of the town were greatly influenced by Canterbury Cathedral and the Archbishop of Canterbury. From 1835 (where a Conservative was elected on petition) until 2017, the local electorate elected mostly candidates of the Conservative Party (with the exceptions of the elections of

Independent Unionist Independent Unionist has been a label sometimes used by candidates in elections in the United Kingdom, indicating a support for British unionism (not to be confused with trade unionism). It is most popularly associated with candidates in elect ...

Francis Bennett-Goldney Major Francis Bennett-Goldney (1865 – 26 July 1918) was an antiquary, Member of Parliament (MP) for Canterbury and former Mayor of Canterbury, who died during World War I. He was born Francis Evans, the son of Sebastian Evans, in Mosele ...

, MP from 1910 to 1918, and of a few Whigs or

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

s when Canterbury had two seats); the seat was recognised in the Guinness Book of World Records as the longest uninterrupted period of one party holding a Parliamentary seat. The election of Labour's

, who won the seat by just 187 votes in the 2017 election, marked the end of a 185-year period of Canterbury almost always electing Conservative-allied MPs, the longest recorded unbroken record of party representation in British political history. Her victory in this election was largely credited to the strategies of electoral strategist Jack Wilson, who at the time was the youngest senior political adviser in British history. She kept the seat, increasing her majority in 2019. ;Size of electorate Voters locally are under-apportioned a large fraction of a seat, and so, representative – population having risen, and homes having increased in a planned way, since the 2001 United Kingdom Census from which seats are predominantly drawn. This can be illustrated in that 27,182 was the number of votes cast for the runner-up in 2019 amid a locally high, three-quarters, turnout election. Such voters for the runner-up were more than voted for the winner in 208 of the 535 English seats – and the second-highest such votes in the election, exceeded only in Stroud, by Labour's runner-up. In the same election 12,713 votes won Kingston upon Hull East; 14,557 votes won Stoke-on-Trent Central; 6,531 votes won Na h-Eileanan an Iar; 11,705 won Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross; 12,959 won Ynys Môn and 15,149 won South Antrim.

Boundaries

1918–1950: The County Borough of Canterbury, the Urban Districts of Herne Bay and Whitstable, the Rural Districts of Bridge and Elham, and the Rural District of Blean with the detached parts of the parishes of Dunkirk and Hernhill which were wholly surrounded by the rural district. 1950–1983: The County Borough of Canterbury, the Urban Districts of Herne Bay and Whitstable, and the Rural District of Bridge Blean. 1983–1997: The City of Canterbury wards of Barham Downs, Barton, Blean Forest, Chartham, Chestfield, Gorrell, Harbledown, Harbour, Little Stour, Marshside, Northgate, North Nailbourne, St Stephen's, Seasalter, Stone Street, Sturry North, Sturry South, Swalecliffe, Tankerton, Westgate, and Wincheap, and the Borough of Swale wards of Boughton and Courtenay. 1997–2010: as 1983 less the two Borough of Swale wards. 2010–present: The City of Canterbury wards of Barham Downs, Barton, Blean Forest, Chartham and Stone Street, Chestfield and Swalecliffe, Gorrell, Harbledown, Harbour, Little Stour, North Nailbourne, Northgate, St Stephen's, Seasalter, Sturry North, Sturry South, Tankerton, Westgate, and Wincheap.

Members of Parliament

Parliamentary borough of Canterbury

MPs 1295–1660

, , Robert Alcock , - , 1572, , Anthony Webbe, ''died
and replaced 1582 by''

Sir George Carey George Carey, 2nd Baron Hunsdon KG (1547 – 9 September 1603) was the eldest son of Henry Carey, 1st Baron Hunsdon and Anne Morgan. His father was first cousin to Elizabeth I of England. In 1560, at the age of 13, George matriculated at ...

, , William Lovelace, ''died
and replaced 1578 by ?'' , - , 1584, , Simon Brome, , John Rose , - , 1586, , Simon Brome, , John Rose , - , 1588, , Simon Brome, , Bartholomew Brome , - , 1593, , Richard Lee, , Sir Henry Finch , - , 1597, , John Boys, , Sir Henry Finch , - , 1601, , John Boys, , John Rogers II , - , 1604, , John Boys, , Matthew Hadde , - , 1614, , George Newman, , Sir William Lovelace , - , 1621–1622, , John Finch, , Sir Robert Newington , - , 1624, , Thomas Scot, , Thomas Denn , - , 1625, ,

John Fisher John Fisher (c. 19 October 1469 – 22 June 1535) was an English Catholic bishop, cardinal, and theologian. Fisher was also an academic and Chancellor of the University of Cambridge. He was canonized by Pope Pius XI. Fisher was executed by o ...

, , Sir Thomas Wilsford , - , 1626, , Sir John Finch, , James Palmer , - , 1628–1629, , Sir John Finch, , Thomas Scott , - , 1629–1640, , colspan = "2", ''No Parliaments summoned'' , - , 1640 (April), , Edward Masters, ,

John Nutt John Nutt (before 1600 – after 1632) was an English pirate. He was one of the more notorious brigands of his time, raiding the coast of southern Canada and western England for over three years before his capture by Sir John Eliot in 1623. Hi ...

, - , 1640 (November), , Sir Edward Masters, ,

, - , 1645, , Sir Edward Masters, ,

, - , 1648, , Sir Edward Masters, ,

, - , 1653, , colspan = "2", ''Canterbury not represented in Barebones Parliament'' , - , 1654, , Thomas Scot, , Francis Butcher , - , 1656, , Thomas St Nicholas, , Vincent Denne , - , 1659, , Thomas St Nicholas, , Robert Gibbon , - , 1659, , Sir Edward Masters, ,

MPs 1660–1880

MPs 1885–1918

*''Constituency representation restored and reduced to one'' (1885)

Canterbury county constituency

MPs 1918–present

Elections

Elections in the 2010s

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

Elections in the 1920s

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; *Unionist:

*Liberal: D. Roland Thomas

Elections in the 1900s

Elections in the 1890s

Elections in the 1880s

After findings of corruption, the writ for Canterbury was suspended and the election result voided. The constituency was reconstituted in 1885. John Henniker Heaton 001

Elections in the 1870s

Butler-Johnstone resigned, causing a by-election. Majendie resigned, causing a by-election.

Elections in the 1860s

Johnstone resigned, causing a by-election.

Elections in the 1850s

Denison was elevated to the peerage, becoming 1st Baron Londesborough, and causing a by-election. * Smythe retired before polling. The election was declared void on petition, due to bribery, and the writ suspended on 21 February 1853. A by-election was called to replace both MPs in August 1854.

Elections in the 1840s

* Caused by Bradshaw's death * Caused by Denison's resignation

Elections in the 1830s

* On petition, Villiers was declared unduly elected and Lushington declared elected.

Notes

References

Sources

* * * *

External links

nomis Constituency Profile for Canterbury
— presenting data from the ONS annual population survey and other official statistics. {{DEFAULTSORT:Canterbury (Uk Parliament Constituency) Parliamentary constituencies in Kent Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1295