Dorchester was a

parliamentary 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 ...

centred on the town of Dorchester in

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset (unitary authority), Dors ...

. It returned two

Members of Parliament A member of parliament (MP) is the representative in parliament of the people who live in their electoral district. In many countries with bicameral parliaments, this term refers only to members of the lower house since upper house members of ...

to 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. ...

of the

Parliament of the United Kingdom 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 ...

from 1295 to 1868, when its representation was reduced one member. The constituency was abolished by the

Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 The Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 (48 & 49 Vict., c. 23) was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was a piece of electoral reform legislation that redistributed the seats in the House of Commons, introducing the concept of equal ...

, after which Dorchester was placed in the new Dorset South constituency. In 1918 it was transferred to Dorset West, where it has remained since.

Members of Parliament

1295-1629

1640-1868

1868-1885

Election results

Elections in the 1830s

Ashley-Cooper resigned, causing a by-election.

Elections in the 1840s

Graham was appointed

Home Secretary The secretary of state for the Home Department, otherwise known as the home secretary, is a senior minister of the Crown in the Government of the United Kingdom. The home secretary leads the Home Office, and is responsible for all national ...

, requiring a by-election.

Elections in the 1850s

Sturt resigned in order to contest the 1856 by-election in

, causing a by-election.

Elections in the 1860s

''Seat reduced to one member''

Elections in the 1870s

Elections in the 1880s

Notes

References

*Robert Beatson, ''A Chronological Register of Both Houses of Parliament'' (London: Longman, Hurst, Res & Orme, 1807

*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

*F W S Craig, ''British Parliamentary Election Results 1832-1885'' (2nd edition, Aldershot: Parliamentary Research Services, 1989) * Maija Jansson (ed.), ''Proceedings in Parliament, 1614 (House of Commons)'' (Philadelphia: American Philosophical Society, 1988) * J E Neale, ''The Elizabethan House of Commons'' (London: Jonathan Cape, 1949) *M Stenton (ed), ''Who's Who of British Members of Parliament: Volume I 1832-1885'' (The Harvester Press, 1976) * *{{Rayment-hc, d, 2, date=March 2012 Parliamentary constituencies in Dorset (historic) Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1295 Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom disestablished in 1885 History of Dorchester, Dorset