Cambridgeshire is a former

Parliamentary A parliamentary system, or parliamentarian democracy, is a system of democratic governance of a state (or subordinate entity) where the executive derives its democratic legitimacy from its ability to command the support ("confidence") of the ...

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 ...

in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and ...

. It was a

of 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

Parliament of England The Parliament of England was the legislature of the Kingdom of England from the 13th century until 1707 when it was replaced by the Parliament of Great Britain. Parliament evolved from the great council of bishops and peers that advise ...

then of the

Parliament of Great Britain The Parliament of Great Britain was formed in May 1707 following the ratification of the Acts of Union by both the Parliament of England and the Parliament of Scotland. The Acts ratified the treaty of Union which created a new unified Kingdo ...

from 1707 to 1800 and 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 suprem ...

from 1801 to 1885.

History

The county was represented by two

Knights of the Shire Knight of the shire ( la, milites comitatus) was the formal title for a member of parliament (MP) representing a county constituency in the British House of Commons, from its origins in the medieval Parliament of England until the Redistribution ...

until 1832, when the number of members was increased to three by the

Great Reform Act The Representation of the People Act 1832 (also known as the 1832 Reform Act, Great Reform Act or First Reform Act) was an Act of Parliament of the United Kingdom (indexed as 2 & 3 Will. IV c. 45) that introduced major changes to the electo ...

. Under 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 ...

, the constituency was abolished and was divided into three single-member constituencies: the Western or Chesterton Division, the Eastern or Newmarket Division and the Northern or

Wisbech Wisbech ( ) is a market town, inland port and civil parish in the Fenland district in Cambridgeshire, England. In 2011 it had a population of 31,573. The town lies in the far north-east of Cambridgeshire, bordering Norfolk and only 5 miles ...

Division. Under the

Local Government Act 1888 Local may refer to: Geography and transportation * Local (train), a train serving local traffic demand * Local, Missouri, a community in the United States * Local government, a form of public administration, usually the lowest tier of administrat ...

, the historic county of Cambridgeshire was divided between the administrative counties of

Cambridgeshire Cambridgeshire (abbreviated Cambs.) is a county in the East of England, bordering Lincolnshire to the north, Norfolk to the north-east, Suffolk to the east, Essex and Hertfordshire to the south, and Bedfordshire and Northamptonshire to t ...

and

Isle of Ely The Isle of Ely () is a historic region around the city of Ely in Cambridgeshire, England. Between 1889 and 1965, it formed an administrative county. Etymology Its name has been said to mean "island of eels", a reference to the creatures th ...

. When the parliamentary constituencies were next redistributed under the

Representation of the People Act 1918 The Representation of the People Act 1918 was an Act of Parliament passed to reform the electoral system in Great Britain and Ireland. It is sometimes known as the Fourth Reform Act. The Act extended the franchise in parliamentary elections, al ...

, Cambridgeshire was re-constituted as a single-member Parliamentary County, largely formed from combining the Chesterton Division (excluding areas that were now part of the expanded Municipal Borough of Cambridge) and the Newmarket Division (excluding the city of Ely which was included in the Parliamentary County of Isle of Ely). The administrative counties of Cambridgeshire and Isle of Ely had been recombined in 1965 and Cambridgeshire was further expanded in 1974 to include

Huntingdon and Peterborough Huntingdon and Peterborough was a short-lived administrative and geographical county in East Anglia in the United Kingdom. It existed from 1965 to 1974, when it became part of Cambridgeshire. Formation The Local Government Act 1888 created ...

under the

Local Government Act 1972 The Local Government Act 1972 (c. 70) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed local government in England and Wales on 1 April 1974. It was one of the most significant Acts of Parliament to be passed by the Heath Gov ...

. Under the subsequent redistribution of seats, which did not come into effect until the 1983 general election, Cambridgeshire was abolished as a county constituency, forming the bulk of the new constituency of South East Cambridgeshire and the majority of South West Cambridgeshire.

Boundaries

1290–1653, 1658-1885: The historic county of

. (Although Cambridgeshire contained the borough of

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a university city and the county town in Cambridgeshire, England. It is located on the River Cam approximately north of London. As of the 2021 United Kingdom census, the population of Cambridge was 145,700. Cambridge bec ...

, which elected two MPs in its own right, this was not excluded from the county constituency, and owning property within the borough could confer a vote at the county election. In the elections of 1830 and 1831, about an eighth of the votes cast for the county came from within Cambridge itself. The city of Ely also elected its own MPs in 1295.) 1654–1658 The historic county was divided for the First and the

Second Protectorate Parliament The Second Protectorate Parliament in England sat for two sessions from 17 September 1656 until 4 February 1658, with Thomas Widdrington as the Speaker of the House of Commons. In its first session, the House of Commons was its only chamber; in ...

s, between the two-member

area and the four-member constituency consisting of the rest of the county. 1918–1983: The

administrative county An administrative county was a first-level administrative division in England and Wales from 1888 to 1974, and in Ireland from 1899 until either 1973 (in Northern Ireland) or 2002 (in the Republic of Ireland). They are now abolished, although mos ...

, excluding the

Municipal Borough Municipal boroughs were a type of local government district which existed in England and Wales between 1835 and 1974, in Northern Ireland from 1840 to 1973 and in the Republic of Ireland from 1840 to 2002. Broadly similar structures existed in S ...

of Cambridge. There were minor boundary changes in 1950, when some of the constituency was transferred to the Cambridge seat, which was expanded to align with the Municipal Borough, and in 1974, to align with changes to the county boundary.

Members of Parliament

* ''Constituency created'' (1290)

MPs 1290-1660

MPs 1660-1832

MPs 1832–1885

MPs 1918-1983

Elections

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

Elections in the 1880s

* Caused by Brand's elevation to the peerage, becoming Viscount Hampden. * Caused by Rodwell's resignation.

Elections in the 1870s

* Caused by Yorke's death. * Caused by Manners' death. * Caused by Yorke's succession to the peerage, becoming Earl of Hardwicke.

Elections in the 1860s

* Caused by Yorke's appointment as

Comptroller of the Household The Comptroller of the Household is an ancient position in the British royal household, nominally the second-ranking member of the Lord Steward's department after the Treasurer of the Household. The Comptroller was an ''ex officio'' member of ...

. * Caused by Ball's resignation.

Elections in the 1850s

Elections in the 1840s

Elections in the 1830s

*Caused by Osborne's resignation

References

* ''Boundaries of Parliamentary Constituencies 1885-1972'', compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Parliamentary Reference Publications 1972) * ''British Parliamentary Constituencies: A Statistical Compendium'', by Ivor Crewe and Anthony Fox (Faber and Faber 1984) * John Cannon, ''Parliamentary Representation 1832 - England and Wales'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1973) * {{end Parliamentary constituencies in Cambridgeshire (historic) Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1290 Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom disestablished in 1885 Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom established in 1918 Constituencies of the Parliament of the United Kingdom disestablished in 1983