Westbury (UK Parliament constituency)

Coordinates: 51°15′36″N 2°11′10″W / 51.260°N 2.186°W

Westbury
Former County constituency for the House of Commons
Boundary of Westbury in Wiltshire for the 2005 general election.
Location of Wiltshire within England.
County	Wiltshire
Major settlements	Westbury
1449–2010
Number of members	One (Two 1449-1832)
Replaced by	South West Wiltshire, Chippenham
European Parliament constituency	South West England

Westbury was a parliamentary constituency in Wiltshire from 1449 to 2010. It was represented in the House of Commons of England until 1707, and then in the House of Commons of Great Britain from 1707 to 1800, and finally in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 until 2010.

Until 1885, it was a parliamentary borough, returning two Members of Parliament (MPs) until 1832 and only one from 1832 to 1885. The parliamentary borough was abolished in 1885, when the name was transferred to a county constituency returning one MP. Elections used the bloc vote system when two MPs were returned, and the first-past-the-post system of election when one seat was contested.

Westbury returned a Conservative Member at every election after 1924.

Boundaries

1885-1918: The Sessional Divisions of Bradford-on-Avon, Melksham, Trowbridge, Westbury, and Whorwellsdon, and part of the Sessional Division of Warminster.

1918-1950: The Urban Districts of Bradford-on-Avon, Melksham, Trowbridge, Warminster, and Westbury, and the Rural Districts of Bradford-on-Avon, Melksham, Mere, Warminster, and Westbury and Whorwellsdown.

1950-1983: The Urban Districts of Bradford-on-Avon, Melksham, Trowbridge, Warminster, and Westbury, and the Rural Districts of Bradford-on-Avon and Melksham, Mere and Tisbury, and Warminster and Westbury.

1983-1997: The District of West Wiltshire, and the District of Salisbury wards of Knoyle, Mere, and Western.

1997-2010: The District of West Wiltshire wards of Adcroft, Bradford-on-Avon North, Bradford-on-Avon South, College, Corsley, Dilton Marsh, Drynham, Ethandune, Holt, John O'Gaunt, Manor Vale, Mid Wylye Valley, Park, Paxcroft, Shearwater, Summerham, Warminster East, Warminster West, Weavers, Westbrook, Westbury with Storridge, and Wylye Valley, and the District of Salisbury wards of Knoyle, Mere, and Western.

Originally a small rotten borough, covering only a small part of the parish of Westbury, in 1885 the parliamentary borough became a county constituency in Wiltshire. At the time of the constituency's abolition in 2010 it included the towns of Westbury, Warminster, Trowbridge, and Bradford on Avon, and the surrounding rural areas as far south as Mere. Until boundary changes in 1997, it also included Melksham.

Boundary review, 2005

Following a review of parliamentary representation in Wiltshire, the Boundary Commission for England created two new constituencies in the county. Chippenham was created mostly from the adjoining North Wiltshire constituency, plus the town of Bradford on Avon at the northern end of the Westbury constituency, while the rest of Westbury saw minor changes to its composition and was renamed South West Wiltshire. These changes were approved in 2005, to take effect at the following general election, which ultimately took place in 2010.

Members of Parliament

Westbury borough (before 1885)

MPs 1449–1640

Parliament	First member	Second member
1491	Sir Thomas Long of Draycot
1510-1523	No names known [1]
1529	Thomas Kirton	Thomas Temys [1]
1536	?
1539	?
1542	?
1545	William Hartgill	Geoffrey Carter [1]
1547	John Stokes	Kenelm Throckmorton [1]
1553 (Mar)	?
1553 (Oct)	Andrew Baynton	Griffin Curteys [1]
1554 (Apr)	Griffin Curteys	Peter Morgan [1]
1554 (Nov)	William Bennett	Griffin Curteys [1]
1555	Sir Thomas Throckmorton	William Hoskins [1]
1558	John Buckland	William Allen Helyer [1]
1559	Anthony Carleton	Ralph Skinner[2]
1562/3	Hugh Ryley	John Dyster [2]
1571	Francis Blount	Thomas Long [2]
1572	William Brouncker	Henry Brouncker [2]
1584	William Brouncker	Edward Midwinter [2]
1586	Robert Baynard	Henry Whitaker [2]
1588	Sir Henry Fanshawe	John Bennett [2]
1593	William Jordyn	Sir Henry Fanshawe [2]
1597	Matthew Ley	James Ley[2][3]
1601	Matthew Ley	Henry Jackman [2]
1604	Matthew Ley	James Ley, made judge and replaced by Alexander Chocke
1614	Matthew Ley	Henry Ley
1621	Sir James Ley replaced by Walter Long	Sir Miles Fleetwood
1624	Sir John Saye	Sir Henry Mildmay
1625	Sir Walter Long	Thomas Hopton
1626	Sir Walter Long	Thomas Hopton
1628	Maximillian Petty	Charles Thynne
1629–1640	No Parliaments summoned

MPs 1640–1832

Year		First member[4]	First party		Second member[4]	Second party
April 1640		Sir Thomas Penyston			John Ashe
November 1640		John Ashe	Parliamentarian		William Wheler	Parliamentarian
December 1648				Wheler excluded in Pride's Purge - seat vacant
1653	Westbury was unrepresented in the Barebones Parliament and the First and Second Parliaments of the Protectorate
January 1659		Robert Villiers, alias Danvers			William Eyre
May 1659	Not represented in the restored Rump, Ashe having died in the interim
April 1660		Richard Lewis			William Brouncker
1661					Thomas Wancklyn [5]
1678					Henry Bertie
February 1679					William Trenchard
August 1679					Henry Bertie
1680		Edward Norton			William Trenchard
1681		John Ashe
1685		Richard Lewis			James Herbert
1689					Peregrine Bertie
1695					Robert Bertie
1701		Henry Bertie
July 1702 [6]		William Trenchard			Thomas Phipps
December 1702 [6]		Henry Bertie			Robert Bertie
1708					Francis Annesley
January 1715 [7]		Willoughby Bertie
June 1715 [7]		The Lord Carbery			Charles Allanson
1722		James Bertie [8]			Francis Annesley
March 1723 by-election [8]		The Lord Carbery
1727		John Hoskins Gifford
1734		Hon. George Evans			John Bance
1741					Joseph Townsend
1747 [9]		John Bance			Paul Methuen
1748 [9]		Chauncy Townsend	Pro-Government		Matthew Michell
1753 by-election [10]					Peregrine Bertie
1768		William Blackstone
1770 by-election [11]		Hon. Charles Dillon
1774		Hon. Thomas Wenman[12]			Nathaniel Bayly
1779 by-election					Samuel Estwick
1780		(Sir) John Whalley-Gardiner [13]
1784		Chaloner Arcedeckne
1786 by-election		John Madocks
1790		Ewan Law
January 1795 by-election		Samuel Estwick
November 1795 by-election					Edward Wilbraham-Bootle
May 1796		Sir Henry Paulet St John-Mildmay, Bt			George Ellis [14]
October 1796 by-election					Lieutenant Colonel George Harcourt
1800 by-election					John Simon Harcourt
1802		William Baldwin			Charles Smith
1806		William Jacob			John Woolmore
May 1807		Edward Lascelles			Glynn Wynn
July 1807 by-election		Henry Lascelles
1809 by-election					Francis Whittle
1810 by-election					John de Ponthieu
1812		Benjamin Hall			Benjamin Shaw
1814 by-election		Ralph Franco	Tory
1818					Lord Francis Conyngham
1819 by-election		William Leader Maberly	Whig
March 1820		Jonathan Elford	Tory		Nathaniel Barton	Tory
November 1820 by-election		Sir Manasseh Masseh Lopes, Bt	Tory		Philip John Miles	Tory
1826					Sir George Warrender	Canningite Tory
1829 by-election		Robert Peel	Tory
1830		Sir Alexander Cray Grant, Bt	Tory		Michael George Prendergast	Tory
May 1831		Sir Ralph Lopes, Bt	Whig		Henry Hanmer	Whig
July 1831 by-election					Henry Frederick Stephenson	Whig
1832	Representation reduced to one MP

MPs 1832–1885

Election		Member	Party
	1832	Sir Ralph Lopes	Whig
	1837	John Ivatt Briscoe	Whig
	1841	Sir Ralph Lopes	Conservative
	1847	James Wilson	Whig
	1857	Sir Massey Lopes	Conservative
	1868	John Lewis Phipps [15]	Conservative
	1869 by-election	Charles Paul Phipps	Conservative
	1874	Abraham Laverton	Liberal
	1880	Charles Nicholas Paul Phipps	Conservative
	1885	Borough abolished - named transferred to county division

Westbury County Constituency (1885-2010)

Election		Member[4]	Party
	1885	George Fuller	Liberal
	1895	Richard Chaloner	Conservative
	1900	John Fuller	Liberal
	1911 by-election	Hon. Geoffrey Howard	Liberal
	1918	George Llewellen Palmer	Coalition Conservative
	1922	Charles Darbishire	Liberal
	1924	Captain W. W. Shaw	Conservative
	1927 by-election	Richard Long	Conservative
	1931	Sir Robert Grimston [16]	Conservative
	1964	Sir Dennis Walters	Conservative
	1992	David Faber	Conservative
	2001	Andrew Murrison	Conservative
	2010	Constituency abolished: see South West Wiltshire and Chippenham

Elections

Elections in the 1880s

General Election 1885: Westbury ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	George Pargiter Fuller	5,333	59.4
	Conservative			40.6
Majority				18.8
Turnout				84.9
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing

General Election 1886: Westbury ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	George Pargiter Fuller
	Conservative
Majority
Turnout
	Liberal hold		Swing

Elections in the 1890s

General Election 1892: Westbury ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	George Pargiter Fuller	4,554	53.7
	Conservative	W H Laverton	3,930	46.3
Majority			624	7.4
Turnout				77.2
	Liberal hold		Swing

General Election 1895: Westbury ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Richard Godolphin Walmesley Chaloner	4,497	50.9	+4.6
	Liberal	George Pargiter Fuller	4,331	49.1	-4.6
Majority			166	1.8	9.2
Turnout				90.3	+13.1
	Conservative gain from Liberal		Swing	+4.6

Elections in the 1900s

John Fuller

General Election 1900: Westbury ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	John Michael Fleetwood Fuller	4,520	53.3
	Conservative	Richard Godolphin Walmesley Chaloner	3,961	46.7
Majority			559	6.6
Turnout				86.7
	Liberal gain from Conservative		Swing

General Election 1906: Westbury ^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	John Michael Fleetwood Fuller	5,264	58.2	+4.9
	Conservative	Lord Dunsany	3,788	41.8	-4.9
Majority			1,476	16.4	+9.8
Turnout				89.4	+2.7
	Liberal hold		Swing	+4.9

Elections in the 1910s

General Election January 1910: Westbury^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Sir John Michael Fleetwood Fuller
	Conservative
Majority
Turnout
	Liberal hold		Swing

General Election December 1910: Westbury^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Sir John Michael Fleetwood Fuller	5,041	54.8
	Conservative	George Llewellen Palmer	4,152	45.2
Majority			889	9.6
Turnout				88.3
	Liberal hold		Swing

Geoffrey Howard

Westbury by-election, 1911^[17]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Hon. Geoffrey William Algernon Howard	5,073	53.0	-1.8
	Conservative	George Llewellen Palmer	4,492	47.0	+1.8
Majority				6.0	-3.6
Turnout				90.1	+1.8
	Liberal hold		Swing	-1.8

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 the July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;

• Liberal Party: Hon. Geoffrey Howard
• Unionist Party:George Llewellen Palmer

General Election 14 December 1918: Westbury^[18]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	Brig-Gen. George Llewellen Palmer	9,261	49.1
	Liberal	Capt. Hon. Geoffrey William Algernon Howard	6,064	32.1
	Labour	Capt. Ernest Nathaniel Bennett	3,537	18.8
Majority			3,197	17.0
Turnout				64.6
	Unionist gain from Liberal		Swing

• endorsed by the Coalition Government

Elections in the 1920s

C. Darbishire

General Election 1922

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Charles William Darbishire	9,903	41.7	+9.6
	Unionist	George Llewellen Palmer	9,262	39.0	-10.1
	Labour	George Ward	4,572	19.3	+0.5
Majority			641	2.7	n/a
Turnout				81.0	+16.4
	Liberal gain from Unionist		Swing

General Election 6 December 1923: Westbury

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Liberal	Charles William Darbishire	10,867	43.2	+1.5
	Unionist	Walter William Shaw	9,891	39.4	+0.4
	Labour	George Ward	4,372	17.4	-1.9
Majority			976	3.8	+1.1
Turnout				83.5	+2.5
	Liberal hold		Swing	+0.6

General Election 1924

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	Walter William Shaw	11,559	44.2	+4.8
	Liberal	Charles William Darbishire	9,848	37.7	-5.5
	Labour	George Ward	4,731	18.1	+0.7
Majority			1,711	6.5
Turnout				84.9	+1.4
	Unionist gain from Liberal		Swing

Westbury by-election, 1927

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	Hon. Richard Eric Onslow Long	10,623	40.1	-4.1
	Liberal	Harcourt Johnstone	10,474	39.5	+1.8
	Labour	George Ward	5,396	20.4	+2.3
Majority			149	0.6	-5.9
Turnout				84.6	-0.3
	Unionist hold		Swing

General Election 1929: Westbury

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Unionist	Hon. Richard Eric Onslow Long	12,907	38.8	-1.3
	Liberal	Harcourt Johnstone	12,840	38.7	-0.8
	Labour	George Ward	7,458	22.5	+2.1
Majority			67	0.1	-0.5
Turnout				87.1	+2.5
	Unionist hold		Swing	-0.3

Elections in the 1930s

General Election 1931: Westbury

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Robert Villiers Grimston	16,949	51.2	+12.4
	Liberal	John Hobbis Harris	11,014	33.3	-5.4
	Labour	Maurice Hackett	5,127	15.5	-7.0
Majority			5,935	17.9	+17.8
Turnout			33,090	85.4	-1.7
	Conservative hold		Swing	+8.9

General Election 1935: Westbury

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Robert Villiers Grimston	15,804	49.0	-2.2
	Liberal	Charles Cecil Byers	10,789	33.5	+0.2
	Labour	R St John Reade	5,641	17.5	+2.0
Majority			5,015	15.6	-2.4
Turnout			32,234	80.1	-5.3
	Conservative hold		Swing	-1.2

General Election 1939/40

Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1940. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by the Autumn of 1939, the following candidates had been selected;

• Conservative: Robert Grimston
• Liberal: Harcourt Johnstone^[19]
• Labour: George Ward^[20]

Elections in the 1940s

General Election 1945

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Robert Villiers Grimston	14,328	39.0	-10.0
	Labour	George Ward	13,397	36.5	+19.0
	Liberal	Maj. Walter Geoffrey Milne	9,004	24.5	-9.0
Majority			931	2.5	13.1
Turnout				75.5	-4.6
	Conservative hold		Swing	-14.5

Elections in the 1950s

General Election 1950: Westbury^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Robert Villiers Grimston	17,445	39.5
	Labour	Reginald James Travess	15,766	35.6
	Liberal	Harold Banning Richardson	11,031	24.9
Majority			1,679	3.9
Turnout				86.3
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1951: Westbury^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Robert Villiers Grimston	19,654	43.7
	Labour	Reginald James Travess	17,623	39.2
	Liberal	Harold Banning Richardson	7,666	17.1
Majority			2,031	4.5
Turnout				86.2
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1955: Westbury^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Sir Robert Villiers Grimston	19,684	45.6
	Labour	Reginald James Travess	16,295	37.8
	Liberal	Peter LM Hurd	7,165	16.6
Majority			3,389	7.86
Turnout				82.4
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1959: Westbury^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Sir Robert Villiers Grimston	20,396	45.6
	Labour	Jasper Godwin Ridley	14,570	32.5
	Liberal	Basil Thomas Wigoder	9,816	21.9
Majority			5,826	13.1
Turnout				84.1
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1960s

General Election 1964: Westbury^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Dennis Murray Walters	19,950	43.1
	Labour	Philip William Hopkins	15,049	32.6
	Liberal	Basil Thomas Wigoder	11,232	24.3
Majority			4,901	10.5
Turnout				82.8
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1966: Westbury^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Dennis Murray Walters	20,989	43.6
	Labour	Philip William Hopkins	18,192	37.8
	Liberal	Iain Meiklejohn Fowler	8,962	18.6
Majority			2,797	5.8
Turnout				82.5
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections in the 1970s

General Election 1970: Westbury^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Dennis Murray Walters	26,524	50.3
	Labour	John McLaren	17,413	33.0
	Liberal	Robert George Otter	8,781	16.7
Majority			9,111	17.3
Turnout			52,718	77.
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election February 1974: Westbury ^[22]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Dennis Murray Walters	26,197	43.0
	Liberal	A W Glyn Court	17,778	29.2
	Labour	Anthony J Smith	16,453	27.0
	Wessex Regionalist	Alexander George Thynn, Viscount Weymouth	521	0.8
Majority			8,419	13.8
Turnout				83.5
	Conservative win

General Election October 1974: Westbury ^[22]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Dennis Murray Walters	24,172	41.7
	Liberal	A W Glyn Court	18,129	31.3
	Labour	Anthony J Smith	15,613	27.0
Majority			6,043	10.4
Turnout				78.7
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1979: Westbury ^[22]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Dennis Murray Walters	29,929	47.2
	Liberal	P Jackson	15,950	25.1
	Labour	PR Atkins	12,532	19.8
	Independent	S Alexander	2,547	4.0
	Wessex Regionalist	Tom Thatcher	1,905	3.0
	Ecology	Sally Rodwell	554	0.9
Majority			13,979	22.0
Turnout				79.7
	Conservative hold		Swing

General Election 1983: Westbury ^[21]

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Conservative	Dennis Murray Walters	31,133	51.4
	Liberal	David J. Hughes	22,627	37.4
	Labour	HW Thomas	6,058	10.0
	Ecology	Paul W. Ekins	609	1.0
	Wessex Regionalist	John C. Banks	131	0.2
Majority			8,506	14.0
Turnout				75.5
	Conservative hold		Swing

Elections 1983–2005

Election	Political result		Candidate		Party	Votes	%	±%
General election 2005 [23] Electorate: 82,380 Turnout: 55,604 (67.0%) +0.4		Conservative hold Majority: 5,346 (9.6%) −0.9 Swing: 0.4%% from Con to Lib Dem		Andrew Murrison	Conservative	24,749	44.5	+2.4
				Duncan Hames	Liberal Democrat	19,400	34.9	+3.3
				Phil Gibby	Labour	9,640	17.3	−4.1
				Lincoln Williams	UKIP	1,815	3.3	+0.8
General election 2001 [24] Electorate: 76,056 Turnout: 50,628 (66.6%) −9.6		Conservative hold Majority: 5,294 (10.5%) −0.2 Swing: 0.1% from Con to Lib Dem		Andrew Murrison	Conservative	21,299	42.1	+1.5
				David Vigar	Liberal Democrat	16,005	31.6	+1.7
				Sarah Cardy	Labour	10,847	21.4	+0.3
				Charles Booth-Jones	UKIP	1,261	2.5	+1.1
				Bob Gledhill	Green	1,216	2.4	N/A
General election 1997 [25] Electorate: 74,457 Turnout: 56,751 (76.2%) −6.6		Conservative hold Majority: 6,068 (10.7%) −6.7 Swing: 3.4% from Con to Lib Dem		David Faber	Conservative	23,037	40.6	−9.8
				John Miller	Liberal Democrat	16,969	29.9	−3.1
				Kevin Small	Labour	11,969	21.1	+7.8
				George Hawkings	Liberal	1,956	3.4	+1.4
				Nick Hawkings-Byass	Referendum	1,909	3.4	N/A
				R. Westbury	UKIP	771	1.4	N/A
				Colin Haysom	Natural Law	140	0.2	N/A
General election 1992 [26] Electorate: 87,356 Turnout: 72,488 (82.8%) +4.3		Conservative hold Majority: 12,618 (17.4%) +2.2 Swing: 1.1% from Lib Dem to Con		David Faber	Conservative	36,568	50.4	−1.1
				Ms. Vivienne A. Rayner	Liberal Democrat	23,950	33.0	−3.3
				William Stallard	Labour	9,642	13.3	+1.3
				Paul I. Macdonald	Liberal	1,440	2.0	−34.4
				Patrick R. French	Green	888	1.2	+1.2
General election 1987 [27] Electorate: 84,860 Turnout: 66,397 (78.2%)		Conservative hold Majority: 10,097 (15.2%) +1.1 Swing: 0.1% from Lib to Con		Dennis Walters	Conservative	34,256	51.6	−0.2
				David J. Hughes	Liberal	24,159	36.4	−1.0
				H. W. Thomas	Labour	7,982	12.0	+2.0
General election 1983 [28] Electorate: 80,244 Turnout: 60,558 (75.47%)		Conservative hold Majority: 8,506 (14.05%)		Dennis Murray Walters	Conservative	31,133	51.41	+4.37
				David John Hughes	Liberal	22,627	37.36	+12.22
				Haydn William Thomas	Labour	6,058	10.00	-9.81
				Paul Whitfield Ekins	Ecology	609	1.01	N/A
				John Croisdale Banks	Wessex Regionalist	131	0.22	N.A

Notes and references

Craig, F. W. S. (1983). British parliamentary election results 1918-1949 (3 ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. ISBN 0-900178-06-X.

1. "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 2011-10-27.
2. "History of Parliament". History of Parliament Trust. Retrieved 2011-10-27.
3. Wilfrid Prest, ‘Ley, James, first earl of Marlborough (1550–1629)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004|| online edn, Jan 2008 , accessed 22 Jan 2009.
4. Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "W" (part 2)
5. Expelled from the House of Commons for corrupt misuse of Parliamentary Privilege
6. In December 1702,William Trenchard and Thomas Phipps were returned. A petition was lodged, and the result was overturned on 1 December 1702 in favour of Robert Bertie and Henry Bertie
7. At the general election in January 1715, Willoughby Bertie and Francis Annesley were returned. A petition was lodged, and the result was overturned on 1 June 1715 in favour of the runners-up Lord Carbery and Charles Allanson
8. At the 1722 general election, James Bertie was also elected for Middlesex, which he chose to represent, and never sat for Westbury. A by-election for his seat was held in March 1723
9. At the 1747 general election, John Bance and Paul Methuen were returned. A petition was lodged, and the result was overturned on 16 March 1748 in favour of the runners-up Chauncy Townsend and Paul Methuen
10. The by-election in 1753 was caused by the death of Matthew Michell
11. The by-election in 1770 was caused by the appointment of William Blackstone as a judge of the King's Bench
12. later Regius Professor of Civil Law at Oxford
13. Created a baronet, December 1782
14. Ellis was also elected for Seaford, which he chose to represent, and never sat for Westbury
15. The election of 1868 was held void on petition, and a by-election held
16. Created a baronet, 1952
17. British parliamentary election results 1885-1918, Craig, F. W. S. (1974)
18. British parliamentary election results 1918-1949, Craig, F. W. S. (1974)
19. The Liberal Magazine, 1939
20. Report of the Annual Conference of the Labour Party, 1939
21. F W S Craig, British Parliamentary Election Results 1950-1973; Political Reference Publications, Glasgow 1973
22. The Times, House of Commons
23. "UK General Election results May 2005". Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
24. "Westbury: General Election result, June 2001". Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
25. "Westbury: General Election result, May 1997". Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
26. "UK General Election results April 1992". Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Retrieved 6 Dec 2010.
27. "UK General Election results June 1987". Richard Kimber's Political Science Resources. Retrieved 1 February 2011.
28. "'Westbury', June 1983 up to May 1997". ElectionWeb Project. Cognitive Computing Limited. Retrieved 14 March 2016.

Sources

• Guardian Unlimited (2004). Ask Aristotle - Westbury. Retrieved November 16, 2004.
• 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)