Worcestershire in the Nineteenth Century / A Complete Digest of Facts Occuring in the County since the Commencement of the year 1800

by T. C. Turberville

DROITWICH.

Droitwich was formerly one of the closest of Whig boroughs, and was entirely under the influence of the Foley family. To the return for the first election recorded below, the names of nineteen persons are appended in the books of the Droitwich Corporation; and at a much more recent date, ten persons returned two members to Parliament. The present constituency of the borough numbers 368.

1802—July—(General Election.)—Sir Edward Winnington, Bart., and the Hon. Andrew Foley, reëlected.

1805—February—(Vacancy on the death of Sir Edw. Winnington.)—Thomas Foley, Esq., son of the Hon. Andrew Foley, elected.

1806—November—(General Election.)—The Hon. Andrew Foley, and Lieutenant Colonel Foley.

1807—May—(General Election.)—Colonel Foley becomes a candidate for Herefordshire, and the Hon. A. Foley and Sir Thomas Winnington, Bart., are returned for this borough.

1812—October—(General Election.)—Hon. A. Foley and Sir T. Winnington reëlected.

1816—April—Sir Thomas Winnington having accepted the Chiltern Hundreds, Lord Sefton is elected in his stead.

1818—June—(General Election.)—Hon. A. Foley and the Earl of Sefton reëlected.

1819—February—(Vacancy on the death of the Hon. Andrew Foley.)—Colonel Foley, son of the late member, elected.

1820—March—(General Election.)—Earl of Sefton and Colonel Foley reëlected.

1822—February—(Vacancy on the death of Colonel Foley.)—John Hodgetts Hodgetts Foley, Esq., elected.

1826—June—(General Election.)—Lord Sefton and J. H. H. Foley, Esq., reëlected.

1830—(General Election.)—Earl of Sefton and J. H. H. Foley, Esq., reëlected.

1831—May—(General Election.)—Mr. J. H. H. Foley and Sir T. E. Winnington elected; the Earl of Sefton making way for the hon. baronet.

1832—December—(General Election.)—The borough was deprived of one of its members by the Reform Bill; and on this occasion J. H. H. Foley, Esq., was returned alone, having been proposed by Sir A. Lechmere, Bart., and seconded by T. T. Vernon, Esq.

1835—(General Election.)—For the first time since 1711 this borough was contested and a Tory returned. The candidates were J. H. H. Foley, Esq. (the former member), and John Barneby, Esq., of Brockhampton. The former was proposed by Captain Vernon and Mr. Francis; the latter, by Dr. Steward and Mr. Lilley, of Wichbold. The Rev. Mr. Topham also addressed the populace in Mr. Foley’s favour, and bore testimony to his attachment to the Church. The show of hands was in Mr. Foley’s favour. At the end of the first day the numbers were—Barneby, 115; Foley, 113: and at the close of the poll—Barneby, 125; Foley, 122: majority for Barneby, 3. Out of a constituency of only 281, 34 did not vote. The election issued in a petition against the return, and on the 17th of March a committee of the house was ballotted for to decide the matter; but it was constituted very unfavourably to Mr. Foley, having at least eight Tories upon it. They refused to reopen the register, so the inquiry was limited to a few disputed votes on either side. Mr. Foley succeeded in striking off three of Mr. Barneby’s votes, and so reducing matters to an equality; but Mr. Barneby then struck off Lord Southwell’s vote, objected to on account of his peerage. This left Mr. Foley in a minority of one, and Mr. Barneby retained his seat.

1837—July—(General Election.)—John Barneby, Esq., having determined to contest the county, made way for Mr. Pakington to come in for this borough, of which he has ever since been the representative. J. H. Galton, Esq., of Hadsor, made a canvass of the electors on the Liberal interest; but finding that his chances were not very good he retired from the contest. Mr. Allen, barrister, also made a flying visit to the place, intending to put up as a Reformer, but soon took his departure. Mr. Pakington was proposed at the hustings by W. H. Ricketts, Esq., and Mr. John Tolley; and having made a long confession of his political creed (in which he avowed himself a staunch Conservative, but would not vote for a repeal of the Malt Tax, and approved of the new Poor Law), he was declared duly elected.

1841—July—(General Election.)—J. S. Pakington, Esq., reëlected without opposition.

1847—July—(General Election.)—Mr. C. Lloyd, nephew of Lord Mostyn, canvassed the electors on the Liberal interest, and had some promise of support from the agents of a noble lord in the neighbourhood (Lord Ward), who was expected rather to have thrown his influence into the Conservative scale; but, notwithstanding this, Mr. Lloyd found that he had very little chance of success, and consequently retired, leaving the field free for Sir John Pakington, Bart., who was reëlected.