North Northumberland (UK Parliament constituency)

North Northumberland
North Northumberland
County constituency; for the House of Commons
	Boundaries since 2024
	Boundary of North Northumberland in the North East England
County	Northumberland
Electorate	72,541 (2023)
Major settlements	Berwick-upon-Tweed, Morpeth
Current constituency
Created	2024
Member of Parliament	David Smith (Labour)
Seats	One
Created from	Berwick-upon-Tweed; Hexham (minor part);
1832–1885
Seats	Two
Type of constituency	County constituency
Created from	Northumberland
Replaced by	Berwick-upon-Tweed; Hexham; Wansbeck

North Northumberland is a county constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It is represented by David Smith of the Labour Party since 2024. Between 1832 and 1885 (then formally the Northern Division of Northumberland) , it was represented by two Members of Parliament, elected by the bloc vote system.

The area was created by the Great Reform Act of 1832 by the splitting of Northumberland constituency into Northern and Southern divisions.

It was abolished by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, when Northumberland was divided into four single member divisions: Berwick-upon-Tweed, Hexham, Tyneside and Wansbeck.

Following the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies, the seat was re-established for the 2024 general election.^[2] It comprises the former constituency of Berwick-upon-Tweed, together with the town of Morpeth, transferred from the former Wansbeck seat.

Boundaries

North Northumberland constituency as it was 1832 to 1885. The constituency is the striped area with a longer coastline to the north.

1832–1885: The Wards of Bamborough, Coquetdale, Glendale and Morpeth, and the Berwick Bounds.^[3]^[4]

1885: the constituency was abolished by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885.

2024: the constituency was re-established by the 2023 Periodic Review of Westminster constituencies.

2024–present: The County of Northumberland electoral divisions (as they existed on 1 December 2020) of Alnwick, Amble, Amble West with Warkworth, Bamburgh, Berwick East, Berwick North, Berwick West with Ord, Druridge Bay, Longhoughton, Lynemouth, Morpeth Kirkhill, Morpeth North, Morpeth Stobhill, Norham and Islandshires, Pegswood, Rothbury, Shilbottle and Wooler.^[5]

Members of Parliament

MPs 1832–1885

Constituency created (1832)

Election	1st Member		1st Party		2nd Party
1832		Viscount Howick	Whig^[6]^[7]	Lord Ossulston	Conservative^[6]
1841		Addison Cresswell	Conservative^[6]
1847		Sir George Grey, Bt	Whig^[8]^[9]^[10]^[11]
1852		Lord Lovaine	Conservative
1859		Lord Lovaine	Conservative	Sir Matthew White Ridley, Bt	Conservative
1865		Lord Henry Percy	Conservative	Sir Matthew White Ridley, Bt	Conservative
1868		Earl Percy	Conservative	Matthew White Ridley^[12]	Conservative
1885	Redistribution of Seats Act: constituency abolished

MPs since 2024

Berwick-upon-Tweed prior to 2024

Election		Member	Party
	2024	David Smith	Labour

Elections

Elections in the 2020s

General election 2024: North Northumberland^[13]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Labour	David Smith	17,855	36.6	+13.5
	Conservative	Anne-Marie Trevelyan	12,788	26.2	−29.7
	Reform UK	Katherine Hales	7,688	15.7	+14.2
	Liberal Democrats	Natalie Younes	5,169	10.6	−5.5
	Independent	Georgina Hill	3,220	6.6	N/A
	Green	Jan Rosen	1,743	3.6	+0.2
	Independent	Michael Joyce	288	0.6	N/A
	SDP	Andrew Martin	92	0.2	N/A
Majority			5,067	10.4
Turnout			48,843	65.9
	Labour gain from		Swing	+21.6

Election results 1832–1885

Elections in the 1830s

General election 1832: North Northumberland^[6]^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Tory	Charles Bennet	Unopposed
	Whig	Henry Grey	Unopposed
Registered electors			2,322
	Tory win (new seat)
	Whig win (new seat)

General election 1835: North Northumberland^[6]^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	Charles Bennet	Unopposed
	Whig	Henry Grey	Unopposed
Registered electors			2,367
	Conservative hold
	Whig hold

Grey was appointed as Secretary at War, requiring a by-election.

By-election, 1 May 1835: North Northumberland^[6]^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%
	Whig	Henry Grey	Unopposed
	Whig hold

General election 1837: North Northumberland^[6]^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	Charles Bennet	Unopposed
	Whig	Henry Grey	Unopposed
Registered electors			2,786
	Conservative hold
	Whig hold

Elections in the 1840s

General election 1841: North Northumberland^[6]^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Charles Bennet	1,216	34.9	*N/A*
	Conservative	Addison Cresswell	1,163	33.4	*N/A*
	Whig	Henry Grey	1,101	31.6	N/A
Majority			62	1.8	N/A
Turnout			2,188	79.4	N/A
Registered electors			2,756
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A
	Conservative gain from Whig		Swing	N/A

General election 1847: North Northumberland^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Whig	George Grey	1,366	35.5	+3.9
	Conservative	Charles Bennet	1,247	32.4	−2.5
	Conservative	Algernon Percy	1,237	32.1	−1.3
Majority			119	3.1	N/A
Turnout			2,608 (est)	86.1 (est)	+6.7
Registered electors			3,030
	Whig gain from Conservative		Swing	+3.9
	Conservative hold		Swing	−2.2

Elections in the 1850s

General election 1852: North Northumberland^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Algernon Percy	1,414	34.9	+2.8
	Conservative	Charles Bennet	1,335	33.0	+0.6
	Whig	George Grey	1,300	32.1	−3.4
Majority			35	0.9	N/A
Turnout			2,675 (est)	86.0 (est)	−0.1
Registered electors			3,111
	Conservative hold		Swing	+2.3
	Conservative gain from Whig		Swing	+1.2

General election 1857: North Northumberland^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	Algernon Percy	Unopposed
	Conservative	Charles Bennet	Unopposed
Registered electors			3,296
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

Percy was appointed a Civil Lord of the Admiralty, requiring a by-election.

By-election, 11 March 1858: North Northumberland^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Algernon Percy	Unopposed
	Conservative hold

Percy was appointed Vice-President of the Board of Trade, requiring a by-election.

By-election, 10 March 1859: North Northumberland^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Algernon Percy	Unopposed
	Conservative hold

General election 1859: North Northumberland^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	Algernon Percy	Unopposed
	Conservative	Matthew White Ridley	Unopposed
Registered electors			3,280
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

Elections in the 1860s

General election 1865: North Northumberland^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	Henry Percy	Unopposed
	Conservative	Matthew White Ridley	Unopposed
Registered electors			3,109
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

General election 1868: North Northumberland^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	Henry Percy	Unopposed
	Conservative	Matthew White Ridley	Unopposed
Registered electors			3,612
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

Elections in the 1870s

General election 1874: North Northumberland^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes
	Conservative	Henry Percy	Unopposed
	Conservative	Matthew White Ridley	Unopposed
Registered electors			3,480
	Conservative hold
	Conservative hold

Percy was appointed Treasurer of the Household, causing a by-election.

By-election, 17 Mar 1874: North Northumberland^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Henry Percy	Unopposed
	Conservative hold

Elections in the 1880s

General election 1880: North Northumberland^[14]
Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±%
	Conservative	Henry Percy	2,163	38.1	*N/A*
	Conservative	Matthew White Ridley	2,001	35.3	*N/A*
	Liberal	John Clay^[15]	1,509	26.6	New
Majority			492	8.7	N/A
Turnout			3,591 (est)	82.1 (est)	N/A
Registered electors			4,376
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A
	Conservative hold		Swing	N/A

Notes

^ "The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in England – Volume two: Constituency names, designations and composition – North East". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
^ "North East | Boundary Commission for England". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 20 June 2023.
^ "The statutes of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. 2 & 3 William IV. Cap. LXIV. An Act to settle and describe the Divisions of Counties, and the Limits of Cities and Boroughs, in England and Wales, in so far as respects the Election of Members to serve in Parliament". London: His Majesty's statute and law printers. 1832. p. 309. Retrieved 27 July 2017.
^ "HMSO Boundary Commission Report 1832, Northumberland".
^ "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023". Schedule 1 Part 4 North East region.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Stooks Smith, Henry. (1973) [1844–1850]. Craig, F. W. S. (ed.). The Parliaments of England (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 239. ISBN 0-900178-13-2.
^ Mosse, Richard Bartholomew (1838). The Parliamentary Guide: a concise history of the Members of both Houses, etc. p. 100. Retrieved 26 May 2019 – via Google Books.
^ Creighton, Mandell (1890). "Grey, George (1799-1882)" . In Stephen, Leslie; Lee, Sidney (eds.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 23. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
^ Crosby's Parliamentary Record of Elections in Great Britain and Ireland. Leeds: George Crosby. 1847. p. 122. Retrieved 28 May 2018 – via Google Books.
^ "The Age". Melbourne, Victoria. 13 September 1882. p. 4. Retrieved 28 May 2018.
^ "The Excluded Whigs". Leeds Intelligencer. 22 January 1853. p. 3. Retrieved 28 May 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.
^ Known as Sir Matthew White Ridley, Bt, from 1877.
^ "North Northumberland - General election results 2024". BBC News.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p Craig, F. W. S., ed. (1977). British Parliamentary Election Results 1832–1885 (e-book) (1st ed.). London: Macmillan Press. pp. 435–436. ISBN 978-1-349-02349-3.
^ "North Northumberland Election". Sunderland Daily Echo and Shipping Gazette. 7 April 1880. p. 3. Retrieved 21 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.

Sources

Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "N" (part 3)

External links

North Northumberland UK Parliament constituency (boundaries from June 2024) at MapIt UK

55°31′N 1°55′W / 55.51°N 1.91°W / 55.51; -1.91

[1] "The 2023 Review of Parliamentary Constituency Boundaries in England – Volume two: Constituency names, designations and composition – North East". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 3 July 2024.

[2] "North East | Boundary Commission for England". Boundary Commission for England. Retrieved 20 June 2023.

[3] "The statutes of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland. 2 & 3 William IV. Cap. LXIV. An Act to settle and describe the Divisions of Counties, and the Limits of Cities and Boroughs, in England and Wales, in so far as respects the Election of Members to serve in Parliament". London: His Majesty's statute and law printers. 1832. p. 309. Retrieved 27 July 2017.

[4] "HMSO Boundary Commission Report 1832, Northumberland".

[5] "The Parliamentary Constituencies Order 2023". Schedule 1 Part 4 North East region.

[stooks-smith-6] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h Stooks Smith, Henry. (1973) [1844–1850]. Craig, F. W. S. (ed.). The Parliaments of England (2nd ed.). Chichester: Parliamentary Research Services. p. 239. ISBN 0-900178-13-2.

[mosse-7] Mosse, Richard Bartholomew (1838). The Parliamentary Guide: a concise history of the Members of both Houses, etc. p. 100. Retrieved 26 May 2019 – via Google Books.

[8] Creighton, Mandell (1890). "Grey, George (1799-1882)" . In Stephen, Leslie; Lee, Sidney (eds.). Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 23. London: Smith, Elder & Co.

[crosby1847-9] Crosby's Parliamentary Record of Elections in Great Britain and Ireland. Leeds: George Crosby. 1847. p. 122. Retrieved 28 May 2018 – via Google Books.

[10] "The Age". Melbourne, Victoria. 13 September 1882. p. 4. Retrieved 28 May 2018.

[11] "The Excluded Whigs". Leeds Intelligencer. 22 January 1853. p. 3. Retrieved 28 May 2018 – via British Newspaper Archive.

[12] Known as Sir Matthew White Ridley, Bt, from 1877.

[13] "North Northumberland - General election results 2024". BBC News.

[craig1832-14] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m ⁿ ^o ^p Craig, F. W. S., ed. (1977). British Parliamentary Election Results 1832–1885 (e-book) (1st ed.). London: Macmillan Press. pp. 435–436. ISBN 978-1-349-02349-3.

[15] "North Northumberland Election". Sunderland Daily Echo and Shipping Gazette. 7 April 1880. p. 3. Retrieved 21 December 2017 – via British Newspaper Archive.

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