Scarborough (UK Parliament constituency)

Scarborough
Former County constituency for the House of Commons
County	North Yorkshire
Major settlements	Scarborough, Whitby
February 1974–1997
Number of members	One
Replaced by	Scarborough and Whitby
Created from	Scarborough and Whitby
1295–1918
Number of members	Two (1295-1885) One (1885-1918)
Type of constituency	Borough constituency

Scarborough was the name of a constituency in Yorkshire, electing Members of Parliament to the House of Commons, at two periods. From 1295 until 1918 it was a parliamentary borough consisting only of the town of Scarborough, electing two MPs until 1885 and one from 1885 until 1918. In 1974 the name was revived for a county constituency, covering a much wider area; this constituency was abolished in 1997.

1974-1983: The Municipal Borough of Scarborough, the Urban Districts of Pickering and Scalby, and the Rural Districts of Pickering and Scarborough.

1983-1997: The Borough of Scarborough wards of Ayton, Castle, Cayton, Central, Danby, Derwent, Eastfield, Eskdaleside, Falsgrave, Fylingdales, Lindhead, Mayfield, Mulgrave, Newby, Northstead, Scalby, Seamer, Streonshalh, Weaponness, and Woodlands.

Scarborough was first represented in a Parliament held at Shrewsbury in 1282, and was one of the boroughs sending 2 MPs to the Model Parliament of 1295 which is now generally considered to be the first parliament in the modern sense.

Until the Great Reform Act of 1832 Scarborough was a corporation borough, the right of election resting solely with the 44-member corporation or "common council". At an earlier period, it seems to have been a matter of some dispute whether the freemen of the borough could also vote, but at an election in 1736 the corporation and the (much more numerous) freemen backed different candidates. The candidate of the freemen was returned to Parliament, but on petition from his defeated opponent the House of Commons decided that only the corporation votes should stand, and overturned the result. In later days the Corporation was entirely under the influence of the Duke of Rutland and Earl of Mulgrave, who each nominated one of the Members of Parliament; by 1832, Scarborough had continuously been represented by junior members of their respective families for more than half a century. The restriction on the franchise was challenged in 1791, and Parliament declared in favour of "the ancient right of inhabitant householders" in the borough to vote, but the decision seems to have been a dead-letter for at the election of 1802, the last to be contested before the Reform Act, only 33 voters cast their votes.

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Wikipedia