Denbigh (UK Parliament constituency)

Parliamentary constituency in the United Kingdom, 1918–1983

For the 1542–1918 constituency, see Denbigh Boroughs (UK Parliament constituency).

Denbigh

Former county constituency
for the House of Commons
Preserved county| Denbighshire
Major settlements| Denbigh
1918–1983
Created from| Denbigh Boroughs
East Denbighshire
West Denbighshire
Replaced by| Clwyd North West and Clwyd South West

Denbigh was a county constituency centred on the town of Denbigh in North Wales. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom, elected by the first-past-the-post voting system.

The constituency was created for the 1918 general election, and abolished for the 1983 general election.

## Boundaries

[edit]

This was a county division of Denbighshire. In 1918 it comprised the whole of the county, except for the Municipal Borough of Wrexham and part of the Chirk Rural District, which formed the Wrexham division.

The local authorities in the Denbigh division were the Municipal Boroughs of Denbigh and Ruthin; the Urban Districts of Abergele and Pensarn, Colwyn Bay and Colwyn, Llangollen, and Llanrwst; and the Rural Districts of Llangollen, Llanrwst, Llansillin, Ruthin, St Asaph (Denbigh), and Uwchaled, part of Chirk, and the part of Glan Conway not in Caernarvonshire.

The local authorities in Denbighshire were reorganised in 1935, but that did not affect the boundaries of the parliamentary constituency.

In the redistribution which took effect in 1950, the division was redefined as comprising the Municipal Boroughs of Colwyn Bay, Denbigh, and Ruthin; the Urban Districts of Abergele, Llangollen, and Llanrwst; and the Rural Districts of Aled, Hiraethog, Ruthin, part of Ceiriog, and part of Wrexham. The same local authorities remained within the constituency in the 1974 redistribution.

## Members of Parliament

[edit]

Election | Member | Party

|
|

| 1918 | Sir David Davies | Coalition Liberal
| 1922 | John Cledwyn Davies | National Liberal 1
| 1923 | Ellis Davies | Liberal
| 1929 | Sir Henry Morris-Jones | Liberal
| 1931 | Liberal National 2
| 1942 | Independent
| 1943 | Liberal National 2
| 1950 | Garner Evans | National Liberal 2
| 1959 | Geraint Morgan | National Liberal 2
| 1960 | Geraint Morgan | Conservative 3
1983 | constituency abolished

1 A party led by David Lloyd George, which succeeded the Coalition Liberals.

2 A party allied with the Conservative Party.

3 Geraint Morgan stood initially as a 'Conservative & National Liberal'.

## Election results

[edit]

### Elections in the 1910s

[edit]

John General election 1918: Denbigh  Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

C | Liberal | David Davies | 14,773 | 83.3 |
| Labour | Edward John | 2,958  | 16.7  |
Majority | 11,815  | 66.6  |
Turnout | 17,731  | 58.2  |
| Liberal win (new seat)
C indicates candidate endorsed by the coalition government.

### Elections in the 1920s

[edit]

General election 1922: Denbigh [1] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| National Liberal | John Cledwyn Davies | 12,975  | 53.9  | −29.4
| Unionist | Lesley Venetia Elizabeth Brodrick  | 9,138  | 37.9  | New
| Liberal | Llewellyn G Williams  | 1,974  | 8.2  | −80.1
Majority | 3,837  | 16.0  | −50.6
Turnout | 24,087  | 76.7  | +18.5
| National Liberal hold | Swing |  |
General election 1923: Denbigh [2] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Liberal | Ellis Davies | 12,164  | 59.8  | +51.6
| Unionist | Rhys David  | 8,186  | 40.2  | +2.3
Majority | 3,978  | 19.6  | N/A
Turnout | 20,350  | 63.6  | −13.1
| Liberal gain from National Liberal | Swing | +24.8  |
General election 1924: Denbigh  Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Liberal | Ellis Davies | 12,671  | 53.0  | −6.8
| Unionist | Lesley Venetia Elizabeth Brodrick  | 11,250  | 47.0  | +6.8
Majority | 1,421  | 6.0  | −13.6
Turnout | 23,921  | 79.7  | +16.1
| Liberal hold | Swing | -6.8  |
General election 1929: Denbigh  Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Liberal | Henry Morris-Jones | 21,305  | 61.9  | +8.9
| Unionist | Alan Graham | 13,116  | 38.1  | −8.9
Majority | 8,189  | 23.8  | +17.8
Turnout | 34,421  | 79.7  | 0.0
| Liberal hold | Swing | +8.9  |

### Elections in the 1930s

[edit]

General election 1931: Denbigh[3] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| National Liberal | Henry Morris-Jones | Unopposed
| National Liberal gain from Liberal
Registered electors | 44,614  |  |
General election 1935: Denbigh [4] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| National Liberal | Henry Morris-Jones | 17,372  | 50.12  | N/A
| Liberal | John Cledwyn Davies | 12,329  | 35.57  | N/A
| Labour | J. R. Hughes  | 4,963  | 14.32  | New
Majority | 5,043  | 14.55  | N/A
Turnout | 34,664  | 75.10  | N/A
Registered electors | 46,158  |  |
| National Liberal hold | Swing | N/A |

### Elections in the 1940s

[edit]

General Election 1939–40: Another General Election was due to take place before the end of 1940. From 1939, the parties had been making preparations for an election, and by the end of that year, the following candidates had been selected:

* Liberal National: Henry Morris-Jones
* Liberal: Garner Evans
* Labour: J. R. Hughes

General election 1945: Denbigh [5] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| National Liberal | Henry Morris-Jones | 17,023  | 41.70  | −8.42
| Liberal | Garner Evans | 12,101  | 29.64  | −5.93
| Labour | William Mars-Jones | 11,702  | 28.66  | +14.34
Majority | 4,922  | 12.06  | −2.49
Turnout | 40,826  | 74.81  | −0.29
Registered electors | 54,572  |  |
| National Liberal hold | Swing | -1.25  |

### Elections in the 1950s

[edit]

General election 1950: Denbigh [6] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| National Liberal | Garner Evans | 17,473  | 38.88  | −2.82
| Liberal | Glyn Tegai Hughes | 16,264  | 36.19  | +6.55
| Labour | John G Hughes  | 11,205  | 24.93  | −3.73
Majority | 1,209  | 2.69  | −9.37
Turnout | 44,942  | 82.29  | +7.48
Registered electors | 54,614  |  |
| National Liberal hold | Swing | -4.69  |
General election 1951: Denbigh [7] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| National Liberal | Garner Evans | 20,269  | 45.67  | +6.79
| Labour | Idwal Jones | 12,354  | 27.84  | +2.91
| Liberal | Eifion Roberts | 11,758  | 26.49  | −9.70
Majority | 7,915  | 17.83  | +15.14
Turnout | 44,381  | 82.17  | −0.12
Registered electors | 54,011  |  |
| National Liberal hold | Swing | +1.94  |
General election 1955: Denbigh [8] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| National Liberal | Garner Evans | 18,312  | 43.18  | −2.49
| Liberal | Glyn Tegai Hughes | 13,671  | 32.24  | +5.75
| Labour | Robyn Lewis | 10,421  | 24.58  | −3.26
Majority | 4,641  | 10.94  | −6.89
Turnout | 42,404  | 79.13  | −3.04
Registered electors | 53,589  |  |
| National Liberal hold | Swing | -4.12  |
General election 1959: Denbigh [9] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| National Liberal | Geraint Morgan | 17,893  | 41.75  | −1.43
| Liberal | Glyn Tegai Hughes | 13,268  | 30.96  | −1.28
| Labour | Stanley Williams  | 8,620  | 20.11  | −4.47
| Plaid Cymru | Dafydd Alun Jones  | 3,077  | 7.18  | New
Majority | 4,625  | 10.79  | −0.15
Turnout | 42,858  | 80.86  | +1.73
Registered electors | 53,000  |  |
| National Liberal hold | Swing | -0.08  |

### Elections in the 1960s

[edit]

General election 1964: Denbigh [10] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Conservative | Geraint Morgan | 17,970  | 41.31  | −0.44
| Liberal | William BE Ellis-Jones  | 13,331  | 30.65  | −0.31
| Labour | Stanley Williams  | 8,754  | 20.12  | +0.01
| Plaid Cymru | Dafydd Alun Jones  | 3,444  | 7.92  | +0.74
Majority | 4,639  | 10.66  | −0.13
Turnout | 43,499  | 80.51  | −0.35
Registered electors | 54,032  |  |
| Conservative hold | Swing | -0.07  |
General election 1966: Denbigh [11] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Conservative | Geraint Morgan | 17,382  | 39.41  | −1.90
| Liberal | Alun Talfan Davies | 12,725  | 28.85  | −1.80
| Labour | Edward Griffiths | 11,305  | 25.63  | +5.51
| Plaid Cymru | Meredith Edwards | 2,695  | 6.11  | −1.81
Majority | 4,657  | 10.56  | −0.10
Turnout | 44,107  | 80.61  | +0.10
Registered electors | 54,715  |  |
| Conservative hold | Swing | -0.05  |

### Elections in the 1970s

[edit]

General election 1970: Denbigh[12] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Conservative | Geraint Morgan | 21,246  | 44.6  | +5.2
| Labour | Ann Clwyd | 12,537  | 26.3  | +0.7
| Liberal | Idris Hughes-Evans  | 8,636  | 18.1  | −10.7
| Plaid Cymru | Edward Gwyn Matthews  | 5,254  | 11.0  | +4.9
Majority | 8,709  | 18.3  | +7.7
Turnout | 47,673  | 78.5  | −2.1
| Conservative hold | Swing |  |
General election February 1974: Denbigh[13][14] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Conservative | Geraint Morgan | 21,258  | 41.89  | −2.68
| Liberal | David Leonard Williams  | 15,243  | 30.04  | +11.92
| Labour | Emlyn Jones Sherrington  | 10,141  | 19.98  | −6.32
| Plaid Cymru | Edward Gwyn Matthews  | 4,103  | 8.09  | −2.93
Majority | 6,015  | 11.85  | −6.42
Turnout | 50,745  | 80.54  | +2.08
| Conservative hold | Swing |  |
General election October 1974: Denbigh[15][14] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Conservative | Geraint Morgan | 18,751  | 38.64  | −3.25
| Liberal | David Leonard Williams  | 14,200  | 29.26  | −0.78
| Labour | Paul Flynn | 9,824  | 20.24  | +0.26
| Plaid Cymru | Ieuan Wyn Jones | 5,754  | 11.86  | +3.77
Majority | 4,551  | 9.38  | −2.47
Turnout | 48,529  | 76.43  | −4.11
| Conservative hold | Swing | -1.24  |
General election 1979: Denbigh[16][14] Party  | Candidate  | Votes  | %  | ±%

|
|
|
|

| Conservative | Geraint Morgan | 23,683  | 44.93  | +6.29
| Liberal | David Leonard Williams  | 14,833  | 28.14  | −1.12
| Labour | Huw Rhys Thomas  | 9,276  | 17.60  | −2.64
| Plaid Cymru | Ieuan Wyn Jones | 4,915  | 9.33  | −2.53
Majority | 8,850  | 16.79  | +7.41
Turnout | 52,707  | 79.98  | +3.55
| Conservative hold | Swing | +3.71  |

## See also

[edit]

* Denbighshire (UK Parliament constituency) (abolished 1885)
* East Denbighshire (UK Parliament constituency) (1885-1918)
* West Denbighshire (UK Parliament constituency) (1885-1918)

## References

[edit]

1. ^ British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, FWS Craig
2. ^ Etholiadau'r ganrif 1885-1997, Beti Jones
3. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1931". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
4. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1935". Political Science Resources. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
5. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1945". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
6. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1950". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 1 May 2016. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
7. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1951". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 29 June 2017. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
8. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1955". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
9. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1959". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
10. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1964". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 29 June 2017. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
11. ^ Kimber, Richard. "UK General Election results 1966". Political Science Resources. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 14 April 2016.
12. ^ "UK General Election results 1970". Politics Resources. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
13. ^ "UK General Election results February 1974". Politics Resources. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
14. ^ a b c "'Denbigh', Feb 1974 - May 1983". ElectionWeb Project. Cognitive Computing Limited. Archived from the original on 1 April 2016. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
15. ^ "UK General Election results February 1974". Politics Resources. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 21 March 2016.
16. ^ "UK General Election results 1979". Politics Resources. Archived from the original on 11 August 2011. Retrieved 21 March 2016.

## External links

[edit]

* Boundaries of Parliamentary Constituencies 1885-1972, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Parliamentary Reference Publications 1972)
* British Parliamentary Election Results 1918-1949, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Macmillan Press, revised edition 1977)
* British Parliamentary Election Results 1950-1973, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Parliamentary Research Services 1983)
* British Parliamentary Election Results 1974-1983, compiled and edited by F.W.S. Craig (Parliamentary Research Services 1984)
* Leigh Rayment's Historical List of MPs – Constituencies beginning with "D" (part 1)

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Historic UK Parliament constituencies in Wales

Last contested in 1880

* Beaumaris
* Brecon
* Caernarvonshire
* Cardigan
* Carmarthenshire
* Denbighshire
* Glamorganshire
* Haverfordwest
* Monmouthshire
* Pembroke
* Radnor

Last contested in 1910

* Breconshire
* Denbigh Boroughs
* East Carmarthenshire
* East Denbighshire
* East Glamorganshire
* Eifion
* Flint Boroughs
* Mid Glamorganshire
* Monmouth Boroughs
* Montgomery
* North Monmouthshire
* Pembroke and Haverfordwest
* Radnorshire
* Rhondda
* South Glamorganshire
* South Monmouthshire
* Swansea
* West Carmarthenshire
* West Denbighshire
* West Monmouthshire

Last contested in 1915

* Cardiff
* Carmarthen (historic)
* Merthyr Tydfil
* Swansea Boroughs

Last contested in 1945

* Caernarfon
* Caernarvonshire
* Cardiff Central (historic)
* Cardiff East (historic)
* Cardiff South
* Flintshire
* Llandaff and Barry
* Merthyr
* University of Wales

Last contested in 1970

* Rhondda East
* Rhondda West

Last contested in 1979

* Aberdare
* Abertillery
* Barry
* Bedwellty
* Cardiff North West
* Cardiff South East
* Ceredigion
* Denbigh
* East Flintshire
* Ebbw Vale
* Merioneth
* Merthyr Tydfil
* Newport
* Pontypool
* West Flintshire

Last contested in 1992 (review)

* Ceredigion and Pembroke North
* Clwyd North West
* Clwyd South West
* Pembrokeshire

Last contested in 2005 (review)

* Caernarfon
* Conwy
* Meirionnydd Nant Conwy

Last contested in 2019 (review)

* Aberavon
* Aberconwy
* Arfon
* Blaenau Gwent
* Brecon and Radnorshire
* Cardiff Central
* Carmarthen East and Dinefwr
* Carmarthen West and South Pembrokeshire
* Ceredigion
* Clwyd South
* Clwyd West
* Cynon Valley
* Delyn
* Islwyn
* Merthyr Tydfil and Rhymney
* Monmouth
* Montgomeryshire
* Neath
* Newport West
* Ogmore
* Preseli Pembrokeshire
* Rhondda
* Swansea East
* Vale of Clwyd

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