Gulpen (electoral district)

Gulpen was an electoral district of the House of Representatives in the Netherlands from 1888 to 1918.

## Profile

[edit]

Gulpen in 1888

The electoral district of Gulpen was created in 1888 out of part of the Maastricht district, which was reduced from two seats to one. Den Gulpen's boundaries remained the same throughout the electoral district's existence. It was situated in the south of the province of Limburg, including places such as Heerlen, Kerkrade and Vaals, as well as the village of Gulpen, after which it was named. Containing much of the South Limburg coal mining basin, mining was the most important economic activity in the district.[1][2]

Over the course of its existence, the district's population increased substantially, from 43,350 in 1888 to 65,456 in 1909. Around 99% of the population was Catholic in 1888 and 1897, though this proportion dropped to 96.5% in 1909. In that same year, 1.1% of the population was Reformed, 0.3% was Gereformeerd and 2.1% belonged to the category "Others".[3]

The district of Gulpen was abolished upon the introduction of party-list proportional representation in 1918.

## Members

[edit]

Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck

Like most districts in the Catholic south of the country, Gulpen was a safe seat for the Catholics, united in the General League of Roman Catholic Electoral Associations from 1904 onward. The Catholics held the seat continuously throughout its existence. Unlike other districts in the south, however, elections in Gulpen were rarely uncontested, with multiple Catholic candidates often standing against each other. Most famous among its members was Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck, who was first elected in 1905 and continued to represent the district until his appointment as Queen's Commissioner of Limburg in 1918. This triggered a by-election just a month before the district's abolition. Ruijs de Beerenbrouck would become Chairman of the Council of Ministers later that year.

Election  | Member  | Party  | Ref

|
|
|

1888 | L.F.H.C. Ruland |  | Ka | [4]
1891 | Iwan de Marchant et d'Ansembourg |  | Ka | [5]
1894
1897 | J.M.M.H. Merckelbach |  | Ka | [6]
1901
1905 | Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck |  | Ka | [7]
1909
1909
1913
1917
1918 | Henri Hermans |  | Ka | [8]

## Election results

[edit]

### Elections in the 1880s

[edit]

1888 general election: GulpenCandidate| Party| Votes| %

|
|
|

| Leonard Frans Hubert Carl Ruland| Ka| 727| 58.25
| G. Smeets| Lib| 514| 41.19
Others| 7| 0.56
Total| 1,248| 100.00
Valid votes| 1,248| 99.44
Invalid/blank votes| 7| 0.56
Total votes| 1,255| 100.00
Registered voters/turnout| 1,741| 72.09
|  Catholic gain
Source: Kiesraad, Huygens Instituut

### Elections in the 1890s

[edit]

1891 general election: GulpenCandidate| Party| Votes| %

|
|
|

| Iwan de Marchant et d'Ansembourg| Ka| 688| 74.78
| Lemmens| Independent| 214| 23.26
Others| 18| 1.96
Total| 920| 100.00
Valid votes| 920| 98.61
Invalid/blank votes| 13| 1.39
Total votes| 933| 100.00
Registered voters/turnout| 1,907| 48.93
|  Catholic hold
Source: Kiesraad, Huygens Instituut
1894 general election: GulpenCandidate| Party| Votes| %

|
|
|

| Iwan de Marchant et d'Ansembourg| Ka| 490| 80.86
| J. Thissen| Independent| 70| 11.55
| Janssen| Independent| 31| 5.12
Others| 15| 2.48
Total| 606| 100.00
Valid votes| 606| 97.27
Invalid/blank votes| 17| 2.73
Total votes| 623| 100.00
Registered voters/turnout| 1,986| 31.37
|  Catholic hold
Source: Kiesraad, Huygens Instituut
1897 general election: GulpenCandidate| Party| Votes| %

|
|
|

| Joseph Mathias Maria Hubertus Merckelbach| Ka| 1,828| 51.15
| Louis Regout| Ka| 1,552| 43.42
| A.P.E.A. Wijnans| Ka| 194| 5.43
Total| 3,574| 100.00
Valid votes| 3,574| 98.70
Invalid/blank votes| 47| 1.30
Total votes| 3,621| 100.00
Registered voters/turnout| 5,287| 68.49
|  Catholic hold
Source: Kiesraad, Huygens Instituut

### Elections in the 1900s

[edit]

1901 general election: GulpenCandidate| Party| Votes| %

|
|
|

| Joseph Mathias Maria Hubertus Merckelbach| Ka| 1,695| 82.48
| Louis van der Maesen de Sombreff| Ka| 360| 17.52
Total| 2,055| 100.00
Valid votes| 2,055| 97.58
Invalid/blank votes| 51| 2.42
Total votes| 2,106| 100.00
Registered voters/turnout| 6,029| 34.93
|  Catholic hold
Source: Kiesraad, Huygens Instituut
1905 general election: GulpenCandidate| Party| Votes| %

|
|
|

| Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck| Ka| 3,297| 64.89
| J.H. Pinckers| Ka| 1,606| 31.61
| Henri van Kol| SDAP| 178| 3.50
Total| 5,081| 100.00
Valid votes| 5,081| 96.95
Invalid/blank votes| 160| 3.05
Total votes| 5,241| 100.00
Registered voters/turnout| 7,031| 74.54
| Catholic hold
Source: Kiesraad, Huygens Instituut
1909 general election: GulpenCandidate| Party| Votes| %

|
|
|

| Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck| Ka| 4,098| 58.69
| P.M.F.H. Brouwers| Ka| 2,787| 39.92
| Henri van Kol| SDAP| 97| 1.39
Total| 6,982| 100.00
Valid votes| 6,982| 97.99
Invalid/blank votes| 143| 2.01
Total votes| 7,125| 100.00
Registered voters/turnout| 8,561| 83.23
| Catholic hold
Source: Kiesraad, Huygens Instituut
1909 Gulpen by-electionCandidate| Party| Votes| %

|
|
|

| Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck| Ka| 3,503| 88.44
| Louis Hermans| SDAP| 458| 11.56
Total| 3,961| 100.00
Valid votes| 3,961| 94.56
Invalid/blank votes| 228| 5.44
Total votes| 4,189| 100.00
Registered voters/turnout| 8,561| 48.93
| Catholic hold
Source: Kiesraad, Huygens Instituut

### Elections in the 1910s

[edit]

1913 general election: GulpenCandidate| Party| Votes| %

|
|
|

| Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck| Ka| 4,856| 68.00
| N.J. Schrijen| Ka| 1,774| 24.84
| Willem Vliegen| SDAP| 213| 2.98
| A.P.E.A. Wijmans| Ind| 155| 2.17
| J. Diepen| Ka| 143| 2.00
Total| 7,141| 100.00
Valid votes| 7,141| 96.79
Invalid/blank votes| 237| 3.21
Total votes| 7,378| 100.00
Registered voters/turnout| 10,519| 70.14
| Catholic hold
Source: Kiesraad, Huygens Instituut
1917 general election: GulpenCandidate| Party| Votes| %

|
|
|

| Charles Ruijs de Beerenbrouck| Ka|
Total|
Registered voters/turnout| 12,477| –
| Catholic hold
Source: Kiesraad, Huygens Instituut
1918 Gulpen by-electionCandidate| Party| Votes| %

|
|
|

| Henri Hermans| Ka| 4,368| 83.69
| K.J. Vroemen| Ind| 851| 16.31
Total| 5,219| 100.00
Valid votes| 5,219| 96.11
Invalid/blank votes| 211| 3.89
Total votes| 5,430| 100.00
Registered voters/turnout| 12,477| 43.52
| Catholic hold
Source: Kiesraad, Huygens Instituut

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "gemeenten_per_district". Huygens Resources (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 August 2024.
2. ^ De Jong, Ron; Van der Kolk, Henk; Voerman, Gerrit (2011). Verkiezingen op de kaart 1848-2010: Tweede Kamerverkiezingen vanuit geografisch perspectief [Elections on the map 1848-2010: House of Representative elections from a geographic perspective] (in Dutch). Utrecht: Uitgeverij Matrijs. ISBN 9789053454374.
3. ^ "samenstelling_per_district". Huygens Resources (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 August 2024.
4. ^ "L.F.H.C. Ruland". Parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 August 2024.
5. ^ "J.B.C.E.M. (Iwan) graaf de Marchant et d'Ansembourg". Parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 August 2024.
6. ^ "J.M.M.H. Merckelbach". Parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 August 2024.
7. ^ "Jhr.Mr. Ch.J.M. (Charles) Ruijs de Beerenbrouck". Parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 August 2024.
8. ^ "H.G.M. (Henri) Hermans". Parlement.com (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 August 2024.

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Electoral districts of the House of Representatives of the Netherlands (1848–1918)

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