1784 Election
The following is a list of freeholders of Hanslope who voted in the election which took place in April/May 1784. For further information on the election see below. |
Freeholders Names. |
Place
of their Abode. |
What
Freeholds consist of. |
Occupiers. |
Ver. |
Gr. |
Au. |
Adams John | Hanslop | Land | Himself |
|
|
— |
Addison William | Ditto | H. and L. | Kingston, &c. |
— |
|
|
Ashby John | Buggbrook | H. and L. | Barker Joseph |
— |
|
|
Ashby William | Ditto | H. and L. | Ditto |
— |
|
|
Bacchus Richard | Great Linford | H. and L. | Himself |
— |
— |
|
Barker Joseph | Hanslop | House | Himself |
— |
|
|
Billing Thomas | Ditto | House | Warton Sarah |
— |
— |
|
Bishop Christopher | Ditto | H. & L. | Himself |
|
— |
— |
Bissel Richard | Ditto | H. and L. | Himself |
|
— |
|
Blunt Benjamin | Milton | House | Frost & Clark |
|
— |
— |
Blunt Richard |
Ashton | Land | Timpson Jos. |
|
|
— |
Britain Joseph | Churchend | H. and L. | Himself |
— |
|
|
Britton William | Stoke Bruin | H. and L. | Atterbury H. |
|
— |
— |
Burbridge John | Hanslop | House | Smith Daniel |
— |
|
|
Burton Edmond | London | Lands | Nicholls Jas. |
|
— |
— |
Caves John | Blisworth, North. | H. and L. | Hindes Wm. |
|
— |
— |
Crick Thomas | Hanslop | H. and L. | Chapman John |
|
|
— |
Darby Richard | Ditto | House | Brice J. |
— |
|
|
Gardiner John | Tyfoe, Warwick. | H. and L. | Robinson Wm. |
|
— |
— |
Gaudern Thomas | Hanslop | House | Mannings John |
— |
— |
|
Godfrey William | Ravenstone | H. and L. | Himself, &c. |
|
— |
— |
Goodman John | Hanslop | House | Himself |
|
— |
— |
Goodridge Wm.jun | Hartwell, North. | Land | Goodridge W. |
|
— |
— |
Gregory Joseph | Hanslop | H. and L. | Mills Widow |
|
— |
— |
Groscock Matthew | Hardingstone | Land | Allen J. |
— |
— |
|
Harris William | Hanslop | H. & L. | Garratt Wm. |
|
— |
|
Herbert James | Ditto | H. and L. | Witt Widow |
— |
|
|
Hillyer William | Ditto | H. and L. | Himself |
— |
— |
|
Hindes John | Wootton, Bedf. | H. & L. | Goodridge W. |
|
— |
— |
Hindes Joseph | Hanslop | H. & L. | Himself, &c. |
|
— |
— |
Hindes Wm. sen. | Ditto | H. & L. | Himself |
|
— |
|
Hoddle Stephen | Newport | H. and L. | Kightlee Wm. |
— |
— |
|
Hollis Cowley | Hanslop | H. and L. | Himself |
|
|
— |
Kitelee William | Hanslop | H. and L. | Himself, &c. |
|
— |
— |
Leaver Benjamin | Hanslop | House | Himself |
|
— |
— |
Lowndes Henry, Esq. | London | H. and L. | Hillier Wm. |
|
— |
|
Milligam Robert | Buckingham | H and L | Neal John |
— |
— |
|
Panter Dennis | Hanslop | House | Tite J. &c. |
|
|
— |
Peach William | Hanslop | H. and L | Himself |
|
— |
— |
Ratnett Richard | Hanslop | H. and L. | Himself, &c. |
— |
— |
|
Richards John | Hanslop | H. and L. | Himself |
|
— |
|
Richards William | Hanslop | H. and L. | Himself |
|
— |
|
Smith William | Hanslop | H. and L. | Himself |
|
|
— |
Tite George | Piddington, Nor. | Ditto | Thompson B. |
— |
|
|
Watts Edward, Esq. | London | Land | Smith H. &c. |
— |
|
|
West Harry | Hanslop | House | Himself, &c. |
|
— |
— |
Wilkinson John | Northampton | H. and L. | Clark William |
— |
— |
|
Source: Publication identified below. The columns "What Freeholds consist of." and "Occupiers." were taken from a second publication which was undated but had the appearance of being contemporary with the election. Copies of both publications are in the Buckinghamshire Record Office in Aylesbury. |
The last three columns indicate the candidate(s) for whom each elector voted.
The following is taken from the cover page of the record of the election results.
An
Alphabetical L I S T |
||
OF
THE |
||
Names
of the several Persons |
||
who
Voted at the Election of KNIGHTS of the SHIRE, |
||
FOR THE COUNTY OF | ||
Buckingham, | ||
AT
THE COUNTY COURT OF |
||
Richard
Scrimshire, Esq; Sheriff |
||
Of
the said C O U N T Y |
||
Held
at Aylesbury, on Wednesday the 21st Day of APRIL, 1784, and from thence by divers Adjournments to Thursday the 6th Day of May following. |
||
Containing
the Places of their respective Freeholds and Abodes, and the distinguishing
the Candidate of Candidates the respectively polled for. |
||
TO
WHICH IS ADDED |
||
A
general State of the Number of VOTES for each Candidate at the Close of
the POLL. |
||
The
Whole carefully examined with an authentick COPY of the SHERIFF's POLL-BOOKS. |
||
C
A N D I D A T E S. |
||
The
Right Honble. Ralph Earl Verney, of the Kingdom of Ireland. |
||
The
Right Honble. William Wyndham Grenville. |
||
John
Aubrey, Esquire. _____________________ |
||
AYLESBURY, Printed and Sold by W. Nicholls, in the Year MDCCLXXXV. |
The following summary is taken from the above record of the election.
The
Names of the respective Hundreds. |
Single
Votes. |
Divided
Votes. |
The
Numbers Polled for each Candidate. |
No.of
Free-holders in each Hun. |
||||||
V. |
G. |
A. |
V.G. |
V.A. |
G.A. |
V. |
G. |
A. |
||
Ashendon - | 18 |
31 |
57 |
58 |
6 |
141 |
82 |
230 |
204 |
311 |
Aylesbury - | 164 |
31 |
80 |
116 |
41 |
238 |
321 |
385 |
359 |
670 |
Buckingham - | 72 |
44 |
12 |
163 |
6 |
37 |
241 |
244 |
55 |
334 |
Burnham - | 110 |
8 |
30 |
82 |
8 |
155 |
200 |
245 |
193 |
393 |
Cottesloe - | 164 |
13 |
47 |
166 |
7 |
141 |
337 |
320 |
195 |
538 |
Desborough - | 80 |
4 |
43 |
41 |
3 |
242 |
124 |
287 |
288 |
413 |
Newport - | 220 |
35 |
64 |
119 |
4 |
232 |
343 |
386 |
300 |
674 |
Stoke - | 28 |
6 |
18 |
35 |
5 |
123 |
68 |
164 |
146 |
215 |
T O T A L - | 856 |
172 |
351 |
780 |
80 |
1309 |
1716 |
2261 |
1740 |
3548 |
This was the election that consolidated the position of William Pitt the younger as prime minister at the age of 24. The background was the recent loss of the American colonies, formalised in peace treaties first with the Thirteen Colonies, then with France, with Spain, and with Holland. Following the negotiation of these treaties by an administration of all parties, a coalition of factions under Fox and North gained control of the Commons in February 1783.
In his History of the English Speaking Peoples, Churchill summarises the circumstances of the election as follows.
"The elections which carried Pitt into power were the most carefully planned of the century. There has been a legend that a great wave of popular reaction against the personal government of George III brought him into office. In fact it was George himself who turned to Pitt, and the whole electoral machinery built up by the King's agents, headed by the backstairs figure of John Robinson, the Secretary of the Treasury, was put at the disposal of the young politician. In December 1783 Robinson and Pitt met to discuss their plan at a house in Leicester Square belonging to one of Pitt's close associates, Henry Dundas. Robinson drew up a detailed report on the constituencies, and convinced Pitt that a majority in the Commons could be obtained. Three days later Fox and North were dismissed by the King, and the ensuing elections created a majority which William Pitt preserved into the next century. The plan had been justified, and the nation at large accepted the result as the true verdict of the country.
"This majority rested on a number of elements - Pitt's personal following; the "Party of the Crown", put at his disposal by George III; the independent country gentlemen; the East India interest, alienated by Fox's attempt to curb their political power; and the Scottish Members, marshalled by Dundas. The Tories supported him because he appeared to be rescuing the King from an unscrupulous Government. The Whigs remembered that he had refused office under North, and that he had advocated a reform of the Parliamentary system. The "old gang", with whom he had no connections, had failed, disgraced the nation, and wrecked its finances. With all the renown of his father's name behind him, this grave, precocious young man, eloquent, incorruptible, and hard -working, stood upon the uplands of power."