# Drogheda (UK Parliament constituency)

Drogheda was a parliamentary borough constituency in Ireland, which returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It was an original constituency represented in Parliament when the Union of Great Britain and Ireland took effect on 1 January 1801, replacing the Drogheda constituency in the Irish House of Commons.

## Boundaries

This constituency was the parliamentary borough of Drogheda in County Louth.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Election | Member | Party | Note |
| | 1 January 1801 | Edward Hardman | | 1801: Co-opted |
| | 14 November 1806 | Henry Meade Ogle | Tory | |
| | 14 November 1807 | Thomas Foster | Whig | |
| | 21 October 1812 | Henry Meade Ogle | Tory | |
| | 28 March 1820 | Henry Metcalfe | Tory | Died |
| | 9 March 1822 | William Meade Smyth | Tory | |
| | 17 June 1826 | Peter Van Homrigh | Tory | |
| | 13 August 1830 | John Henry North | Tory | Died |
| | 20 October 1831 | Thomas Wallace | Whig | |
| | 15 December 1832 | Andrew Carew O'Dwyer | Repeal Association | |
| | 21 January 1835 | Andrew Carew O'Dwyer | Repeal Association | Unseated on petition. New writ issued. |
| | 24 April 1835 | Andrew Carew O'Dwyer | Repeal Association | Unseated on petition |
| | 29 June 1835 | Randal Edward Plunkett | Conservative | Declared elected on petition |
| | 3 August 1837 | William Somerville | Whig | |
| | 13 July 1852 | James McCann | Independent Irish | Re-elected as a Whig candidate |
| | 4 April 1857 | James McCann | Whig | |
| | 7 May 1859 | James McCann | Liberal | |
| | 17 July 1865 | Benjamin Whitworth | Liberal | Unseated on petition. New writ issued. |
| | 15 March 1869 | Thomas Whitworth | Liberal | |
| | 5 February 1874 | Dr William Hagarty O'Leary | Home Rule League | Died |
| | 2 March 1880 | Benjamin Whitworth | Home Rule League | Last MP for the constituency |
| 1885 | 1885 | Constituency abolished | Constituency abolished | Constituency abolished |

## Elections
### Elections in the 1830s

General election 1830: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Tory | John Henry North | 373 | 58.2 |
| | Irish Repeal | Maurice O'Connell | 268 | 41.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 105 | 16.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 641 | 68.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 936 | |
| | Tory hold | Tory hold | Swing | |
General election 1831: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Tory | John Henry North | 355 | 55.5 | −2.7 |
| | Whig | Thomas Wallace | 285 | 44.5 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 70 | 11.0 | −5.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 640 | 55.7 | −12.8 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 1,150 | | |
| | Tory hold | Tory hold | Swing | −2.7 | |
North's death caused a by-election.
By-election, 20 October 1831: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Whig | Thomas Wallace | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Whig gain from Tory | Whig gain from Tory | Whig gain from Tory | Whig gain from Tory |
General election 1832: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Irish Repeal | Andrew Carew O'Dwyer | 249 | 100.0 | N/A |
| | Tory | Francis Ball | 0 | 0.0 | −55.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 249 | 100.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 249 | 44.5 | −11.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 560 | | |
| | Irish Repeal gain from Tory | Irish Repeal gain from Tory | Swing | N/A | |
* Stooks Smith gives the poll as 237 for O'Dwyer and 12 for Ball, but Walker's numbers have been used above.
General election 1835: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Irish Repeal (Whig) | Andrew Carew O'Dwyer | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 651 | |
| | Irish Repeal hold | Irish Repeal hold | Irish Repeal hold | Irish Repeal hold |
On petition, O'Dwyer was unseated for "want of qualification", causing a by-election.
By-election, 24 April 1835: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Irish Repeal (Whig) | Andrew Carew O'Dwyer | 320 | 71.0 |
| | Conservative | Randall Edward Plunkett | 131 | 29.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 189 | 42.0 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 451 | 69.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 651 | |
| | Irish Repeal hold | Irish Repeal hold | Irish Repeal hold | Irish Repeal hold |
* Stooks Smith gives the poll as 313 for O'Dwyer and 130 for Plunkett but Walker's figures have been used here. On petition, O'Dwyer's election was declared void and Plunkett was declared elected, on 21 June 1835.
General election 1837: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Whig | William Somerville | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 799 | |
| | Whig gain from Irish Repeal | Whig gain from Irish Repeal | Whig gain from Irish Repeal | Whig gain from Irish Repeal |

### Elections in the 1840s

General election 1841: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Whig | William Somerville | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 506 | | |
| | Whig hold | Whig hold | Whig hold | Whig hold | Whig hold |
General election 1847: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Whig | William Somerville | 155 | 50.5 | N/A |
| | Irish Repeal | Thomas Lamie Murray | 152 | 49.5 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3 | 1.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 307 | 41.8 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 734 | | |
| | Whig hold | Whig hold | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1850s

General election 1852: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Independent Irish | James McCann | 306 | 100.0 | +50.5 |
| | Whig | William Somerville | 0 | 0.0 | −50.5 |
| | Whig | John Magee | 0 | 0.0 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 306 | 100.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 306 | 61.1 | +19.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 501 | | |
| | Independent Irish gain from Whig | Independent Irish gain from Whig | Swing | +50.5 | |
General election 1857: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Whig | James McCann | 350 | 96.2 | +96.2 |
| | Independent Irish | Francis Brodigan | 14 | 3.8 | −96.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 336 | 92.4 | −7.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 364 | 56.1 | −5.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 649 | | |
| | Whig gain from Independent Irish | Whig gain from Independent Irish | Swing | | |
General election 1859: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | James McCann | 308 | 59.8 | −36.4 |
| | Liberal-Conservative | Charles Marmaduke Middleton | 205 | 39.8 | New |
| | Liberal | Francis Brodigan | 2 | 0.4 | −3.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 103 | 20.0 | −72.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 515 | 80.6 | +24.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 639 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1860s

General election 1865: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Benjamin Whitworth | 291 | 77.6 | +17.8 |
| | Liberal | Francis Brodigan | 84 | 22.4 | +22.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 207 | 55.2 | +35.2 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 375 | 64.5 | −16.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 581 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1868: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Benjamin Whitworth | 365 | 68.5 | −9.1 |
| | Conservative | Francis McClintock | 138 | 25.9 | New |
| | Liberal | Francis Brodigan | 30 | 5.6 | −16.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 227 | 42.6 | −12.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 533 | 73.4 | +8.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 726 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | +3.9 | |
Polling for the 1868 election was marred by riots at or outside the polling house, during which people were fired upon by the military, and one man was seriously injured. Although this was later not shown to have affected the result significantly, on petition, Whitworth was unseated for separate findings of an "organised system of intimidation and force was established by Mr. Whitworth and his friends and agents."
By-election, 15 March 1869: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Thomas Whitworth | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 726 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |

### Elections in the 1870s

General election 1874: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Home Rule | William Hagarty O'Leary | 284 | 50.9 | New |
| | Liberal | Benjamin Whitworth | 274 | 49.1 | −25.0 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10 | 1.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 558 | 72.7 | −0.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 768 | | |
| | Home Rule gain from Liberal | Home Rule gain from Liberal | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1880s

O'Leary's death caused a by-election.
By-election, 2 Mar 1880: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Benjamin Whitworth | 382 | 67.8 | +18.7 |
| | Home Rule | James Carlile McCoan | 181 | 32.1 | −18.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 201 | 35.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 563 | 75.8 | +3.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 743 | | |
| | Liberal gain from Home Rule | Liberal gain from Home Rule | Swing | +18.8 | |
General election 1880: Drogheda :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Benjamin Whitworth | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 743 | | |
| | Liberal gain from Home Rule | Liberal gain from Home Rule | Liberal gain from Home Rule | Liberal gain from Home Rule | Liberal gain from Home Rule |