# Wolverhampton (UK Parliament constituency)

Wolverhampton was a parliamentary constituency centred on the town of Wolverhampton in Staffordshire. It elected two Members of Parliament to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

## History

The constituency was created under the Reform Act 1832, and first used at the 1832 general election. It was abolished by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885, when it was replaced for the 1885 general election by three new single-member constituencies: Wolverhampton East, Wolverhampton South and Wolverhampton West.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | 1st Member | 1st Member | 1st Party | 2nd Member | 2nd Member | 2nd Party |
| 1832 | | William Wolryche-Whitmore | Whig | | Richard Fryer | Whig |
| 1835 | | Charles Pelham Villiers | Radical | | Thomas Thornely | Radical |
| 1859 | | Charles Pelham Villiers | Liberal | | Sir Richard Bethell | Liberal |
| 1861 by-election | | Charles Pelham Villiers | Liberal | | Thomas Matthias Weguelin | Liberal |
| 1880 | | Charles Pelham Villiers | Liberal | | Henry Fowler | Liberal |
| 1885 | constituency divided: see Wolverhampton East, Wolverhampton South and Wolverhampton West. | constituency divided: see Wolverhampton East, Wolverhampton South and Wolverhampton West. | constituency divided: see Wolverhampton East, Wolverhampton South and Wolverhampton West. | constituency divided: see Wolverhampton East, Wolverhampton South and Wolverhampton West. | constituency divided: see Wolverhampton East, Wolverhampton South and Wolverhampton West. | constituency divided: see Wolverhampton East, Wolverhampton South and Wolverhampton West. |

## Election results
### Elections in the 1830s

General election 1832: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % |
| | Whig | William Wolryche-Whitmore | 850 | 32.3 |
| | Whig | Richard Fryer | 810 | 30.8 |
| | Tory | Francis Holyoake | 615 | 23.4 |
| | Radical | John Nicholson | 358 | 13.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 195 | 7.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,463 | 86.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 1,700 | |
| | Whig win (new seat) | Whig win (new seat) | Whig win (new seat) | Whig win (new seat) |
| | Whig win (new seat) | Whig win (new seat) | Whig win (new seat) | Whig win (new seat) |
General election 1835: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Radical | Charles Pelham Villiers | 776 | 30.0 | N/A |
| | Radical | Thomas Thornely | 776 | 30.0 | N/A |
| | Conservative | Dudley Fereday | 658 | 25.5 | +2.1 |
| | Radical | John Nicholson | 374 | 14.5 | +0.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 118 | 4.5 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,498 | 81.5 | −4.6 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 1,839 | | |
| | Radical gain from Whig | Radical gain from Whig | Swing | | |
| | Radical gain from Whig | Radical gain from Whig | Swing | | |
General election 1837: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Radical | Charles Pelham Villiers | 1,068 | 32.1 | +2.1 |
| | Radical | Thomas Thornely | 1,024 | 30.8 | +0.8 |
| | Conservative | Ryder Burton | 623 | 18.7 | +6.0 |
| | Conservative | John Benbow | 613 | 18.4 | +5.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 401 | 12.1 | +7.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,675 | 77.2 | −4.3 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 2,170 | | |
| | Radical hold | Radical hold | Swing | −1.9 | |
| | Radical hold | Radical hold | Swing | −3.3 | |

### Elections in the 1840s

General election 1841: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Radical | Charles Pelham Villiers | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Radical | Thomas Thornely | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 2,571 | | |
| | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold |
| | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold |
General election 1847: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Radical | Charles Pelham Villiers | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Radical | Thomas Thornely | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 2,692 | | |
| | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold |
| | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold |

### Elections in the 1850s

General election 1852: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Radical | Charles Pelham Villiers | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Radical | Thomas Thornely | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 3,587 | | |
| | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold |
| | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold |
Villiers was appointed Judge-Advocate-General of the Armed Forces, requiring a by-election.
By-election, 4 January 1853: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Radical | Charles Pelham Villiers | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold |
General election 1857: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Radical | Charles Pelham Villiers | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Radical | Thomas Thornely | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 3,611 | | |
| | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold |
| | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold | Radical hold |
General election 1859: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Charles Pelham Villiers | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Liberal | Richard Bethell | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 3,821 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |
Bethell was appointed Attorney General for England and Wales, requiring a by-election.
By-election, 27 June 1859: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Richard Bethell | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |
Villiers was appointed President of the Poor Law Board, requiring a by-election.
By-election, 9 July 1859: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Charles Pelham Villiers | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |

### Elections in the 1860s

Bethell resigned after being appointed Lord Chancellor, causing him to become Lord Westbury and a by-election to be called.
By-election, 3 July 1861: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Thomas Matthias Weguelin | 1,363 | 48.7 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Samuel Griffiths | 772 | 27.6 | N/A |
| | Conservative | Alexander Staveley Hill | 665 | 23.8 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 591 | 21.1 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 2,800 | 68.1 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 4,110 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1865: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Charles Pelham Villiers | 1,623 | 50.9 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Thomas Matthias Weguelin | 1,519 | 47.6 | N/A |
| | Conservative | Thomas Thornycroft | 47 | 1.5 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,472 | 46.1 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 1,618 (est) | 33.5 (est) | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 4,830 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1868: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Charles Pelham Villiers | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Liberal | Thomas Matthias Weguelin | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 15,772 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |

### Elections in the 1870s

General election 1874: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Charles Pelham Villiers | 10,358 | 43.1 | N/A |
| | Liberal | Thomas Matthias Weguelin | 10,036 | 41.8 | N/A |
| | Conservative | Walter Williams | 3,628 | 15.1 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 6,408 | 26.7 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 13,825 (est) | 59.4 (est) | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 23,257 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |

### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1880: Wolverhampton :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Charles Pelham Villiers | 12,197 | 41.1 | −2.0 |
| | Liberal | Henry Fowler | 11,606 | 39.1 | −2.7 |
| | Conservative | Alfred Hickman | 5,874 | 19.8 | +4.7 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,732 | 19.3 | −7.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 17,776 (est) | 77.9 (est) | +18.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 22,821 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | −2.2 | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | −2.5 | |