# Woolwich (UK Parliament constituency)

Woolwich was a borough constituency represented in the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1885 to 1918 and from 1983 to 1997. It centred on Woolwich, now in the Royal Borough of Greenwich in south-east London.
Will Crooks, Member of Parliament for Woolwich 1903–10 and 1910–18, was one of the first Labour MPs in the United Kingdom.

## History

In 1918, the seat was split into Woolwich East and Woolwich West. In 1983, most of Woolwich West became Eltham while the recreated Woolwich constituency was largely based on Woolwich East. In 1997, the seat was split up along different lines, with part of it going into neighbouring Erith and Thamesmead, and part of it merging with the Greenwich seat to form the new Greenwich and Woolwich seat.

## Boundaries

1885–1918: The parishes of Woolwich, Eltham and Plumstead.
1983–1997: The London Borough of Greenwich wards of Abbey Wood, Arsenal, Burrage, Eynsham, Glyndon, Lakedale, Plumstead Common, St Mary's, St Nicholas, Shrewsbury, Slade, Thamesmead Moorings, and Woolwich Common.

## Members of Parliament
### MPs 1885–1918

| Election | Member | Party |
| 1885 | Edwin Hughes | Conservative |
| 1902 by-election | Lord Charles Beresford | Conservative |
| 1903 by-election | Will Crooks | Labour |
| 1910 (January) | William Augustus Adam | Conservative |
| 1910 (December) | Will Crooks | Labour |
| 1918 | Constituency divided. See Woolwich East and Woolwich West | Constituency divided. See Woolwich East and Woolwich West |

### MPs 1983–1997

| Election | Member | Party | Notes |
| 1983 | John Cartwright | SDP | Formerly Labour MP for Woolwich East. |
| 1988 | John Cartwright | SDP (1988) | Formerly Labour MP for Woolwich East. |
| 1990 | John Cartwright | Independent Social Democrat | Formerly Labour MP for Woolwich East. |
| 1992 | John Austin-Walker | Labour | |
| 1997 | Constituency abolished. See Erith & Thamesmead, and Greenwich & Woolwich | Constituency abolished. See Erith & Thamesmead, and Greenwich & Woolwich | Constituency abolished. See Erith & Thamesmead, and Greenwich & Woolwich |

## Elections
### Elections in the 1990s

General election 1992: Woolwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | John Austin | 17,551 | 44.2 | +7.2 |
| | Ind. Social Democrat | John Cartwright | 15,326 | 38.6 | –3.1 |
| | Conservative | Kevin J.T. Walmsley | 6,598 | 16.6 | –4.6 |
| | Natural Law | Sarah J.E. Hayward | 220 | 0.6 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,225 | 5.6 | +0.9 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 39,695 | 70.9 | +0.2 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 55,977 | | |
| | Labour gain from SDP | Labour gain from SDP | Swing | +5.2 | |

### Elections in the 1980s

General election 1987: Woolwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDP | John Cartwright | 17,137 | 41.7 | +1.2 |
| | Labour | John Austin | 15,200 | 37.0 | +3.6 |
| | Conservative | Anthony Salter | 8,723 | 21.2 | −3.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,937 | 4.7 | −2.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 41,060 | 70.7 | +2.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 58,071 | | |
| | SDP hold | SDP hold | Swing | | |
General election 1983: Woolwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | SDP | John Cartwright | 15,492 | 40.5 | +32.3 |
| | Labour | Audrey Wise | 12,767 | 33.4 | –25.5 |
| | Conservative | Philomena Brown | 9,616 | 25.1 | –5.5 |
| | BNP | TC Fitz-Gerald | 384 | 1.0 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,725 | 7.1 | –21.1 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 38,259 | 68.0 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 56,297 | | |
| | SDP win (new seat) | SDP win (new seat) | SDP win (new seat) | SDP win (new seat) | SDP win (new seat) |
1979 notional result :
| Party | Party | Vote | % |
| | Labour | 22,128 | 58.8 |
| | Conservative | 11,518 | 30.6 |
| | Liberal | 3,077 | 8.2 |
| | Others | 896 | 2.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | 37,619 | |
| Electorate | Electorate | |

### Elections in the 1910s

General election December 1910: Woolwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Will Crooks | 8,252 | 50.7 | +1.6 |
| | Conservative | William Adam | 8,016 | 49.3 | −1.6 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 236 | 1.4 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 16,268 | | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | +1.6 | |
General election January 1910: Woolwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | William Adam | 8,715 | 50.9 | +7.5 |
| | Labour | Will Crooks | 8,420 | 49.1 | −7.5 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 295 | 1.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 17,135 | | |
| | Conservative gain from Labour | Conservative gain from Labour | Swing | +7.5 | |

### Elections in the 1900s

General election 1906: Woolwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour Repr. Cmte. | Will Crooks | 9,026 | 56.6 | N/A |
| | Conservative | William Adam | 6,914 | 43.4 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,112 | 13.2 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 15,490 | 89.2 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 17,870 | | |
| | Labour Repr. Cmte. gain from Conservative | Labour Repr. Cmte. gain from Conservative | Swing | N/A | |
1903 Woolwich by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour Repr. Cmte. | Will Crooks | 8,687 | 61.4 | New |
| | Conservative | Geoffrey Drage | 5,458 | 38.6 | N/A |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,229 | 22.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 14,145 | 87.7 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 16,136 | | |
| | Labour gain from Conservative | Labour gain from Conservative | Swing | N/A | |
1902 Woolwich by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Charles Beresford | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 15,376 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold |
General election 1900: Woolwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Edwin Hughes | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 14,592 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Conservative hold |

### Elections in the 1890s

General election 1895: Woolwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Edwin Hughes | 6,662 | 63.3 | +3.9 |
| | Lib-Lab | Ben Jones | 3,857 | 36.7 | −3.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 2,805 | 26.6 | +7.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,519 | 78.2 | −3.5 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 13,458 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +3.9 | |
General election 1892: Woolwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Edwin Hughes | 5,992 | 59.4 | −2.9 |
| | Lib-Lab | Ben Jones | 4,100 | 40.6 | +2.9 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,892 | 18.8 | −5.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 10,092 | 81.7 | +5.4 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 12,347 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | -2.9 | |

### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1886: Woolwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Edwin Hughes | 4,647 | 62.3 | +5.2 |
| | Liberal | George Evatt | 2,811 | 37.7 | −5.2 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,836 | 24.6 | +10.4 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 7,458 | 76.3 | −8.9 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 9,769 | | |
| | Conservative hold | Conservative hold | Swing | +5.2 | |
General election 1885: Woolwich :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Conservative | Edwin Hughes | 4,758 | 57.1 | |
| | Liberal | Henry Montagu Hozier | 3,569 | 42.9 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 1,189 | 14.2 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,327 | 85.2 | |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 9,769 | | |
| | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) | Conservative win (new seat) |