# West Monmouthshire (UK Parliament constituency)

Western Monmouthshire (also known as the Western Division of the County of Monmouth) was a parliamentary constituency in Monmouthshire, Wales. It returned one Member of Parliament (MP) to the House of Commons of the Parliament of the United Kingdom.

## History

The constituency was created by the Redistribution of Seats Act 1885 for the 1885 general election. It was abolished for the 1918 general election.

## Boundaries

The constituency was defined as comprising the "Sessional Division of Bedwellty (except the Parishes of Bedwas and Mynyddislwyn)", and thus constituted the following civil parishes:
* Abertillery
* Aberystruth (including part of Ebbw Vale)
* Bedwellty (including Manmoel, Rhymney, Tredegar and part of Ebbw Vale)
On abolition by the Representation of the People Act 1918, West Monmouthshire's area was divided between three constituencies: Abertillery, Bedwellty and Ebbw Vale.

## Members of Parliament

| Election | Member | Party |
| 1885 | Marshall Warmington | Liberal |
| 1895 | Sir William Harcourt | Liberal |
| 1904 | Thomas Richards | Liberal |
| 1910 | Thomas Richards | Labour |
| 1918 | constituency abolished | constituency abolished |

## Elections
### Elections in the 1880s

General election 1885: West Monmouthshire :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Marshall Warmington | 6,730 | 83.4 | |
| | Conservative | Benjamin Francis Williams | 1,341 | 16.6 | |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,389 | 66.8 | |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,071 | 82.6 | |
| | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) | Liberal win (new seat) |
General election 1886: West Monmouthshire :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Marshall Warmington | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Liberal hold |

### Elections in the 1890s

General election 1892: West Monmouthshire :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | Marshall Warmington | 7,019 | 80.5 | N/A |
| | Conservative | William Herbert Meredyth | 1,700 | 19.5 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,319 | 61.0 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,719 | 77.5 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,251 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | N/A | |
General election 1895: West Monmouthshire :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | William Vernon Harcourt | 7,243 | 78.7 | −1.8 |
| | Conservative | William Edwin Williams | 1,956 | 21.3 | +1.8 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 5,287 | 57.4 | −3.6 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 9,199 | 80.2 | +2.7 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,475 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | -1.8 | |

### Elections in the 1900s

General election 1900: West Monmouthshire :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Liberal | William Vernon Harcourt | 5,976 | 71.3 | −7.4 |
| | Conservative | Iltyd William Henry Gardner | 2,401 | 28.7 | +7.4 |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 3,575 | 42.6 | −14.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 8,377 | 75.1 | −5.1 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 11,150 | | |
| | Liberal hold | Liberal hold | Swing | -7.4 | |
1904 West Monmouthshire by-election :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | Thomas Richards | 7,995 | 70.4 | −0.9 |
| | Tariff Reform | John Cockburn | 3,360 | 29.6 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 4,635 | 40.8 | −1.8 |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 11,355 | 75.1 | 0.0 |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 15,127 | | |
| | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Swing | | |
General election 1906: West Monmouthshire :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Lib-Lab | Thomas Richards | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold | Lib-Lab hold |

### Elections in the 1910s

General election January 1910: West Monmouthshire :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Thomas Richards | 13,295 | 81.4 | N/A |
| | Conservative | John Cameron | 3,045 | 18.6 | New |
| Majority | Majority | Majority | 10,250 | 62.8 | N/A |
| Turnout | Turnout | Turnout | 16,340 | 80.1 | N/A |
| Registered electors | Registered electors | Registered electors | 20,399 | | |
| | Labour gain from Lib-Lab | Labour gain from Lib-Lab | Swing | N/A | |
General election December 1910: West Monmouthshire :
| Party | Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% |
| | Labour | Thomas Richards | Unopposed | Unopposed | Unopposed |
| | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold | Labour hold |
General Election 1914–15:
Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;
* Labour: Thomas Richards
* Unionist: