County Cornwall Number of members One Created from Penryn and Falmouth | Major settlements Truro, St Austell Replaced by Truro & St Austell Number of members One | |
Truro was the name of a parliamentary constituency in Cornwall represented in the House of Commons of England and later of Great Britain from 1295 until 1800, then in the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1918 and finally from 1950 to 1997. Until 1885 it was a parliamentary borough, electing two members of parliament (MPs) by the plurality-at-large system of election; the name was then transferred to the surrounding county constituency, which elected a single Member by the first past the post system. In 1997, although there had been no changes to its boundaries, it was renamed as Truro and St Austell, reflecting the fact that St Austell by then had a larger population than Truro.
Contents
Boundaries
1950-1974: The Municipal Borough of Truro, the Urban District of St Austell, the Rural District of Truro except the civil parish of Gwennap, and in the Rural District of St Austell the civil parishes of Creed, Grampound, Roche, St Dennis, St Ewe, St Goran, St Mewan, St Michael Caerhays, and St Stephen-in-Brannel.
1974-1983: The Municipal Boroughs of Truro, and St Austell with Fowey, the Rural District of Truro except the civil parish of Gwennap, and in the Rural District of St Austell the civil parishes of Creed, Grampound, Roche, St Dennis, St Ewe, St Goran, St Mewan, St Michael Caerhays, and St Stephen-in-Brannel.
1983-1997: The District of Carrick wards of Boscawen, Chacewater, Feock, Kea, Kenwyn, Moresk, Newlyn, Perranzabuloe, Probus, Roseland, St Agnes, St Clement, Tregolls, and Trehaverne, and the Borough of Restormel wards of Crinnis, Mevagissey, Poltair, Rock, St Ewe, St Mewan, St Stephen-in-Brannel, Trevarna, and Treverbyn.
History
The constituency has existed in a number of different forms. The constituency of Truro, up until 1885 elected two members to parliament; this was reduced to one. In 1918 the constituency was abolished but it was recreated again in 1950.
The seat became a safe Lib Dem bet thanks to the popularity and eloquence of its former MP, David Penhaligon. His death in a car crash, aged only 42, robbed the House of Commons of one of its most independent-minded and pragmatic members. His successor, Matthew Taylor, held the seat comfortably from a by-election in 1987, and remained its MP after the name change in 1997.
MPs 1295–1629
Elections in the 1910s
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 the July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;