Aug

1788

Westminster

8226 voters

Contested

BY ELECTION

In the by-election of Aug 1788, 8226 people voted. There were 2 candidates, with John Townshend elected.

Poll book data from:
Holding: London Metropolitan Archives
Citation: WR/PP 1788
Source: London Electoral History 1700–1850.
Timeline & Key Statistics
Contexts & Remarks

Transcription completed by the London Electoral History 1700-1850 project, undertaken by Penelope J. Corfield, Edmund M. Green, and Charles Harvey.

Dates: Friday 18 July-Monday 4 Aug. 1788.

Poll book reference: London Metropolitan Archives, WR/PP 1788.

The by-election was triggered when Lord Hood was appointed as Lord of the Admiralty.

During the election, Candidates: Samuel Hood, Lord Hood (Government); and Lord John Townshend (Opposition Whig).

Lord Hood was the returning candidate, an Irish peer who served as read admiral in the West Indies. He was connected to William Pitt the Younger via his brother's marriage to Pitt's aunt.

Lord John Townshend, former MP for Cambridge University, was the son of the 1st Marquess Townshend and friend of Charles James Fox.

The by-election returned Townshend over the incumbent.

Cultural Artefacts
Poll Book

Below is a digitised version of the poll book for this election:

Features related to this Election