Country life
ALL CHANGE AT WESTMINSTER
By Sam Biles , Managing Director of country Estate Agents Biles and co
Sam Biles takes a break from Countryside matters to have look at a few of the Island ’ s past MPs .
By the time that you read this the results of the General Election will be known . One certainty in these uncertain times is that we will have a new Member of Parliament , Andrew Turner having not put himself forward for re-election . The Isle of Wight is the most populous of the UK parliamentary constituencies with an electorate of over 100,000 though this will change if the proposed division into two seats goes through . Our new MP could therefore be the last representative of the whole Island . The constituency dates from the Great Reform Act 1832 prior to which three Island Boroughs each elected two MPs ! The ‘ rotten borough ’ of Newtown had only 14 houses . We have over the years been represented by some interesting characters . Newtown ’ s MPs included Sir Richard Worsley of Appuldercombe , well known for his voyeurism and scandalous divorce from his wife Lady Seymour Worsley who is reputed to have had 27 lovers . Charles Anderson-Pelham 2nd Earl of Yarborough whose ‘ Yarborough ’ hand in Contract Bridge had no card higher than a nine - he reputedly offered £ 1,000 to anyone who achieved this - on condition that they paid him £ 1 for every time they did not . George Canning was later our shortest-serving Prime Minister for 119 days , dying in office in 1827 . Representatives of Newport included the great and the good - in 1807 its two MPs were both later Prime Ministers - Sir Arthur Wellesley ( later 1st Duke of Wellington ) and Henry John Temple Viscount Palmerston . Spencer Perceval Jnr - held the seat in 1827 - his father ( of the same name ) being the only British Prime Minister to have been assassinated . Lord Melbourne - also Prime Minister had also held one of the Newport seats . Lt Col Cecil Bisshopp ( correct spelling ) later fought and died in the Anglo-American war in 1812 in Canada - he lies buried at Niagra Falls . Sir John Simeon of Swainston was twice the Island ’ s MP - he was for a while the only Roman Catholic MP in parliament . He resigned in 1851 triggering a turbulent by-election won by Edward Dawes , nephew of notorious St Helens adventuress Sophie Dawes
( Baroness de Feuchères ). The Times reported : “ The constituency of the isle has been in a perfect ferment during the whole of the election and broken panes and broken heads have been among the results .” He was unseated after a year and retired to write on agricultural chemistry . Richard Webster - 1st Lord Alverstone was MP in the 1880s . Master of the Rolls and Lord Chief Justice of England he interestingly codified the rules for Long Jump and Shot Putt . General ‘ Galloper Jack ’ Seely , friend of Churchill , Secretary of State for War , Lifeboatman , and author Commander of the Canadian Cavalry in WW1 from his charger ‘ Warrior ’ was MP in the 1900s , having been elected whilst abroad – fighting in the Boer War . Peter Macdonald held the seat from 1924-1959 . He was born in Canada and died after a riding accident in Ningwood . In more recent years the Island has been represented by MPs of various professions - an Auctioneer , Land and Estate Agent - Stephen Ross ; a teacher - Andrew Turner and a Doctor - Peter Brand . No women have yet been elected and the seat has always been held by Conservatives and Liberal ( Democrat ) MPs . www . visitilife . com 79