1867
Lord John Russell’s government fell when the Liberals split over further
parliamentary reform. Benjamin Disraeli, Chancellor of the Exchequer in Lord
Derby’s Conservative government introduced the 1867 Reform Act which gave the vote to all male householders, thus enfranchising
the working class. Staffordshire was split into 3 divisions: Northern, Western and Eastern. Penkridge was in the Western Division.
1868
General election called by Conservatives to get a majority. The old Liberal
stronghold of South Staffordshire had, curiously, been split between the Eastern and Western Divisions.
Western Division of Staffordshire:
Abbotts
Bromley, Bilston, Brewood, Cannock, Eccleshall, Gnosall, Kingswinford, Kinver, Penkridge, Penn, Rowley Regis, Rugeley, Sedgeley,
Stone, Stafford, Tettenhall, Wednesfield, Weston upon Trent and Wolverhampton.
Henry Foley and William Foster decided to fight the Western
Division. The Conservatives, invigorated by the addition of northern areas, fielded Hugo Meynell-Ingram and Smith Child. Both
sides addressed a public meeting of ironmasters.
Election Day, Tuesday 24th November, 1868
Smith Child Esq.
(C) 3909
Meynall-Ingram
(C) 3773
Foster
(L) 3295
Foley
(L) 3244
An unexpectedly large win for the Conservatives. A large number of Liberals who had promised to vote did not
do so. In East Staffordshire the Liberals won easily, so Foster and Foley had made a mistake.
1871
A by-election caused by the death of Meynell-Ingram.
Nomination Day, 13th June, 1871
Francis Monckton (C)
returned
unopposed
Francis Monckton, b. 1844, eldest son of late Gen. Henry Monckton of Stretton Hall. Educated
at Eton and Oxford. Inherited estates of Stretton and Somerford from his uncle, George Monckton.
1874
I feel unable to undertake the fatigue of another contested
election in such a widely extended constituency {Smith Child]
Nomination Day, February 10th, 1874
Francis Monckton (C)
Alexander Stavely Hill
QC (C)
returned unopposed
Alexander Stavely
Hill, of Oxley Manor,
previously MP for Coventry.
1880
Stafford Advertiser notices an extraordinary amount of party enthusiasm and
expects a high turnout. “The country appears to have made its mind up on a change of government”. The Liberals
attacked the supposedly immoral foreign policy of the Disraeli government and secured one of their largest ever majorities
in the election, leaving the Conservatives a distant second – but not in western Staffs.
Election,
April 9th, 1880
Alex Stavely Hill (Con)
4,123
Francis Monckton (Con)
3,967
Sir
William Reynall Anson (Lib) 3,564
James
Hall Renton (Lib)
3,344
Both
the Liberal candidates were harmed by being “outsiders”. Lord Lichfield disowned candidature of his near relative.
Both parties held their Penkridge meetings at the Littleton Arms. The Hon. E.G. Littleton and the Hon. Rev. C. Littleton supported
the Liberal candidates
