1558 - 1603 Constituencies
Ref Volumes: 1558-1603
Authors: P.W.H.Created by: admin
Each constituency account opens with a list of the Members and the dates of their return when known. These dates have been taken from theReturn of Members(HC Parliamentary Papers 69 and 69-I of 1878, commonly known as theOfficial Returnand cited asOR), some of the original returns in the Public Record Office (class C219), and a typescript list in the same Office of returns discovered since the publication of theOfficial Returnand described as supplementary. Where these sources failed, and acting on the assumption that a close or even an approximate date was better than none, the date given is sometimes that of the issue of the writ, sometimes that of theelection(ascertained from borough records and other local sources). As a last resort the year date alone (e.g. 1571) or the outside year dates of elections (e.g. 1558/9) are shown. Dates of by-elections are printed in italics. Names of unsuccessful candidates are indented. The sources used for the names of Members are set out in more detail in Appendices I-X.
A knighthood acquired during the course of an MP’s parliamentary career is indicated in brackets, thus (Sir). An asterisk after an MP’s name in the list of Members beginning a constituency account indicates that he did not complete the Parliament, and that no new writ or mention of a by-election has been found to indicate that he was replaced. In the text of the constituency accounts an asterisk or dagger after a Member’s name bears the same meaning as in the biographies, namely that the man’s biography occurs in this or another section of theHistory. Where, however, it is obvious from the context that a man was a Member, an asterisk or dagger has not been inserted.
Constituencies without initials are based upon drafts by Sir John Neale.
