Bramber

Borough

Published in The History of Parliament: the House of Commons 1715-1754, ed. R. Sedgwick, 1970
Available from Boydell and Brewer

Background Information

Right of Election:

in burgage holders paying scot and lot

Number of voters:

36

Elections

DateCandidateVotes
27 Jan. 1715SIR RICHARD GOUGH 
 SIR THOMAS STYLE17
 Edward Minshull13
 Sir Charles Kymes 
 MINSHULL vice Style, on petition, 1 June 1715 
21 Mar. 1722SIR RICHARD GOUGH20
 WILLIAM CHARLES VAN HULS20
 Andrews Windsor13
 John Gumley13
18 Feb. 1723DAVID POLHILL vice Van Huls, deceased 
18 Aug. 1727SIR RICHARD GOUGH 
 JOSEPH DANVERS 
2 Mar. 1728JOHN GUMLEY vice Gough, deceased11
 James Hoste10
 HOSTE vice Gumley, on petition, 4 Apr. 1728 
23 Apr. 1734SIR HENRY GOUGH22
 HENRY GOUGH22
 Dixie Windsor8
 Herbert Windsor8
4 May 1741HENRY GOUGH 
 THOMAS ARCHER 
29 June 1747HENRY GOUGH 
 JOSEPH DAMER 

Main Article

At George I’s accession 18 of the 36 Bramber burgages belonged to Sir Richard Gough, a Whig; 13 were owned by Lord Windsor, a Tory; 5 were independent. In 1715 Gough and a Windsor candidate, Style, were returned, but Style was unseated in favour of Minshull, the Gough candidate, who petitioned successfully on the ground of partiality by the returning officer.1 At both the next general elections Gough’s candidates were successful, in 1722 after a contest and in 1727 unopposed. At a by-election caused by Gough’s death in 1728, when his son, Henry, was under age, the Gough candidate was defeated, but the seat was recovered on petition. Soon afterwards Sir Henry Gough bought two more burgages, thus gaining complete control of the borough.2 In 1734 he returned himself and a cousin, after a final contest with the Windsors. In 1741 he stood down in favour of Thomas Archer, to whom he subsequently leased the borough.3

Author: Romney R. Sedgwick

Notes

  • 1. CJ, xviii. 24.
  • 2. ‘A state of ... Bramber’, Lowndes mss, W. Suss. RO.
  • 3. Namier, Structure, 144 n.