Summary of constituencies and Members of Parliament
Key to categories: BC - Borough constituencies, CC - County constituencies, UC - University constituencies, Total C - Total constituencies, BMP - Borough Members of Parliament, CMP - County Members of Parliament, UMP - University Members of Parliament.
There were 300 seats in the Irish House of Commons in 1800, elected in 150 2-member constituencies: 32 county constituencies, 117 borough constituencies, and one university constituency. Under the Act of Union 1800, Ireland was divided into constituencies to elect 100 MPs for elections to the United KingdomParliament. From 1801, there were 32 two-member county constituencies, 2 two-member borough constituencies, 31 one-member borough constituencies, and 1 university constituency.
1801–1832
In cases where both a borough and county area have the same name and seats of each type exist simultaneously Borough, City or County (as appropriate) are included in the constituency name in the list below, unless there is a later county seat of the same name in which case County is omitted.
Borough constituencies: 2 two member, 31 single member; seats 35.
University constituency: 1 single member seat.
County constituencies: 32 two member; seats 64.
Constituencies: 66.
Members of Parliament: 100.
1885–1918
There was a redistribution of constituencies. All seats were single member, except for Cork City and Dublin University, which continued to return two members. Divisions of a borough or county are given in the list below with the name of the borough or county preceding the name of the division. County division compass point names normally have the direction before the county name i.e. East Antrim. The list below treats such names like the borough equivalents, with the name of the place preceding the compass point, i.e. Antrim East.
Borough constituencies: 1 two member, 14 single member; seats 16.
University constituency: 1 two member; seats 2.
County constituencies: 85 single member seats.
Constituencies: 101.
Members of Parliament: 103.
The general election of 1918in Ireland was, in British law, to fill the 105 Irish seats in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom for the 31st United Kingdom Parliament. This Parliament first met on 4 February 1919 and was dissolved on 26 October 1922. Sinn Féin elected 69 MPs to 73 seats at this election and under Irish Republican theory, regarded the 1918 election as an all-Ireland election for First Dáil, where they sat as Teachtaí Dála (TDs).
1918–1922
There was a redistribution of constituencies. All seats were single member, except for Cork City and Dublin University, which continued to return two members. From 1918 some former constituency names are reused. Such seats are identified by using (1) or (2) after the constituency name.
Borough constituencies: 1 two member, 19 single member; seats 21.
University constituencies: 1 two member, 2 single member; seats 4.
County constituencies: 80 single member seats.
Constituencies: 103.
Members of Parliament: 105.
The Government of Ireland Act 1920 created two separate Parliaments for Northern Ireland and Southern Ireland respectively. It also decreased the representation for Ireland at Westminster from 105 in total to 13 from Northern Ireland and 33 from Southern Ireland.
1922–1950
There was a redistribution of constituencies, following the Anglo-Irish Treaty and the establishment of the Irish Free State. Twenty-six of the thirty-two Irish counties ceased to be represented in the United KingdomParliament. The remaining six counties formed Northern Ireland. All seats were single member, except for Antrim, Down and Fermanagh & Tyrone. Those three seats elected two members each. Some seats included parts of more than one county. The predominant county when the constituency is created is named in those cases.
1950–1983
There was a redistribution of constituencies. All seats were single member ones from this time and the university constituency was abolished.
^W. O'Brien (IPP), was also elected for Cork City and elected to sit for that seat, necessitating a fresh by-election in March which was won by M. Healy (IPP).