Cinque Port

The Cinque Ports, which had their own charter and institutional structures, nevertheless had an anomalous status in the seventeenth century, as they were governed by a lord warden, based at Dover, who exercised powers akin to, but distinct from, the lord high admiral. They also enjoyed certain liberties, in terms of exemption from taxes and impositions, which they were determined to defend, not least by retaining the services of a string of powerful lawyers, including Serjeants Nathaniel Finch*, Ralph Whitfield, and Thomas Twisden*. Cal. White and Black Bks.

New Romney offered the peculiar spectacle of a freeman borough which operated to all intents and purposes as a corporation borough. The franchise was vested in the freemen, but entry into this body was restricted to the sons of freemen and those made free by the common assembly. Numbers were so tightly controlled that their number never exceeded the mayor, 12 jurats and 26 common councilmen allowed by the town’s charter, and MPs were only invited to take up the freedom after their election to Parliament.

Hythe’s decline paralleled that of many of the other Cinque Ports; by the 16th century its harbour had disappeared and consequently so had its national political and economic importance. Between 1690 and 1715 the town’s electorate remained very small. Corporation records show that undisputed elections attracted few voters, but the numbers grew over time, reaching a peak in 1710. Between them, the candidates owned most of the land surrounding Hythe, and local rivalries gave added impetus to their political differences.

Hastings was a small port whose economy was heavily dependent upon its fishing fleet and associated trades. The traumas of war were dramatically impressed upon the town in 1690 when it suffered bombardment by the French, and in the aftermath of the battle of Beachy Head when it was used by the Dutch as a landing point for their wounded. The construction of two small forts in the early 1690s served as a reminder of the town’s exposure to enemy attack, and similar fears were prevalent in 1707–8.

The Court had various means to influence parliamentary elections at Dover: through the number of officials based in the port; as an employer of labour and services, chiefly shipping and victualling; and through the influence of the lord warden of the Cinque Ports, and his deputy, the governor of Dover Castle. However, the warden’s authority had to be exercised with care, and the Court’s position could be damaged by non-payment of bills, a decline in naval-related employment, or even a failure to respond positively to requests for funds to maintain the harbour facilities.

Robinson described Sandwich in 1784 as ‘a borough of contests’—no single interest had effective command. Government came nearest to it, and throughout this period named at least one Member—usually connected with the Admiralty. At the dissolution of 1754 the other seat was held by Sir George Oxenden, who had represented Sandwich since 1720. Amyand in 1754 and Conyngham in 1756 were returned on his interest.

Seaford was a decayed port; its electorate was deliberately restricted; and a large number were officers of the customs and excise. In 1754 the borough was under the patronage of the Duke of Newcastle; but Newcastle’s hold was never complete and always depended on the support of the Treasury.

About 1754 the corporation was dominated by an oligarchy of local notables; its numbers were deliberately restricted; and it was not easy to manage. The chief interest was in Henry Furnese, M.P. for New Romney since 1741.

By 1754 the custom of creating freemen had fallen into disuse; and the electorate had become a close oligarchy, members and dependants of a few families who had united to secure for themselves the advantages derived from a parliamentary borough. In 1759, for example, there were 38 electors, of whom 17 held office under Government and one a secret service pension. The Lamb family were the leaders of this oligarchy, and managed the borough under the Treasury. Newcastle had recommended to all Treasury employments at Rye since 1714, and by 1754 had come to regard the borough as his own.

Hastings was a Treasury borough, managed for the Crown by the Duke of Newcastle, but by 1754 Newcastle had come to believe that it was his own. At the general election of 1761 he felt compelled to apologise to the corporation for not being able to recommend any of his own family, and in 1767 he described it as ‘a town which never was till now a Treasury borough, nor ever looked upon as such, and where I have chose the Members for upwards of three and fifty years’.Add. 32920, ff. 368-9; 32985, f. 92.