| Argyllshire | |
|---|---|
| Formercounty constituency for theHouse of Commons | |
| Subdivisions of Scotland | Argyllshire |
| 1708–1983 | |
| Seats | One |
| Replaced by | Argyll and Bute andInverness, Nairn and Lochaber |
Argyllshire was acounty constituency of theHouse of Commons of theParliament of Great Britain from 1708 to 1800 and of theHouse of Commons of theParliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 until 1983. The constituency was namedArgyll from 1950. The constituency was replaced in 1983 withArgyll and Bute.
It elected oneMember of Parliament (MP) using thefirst-past-the-post voting system.
The British parliamentary constituency was created in 1708 following theActs of Union 1707 and replaced the formerParliament of Scotland shire constituency ofArgyllshire .[1][2][3][4][5]
Until Scottishcounties were abolished, for most purposes, in 1975, the constituency represented thecounty of Argyll, except that constituency boundaries may not have coincided at all times withcounty boundaries, and anyparliamentary burgh within the county would have been outside the constituency.
In 1975 most of the county plus theIsle of Bute became the Argylldistrict of theStrathclyderegion. A northern area of the county became part of theHighland region. Until 1975 theIsle of Bute had been part of thecounty of Bute.
In 1996, 13 years after the abolition of the Argyll constituency and creation of the Argyll and Bute constituency, the Argyll district, plus a portion of theDumbarton district of Strathclyde, became theArgyll and Bute unitary council area.
| Election | Member[6] | Party | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | SirDuncan McCallum | Unionist | |
| 1958 (b) | Michael Noble | Unionist | |
| Feb 1974 | Iain MacCormick | Scottish National Party | |
| 1979 | John Mackay | Conservative | |
| 1983 | constituency abolished | ||

| Decades: |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | Walter Frederick Campbell | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 114 | ||||
| Whighold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | Walter Frederick Campbell | Unopposed | |||
| Whighold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | James Henry Callander | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 995 | ||||
| Whighold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | Walter Frederick Campbell | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 1,084 | ||||
| Whighold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | Walter Frederick Campbell | 712 | 60.6 | ||
| Conservative | Alexander Campbell | 462 | 39.4 | ||
| Majority | 250 | 21.2 | |||
| Turnout | 1,174 | 70.5 | |||
| Registered electors | 1,666 | ||||
| Whighold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Alexander Campbell | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 1,600 | ||||
| Conservativegain fromWhig | |||||
Campbell resigned by accepting the office ofSteward of the Chiltern Hundreds, causing a by-election.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Duncan McNeill | Unopposed | |||
| Conservativehold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Duncan McNeill | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 1,889 | ||||
| Conservativehold | |||||
McNeill resigned after being appointed a Senator of theCollege of Justice, becoming Lord Colonsay and causing a by-election.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Archibald Campbell | Unopposed | |||
| Conservativehold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Archibald Campbell | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 2,156 | ||||
| Conservativehold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Whig | Alexander Struthers Finlay | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 2,256 | ||||
| Whiggain fromConservative | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Alexander Struthers Finlay | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 2,294 | ||||
| Liberalhold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Alexander Struthers Finlay | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 1,914 | ||||
| Liberalhold | |||||
Finlay resigned, causing a by-election.
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | John Campbell | Unopposed | |||
| Liberalhold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | John Campbell | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 2,870 | ||||
| Liberalhold | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | John Campbell | Unopposed | |||
| Registered electors | 3,018 | ||||
| Liberalhold | |||||
Campbell resigned after being appointedGovernor General of Canada.

| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Colin Campbell | 1,462 | 56.9 | N/A | |
| Conservative | John Malcolm | 1,107 | 43.1 | New | |
| Majority | 355 | 13.8 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 2,569 | 82.0 | N/A | ||
| Registered electors | 3,133 | ||||
| Liberalhold | Swing | N/A | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | Colin Campbell | 1,457 | 55.0 | N/A | |
| Conservative | John Malcolm | 1,191 | 45.0 | N/A | |
| Majority | 266 | 10.0 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 2,648 | 80.3 | N/A | ||
| Registered electors | 3,299 | ||||
| Liberalhold | Swing | N/A | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independent Liberal (Crofters) | Donald Horne McFarlane | 3,340 | 48.6 | New | |
| Independent Liberal | William Mackinnon[15] | 2,856 | 41.6 | New | |
| Liberal | John Stuart McCaig | 670 | 9.8 | −45.2 | |
| Majority | 484 | 7.0 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 6,866 | 68.6 | −11.7 | ||
| Registered electors | 10,011 | ||||
| Independent Liberalgain fromLiberal | Swing | N/A | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | John Malcolm | 3,658 | 54.6 | New | |
| Liberal (Crofters) | Donald Horne McFarlane | 3,045 | 45.4 | −3.2 | |
| Majority | 613 | 9.2 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 6,703 | 67.0 | −1.6 | ||
| Registered electors | 10,011 | ||||
| Conservativegain fromIndependent Liberal | Swing | N/A | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal (Crofters) | Donald Horne Macfarlane | 3,666 | 50.6 | +5.2 | |
| Conservative | John Malcolm | 3,586 | 49.4 | −5.2 | |
| Majority | 80 | 1.2 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 7,252 | 73.4 | +6.4 | ||
| Registered electors | 9,874 | ||||
| Liberalgain fromConservative | Swing | +5.2 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Donald Nicol | 3,970 | 50.9 | +1.5 | |
| Liberal | Donald Horne Macfarlane | 3,835 | 49.1 | −1.5 | |
| Majority | 135 | 1.8 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 7,805 | 74.5 | +1.1 | ||
| Registered electors | 10,471 | ||||
| Conservativegain fromLiberal | Swing | +1.5 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Donald Nicol | 3,834 | 54.2 | +3.3 | |
| Liberal | John Ainsworth | 3,234 | 45.8 | −3.3 | |
| Majority | 600 | 8.4 | +6.6 | ||
| Turnout | 7,068 | 67.9 | −6.6 | ||
| Registered electors | 10,405 | ||||
| Conservativehold | Swing | +3.3 | |||

| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | John Ainsworth | 4,326 | 61.2 | +15.4 | |
| Conservative | C. Stewart | 2,740 | 38.8 | −15.4 | |
| Majority | 1,586 | 22.4 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 7,066 | 66.4 | −1.5 | ||
| Registered electors | 10,643 | ||||
| Liberalgain fromConservative | Swing | +15.4 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | John Ainsworth | 4,507 | 59.9 | +14.1 | |
| Conservative | George Hutchison | 3,012 | 40.1 | −14.1 | |
| Majority | 1,495 | 19.8 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 7,519 | 67.0 | −0.9 | ||
| Registered electors | 11,216 | ||||
| Liberalgain fromConservative | Swing | +14.1 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | John Ainsworth | 4,443 | 55.1 | −4.8 | |
| Conservative | George Hutchison | 3,617 | 44.9 | +4.8 | |
| Majority | 826 | 10.2 | −9.6 | ||
| Turnout | 8,060 | 73.1 | +6.1 | ||
| Registered electors | 11,025 | ||||
| Liberalhold | Swing | −4.8 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | John Ainsworth | 4,280 | 51.5 | −3.6 | |
| Conservative | George Hutchison | 4,023 | 48.5 | +3.6 | |
| Majority | 257 | 3.0 | −7.2 | ||
| Turnout | 8,303 | 71.8 | −1.3 | ||
| Registered electors | 11,572 | ||||
| Liberalhold | Swing | −3.6 | |||
General Election 1914–15:
Another General Election was required to take place before the end of 1915. The political parties had been making preparations for an election to take place and by July 1914, the following candidates had been selected;
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Liberal | William Sutherland | 11,970 | 81.4 | +29.9 |
| Highland Land League | Lauchlin MacNeill Weir | 2,733 | 18.6 | New | |
| Majority | 9,237 | 62.8 | +59.8 | ||
| Turnout | 14,703 | 52.0 | −29.8 | ||
| Liberalhold | Swing | N/A | |||
| Cindicatescandidate endorsed by the coalition government. | |||||

| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| C | Liberal | William Sutherland | 10,187 | 64.9 | −16.5 |
| Labour | Malcolm MacCallum | 5,498 | 35.1 | New | |
| Majority | 4,689 | 29.8 | −33.0 | ||
| Turnout | 15,685 | 50.2 | −1.8 | ||
| Liberalhold | Swing | ||||
| Cindicatescandidate endorsed by the coalition government. | |||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Liberal | William Sutherland | 9,848 | 58.8 | N/A | |
| Liberal | Henry Anderson Watt | 6,897 | 41.2 | −40.2 | |
| Majority | 2,591 | 15.6 | −47.2 | ||
| Turnout | 16,745 | 51.8 | −0.2 | ||
| National Liberalhold | Swing | −6.1 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Liberal | William Sutherland | 9,020 | 52.7 | −6.1 | |
| Unionist | Frederick Alexander Macquisten | 8,100 | 47.3 | New | |
| Majority | 920 | 5.4 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 17,120 | 53.3 | +1.5 | ||
| Liberalgain fromNational Liberal | Swing | N/A | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Frederick Alexander Macquisten | 9,240 | 46.2 | −1.1 | |
| Liberal | William Sutherland | 6,211 | 31.1 | −21.6 | |
| Labour | I.H. MacIver | 4,532 | 22.7 | New | |
| Majority | 3,029 | 15.1 | +9.7 | ||
| Turnout | 19,983 | 62.7 | +9.4 | ||
| Unionisthold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Frederick Alexander Macquisten | 11,108 | 44.1 | −2.1 | |
| Liberal | Basil Murray | 8,089 | 32.1 | +1.0 | |
| Labour | John L. Kinloch | 6,001 | 23.8 | +1.1 | |
| Majority | 3,019 | 12.0 | −3.1 | ||
| Turnout | 25,198 | 62.7 | 0.0 | ||
| Unionisthold | Swing | −1.6 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Frederick Alexander Macquisten | Unopposed | N/A | N/A | |
| Unionisthold | Swing | N/A | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Frederick Alexander Macquisten | 13,260 | 53.6 | N/A | |
| Liberal | Basil Murray | 11,486 | 46.4 | New | |
| Majority | 1,774 | 7.2 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 24,746 | 56.6 | N/A | ||
| Unionisthold | Swing | N/A | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Duncan McCallum | 12,317 | 62.8 | +9.2 | |
| SNP | William Power | 7,308 | 37.2 | New | |
| Majority | 5,009 | 25.5 | +17.3 | ||
| Turnout | 19,625 | 47.9 | −8.7 | ||
| Unionisthold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Duncan McCallum | 15,791 | 56.6 | +3.0 | |
| Labour | A. MacNeill Weir | 8,889 | 31.9 | New | |
| Liberal | John Bannerman | 3,228 | 11.6 | −34.8 | |
| Majority | 6,902 | 24.7 | +17.5 | ||
| Turnout | 27,908 | 63.9 | +7.3 | ||
| Unionisthold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Duncan McCallum | 19,259 | 66.5 | +9.9 | |
| Labour | I. Nicholson | 9,215 | 31.8 | −0.1 | |
| Scottish Home Rule | M S McP Holt | 490 | 1.7 | New | |
| Majority | 10,044 | 34.7 | +10.0 | ||
| Turnout | 28,964 | 75.1 | +11.2 | ||
| Unionisthold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Duncan McCallum | 21,191 | 68.1 | +1.6 | |
| Labour | Robert M. Young | 9,925 | 31.9 | +0.1 | |
| Majority | 11,266 | 36.2 | +1.5 | ||
| Turnout | 28,210 | 67.1 | −8.0 | ||
| Unionisthold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Duncan McCallum | 19,119 | 67.8 | −0.3 | |
| Labour | Robert M. Young | 9,091 | 32.2 | +0.3 | |
| Majority | 10,028 | 35.6 | −0.6 | ||
| Turnout | 28,210 | 66.9 | −0.2 | ||
| Unionisthold | Swing | −0.3 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Michael Noble | 12,541 | 46.8 | −21.0 | |
| Liberal | William D. McKean | 7,375 | 27.5 | New | |
| Labour | Robert M. Young | 6,884 | 25.7 | −6.5 | |
| Majority | 5,166 | 19.3 | −16.3 | ||
| Turnout | 26,800 | ||||
| Unionisthold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Michael Noble | 16,599 | 58.4 | −9.4 | |
| Labour | D. Nisbet | 7,356 | 25.9 | −6.3 | |
| Liberal | Gerard Noel | 4,469 | 15.7 | New | |
| Majority | 9,243 | 32.5 | −3.1 | ||
| Turnout | 28,424 | 71.0 | +4.1 | ||
| Unionisthold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unionist | Michael Noble | 13,277 | 47.2 | −11.2 | |
| Labour | Duncan L. MacMillan | 8,120 | 28.9 | +3.0 | |
| Liberal | John MacKay | 6,707 | 23.9 | +8.2 | |
| Majority | 5,157 | 18.4 | −14.1 | ||
| Turnout | 28,104 | 70.3 | −0.7 | ||
| Unionisthold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Michael Noble | 12,178 | 43.2 | −4.0 | |
| Labour | John McFadden | 8,486 | 30.1 | +1.2 | |
| Liberal | John MacKay | 7,512 | 26.7 | +2.8 | |
| Majority | 3,692 | 13.1 | −5.3 | ||
| Turnout | 28,176 | 72.3 | +2.0 | ||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | Michael Noble | 13,521 | 44.8 | +1.6 | |
| SNP | Iain MacCormick | 9,039 | 29.9 | New | |
| Labour | John McFadden | 7,633 | 25.3 | −4.8 | |
| Majority | 4,482 | 14.9 | +1.8 | ||
| Turnout | 30,193 | 73.9 | +1.6 | ||
| Conservativehold | Swing | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SNP | Iain MacCormick | 15,646 | 48.9 | +19.0 | |
| Conservative | Peter Craft Hutchison | 12,358 | 38.6 | −6.2 | |
| Labour | M.J.N. MacGregor | 4,027 | 12.6 | −12.7 | |
| Majority | 3,288 | 10.3 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 32,031 | 77.3 | +3.4 | ||
| SNPgain fromConservative | Swing | +12.6 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| SNP | Iain MacCormick | 14,967 | 49.7 | +0.8 | |
| Conservative | John MacKay | 11,036 | 36.7 | −1.9 | |
| Labour | M.J.N. MacGregor | 4,103 | 13.6 | +1.0 | |
| Majority | 3,931 | 13.0 | +1.7 | ||
| Turnout | 30,106 | 72.0 | −5.3 | ||
| SNPhold | Swing | +1.4 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conservative | John MacKay | 12,191 | 36.8 | +0.1 | |
| SNP | Iain MacCormick | 10,545 | 31.8 | −17.9 | |
| Labour | M.J.N. MacGregor | 5,283 | 16.0 | +2.4 | |
| Liberal | Ray Michie | 5,113 | 15.4 | New | |
| Majority | 1,646 | 5.0 | N/A | ||
| Turnout | 33,132 | 76.1 | +4.1 | ||
| Conservativegain fromSNP | Swing | +9.0 | |||