Wigtownshire

Wigtownshire or the County of Wigtown is a registration county and lieutenancy area in south-west Scotland. Until 1975, Wigtownshire was one of the administrative counties used for local government purposes, and is now administered as part of the council area of Dumfries and Galloway. As a lieutenancy area, Wigtownshire has its own Lord Lieutenant, currently John Alexander Ross.

Description

Wigtownshire borders the Irish Sea to the west, the Solway Firth to the south, Ayrshire to the north, and the Stewartry of Kirkcudbright to the east. Together the Stewartry and Wigtownshire are referred to as Galloway. The western area of Wigtownshire is known as Rhinns of Galloway, and the eastern area is known as Machars. Wigtownshire includes the southernmost point in Scotland, the Mull of Galloway, the Machars and the Rhins of Galloway peninsula. The county town was historically Wigtown, with the administrative centre moving to Stranraer, the largest town, on the creation of a county council in 1890.

Wigtownshire (Parliament of Scotland constituency)

Wigtownshire was a constituency represented in the Parliament of Scotland until 1707.

Shire commissioners

References

Wigtownshire (UK Parliament constituency)

Wigtownshire, was a constituency of the House of Commons of the Parliament of Great Britain from 1708 to 1801 and of the Parliament of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1918. It was represented by one Member of Parliament.

The first British general election in Wigtownshire was in 1708. In 1707–08, members of the 1702–1707 Parliament of Scotland were co-opted to serve in the 1st Parliament of Great Britain. See Scottish representatives to the 1st Parliament of Great Britain, for further details.

In 1918 the Wigtownshire area was combined with Kirkcudbrightshire to form the Galloway constituency.

Boundaries

Wigtownshire was a Scottish shire (later known as a county), which had previously been represented by two commissioners in the former Parliament of Scotland. The constituenency included the whole shire, except that between 1708-1885 the burghs of Stranraer, New Galloway, Whithorn and Wigtown, formed part of the Wigtown Burghs constituency.

Members of Parliament