1750 Westminster by-election

, whose appointment to the ministry in 1749 led to the by-election. Trentham was eventually declared to have retained the seat. Viscount Trentham had been elected to represent the prestigious Westminster constituency at the 1747 British general election on the interest of the government, despite strong opposition from the local Jacobite dominated Association of Independent Electors. A by-election was called in November 1749 when, in accordance with parliamentary convention, Viscount Trentham was required to seek re-election to his seat following his appointment to the Broad Bottom ministry as a lord of the admiralty. The Whig statesman, the Duke of Bedford, who was Trentham's patron and controlled many properties in Westminster, expected the election to be won with little contest. Bedford accordingly directed his tenants to vote for Trentham. The franchise in the constituency, dictated by scot and lot, was the largest of any borough in the country. It numbered around 9,465 men in 1750, including many unskilled laborers. Trentham's family had become unpopular among Tories owing to his father, Lord Gower's, desertion of the party during the 1740s. Trentham was also disliked by some in the Westminster constituency for his family's supposed support for a group of French actors in London amidst the suppression of English theatre under the Licensing Act 1737. As such, a November 1749 meeting of those supporting the independent (and anti-ministerial) interest decided to put forward a candidate to contest the election. George Cooke was initially proposed, but after he declined, the Tory Sir George Vandeput was chosen. The Lord Mayor of London, Samuel Pennant, promised £12,000 to cover Vandeput's election expenses. ==The campaign and election==

, who contested and ultimately lost the by-election as the Tory candidate Upon the selection of an opposition candidate, Bedford inflamed tensions by threatening tenants who voted for Vandeput with eviction or an increase in rent. Vandeput, meanwhile, received support from the Prince of Wales's faction, leading Tory MPs, and the Association of Independent Electors of Westminster. The History of Parliament describes the by-election as having seen "scenes of unprecedented violence". On 6 February 1750 the suspected Jacobite Alexander Murray of Elibank, who had served as Vandeput's chief election agent, was brought before the House of Commons on charges of inciting the mob and seditious behaviour. On polling day itself, the Tories alleged that prisoners and debtors from Fleet Prison had been released to vote for Trentham, and that some electors had voted multiple times. ==Scrutiny and result==

, or "Loudon", recorded in A Copy of the Poll for a Citizen for the City and Liberty of Westminster (1749) The high bailiff of Westminster, Peter Leigh, declared Trentham to have been elected with 4,811 votes to Vandeput's 4,654. The enquiry was frustrated by Trentham's supporters and the petitions were rejected; the high bailiff subsequently gave evidence against Alexander Murray to the Commons in January 1750. After the scrutiny the member returned was unchanged and vote totals were amended to Trentham 4,103; Vandeput 3,933. ==Notes==