Aylesbury case

views updated May 21 2018

Aylesbury case. This was a protracted legal wrangle which led to a dispute between the two Houses of Parliament. Matthew Ashby, a Whig elector at Aylesbury in 1700, was prevented by the mayor from voting. He took his case to the House of Lords, which supported him: the House of Commons then insisted that it was the sole judge of election matters. The rivalry between the two houses was exacerbated by party feeling, the Whigs being strong in the House of Lords. The matter was unresolved when Parliament was prorogued.

J. A. Cannon

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