Background
Dodgson-Charlesworth was the son of John Dodgson Charlesworth of Chapelthorpe, Sandal, Wakefield.
Dodgson-Charlesworth was the son of John Dodgson Charlesworth of Chapelthorpe, Sandal, Wakefield.
Baptised 20 August 1815, he was educated at Sedbergh School and Street John"s College, Cambridge, graduating from Street John"s with a Bachelor in 1837 and an Master of Arts in 1840.
In the 1841 census he is described as a coal master and residing in Chapelthorpe. By 1855 he had been appointed as a magistrate, moved to Woolgreaves Hall, and had purchased the shooting lodge at Grinton Lodge. Dodgson-Charlesworth was adopted as the Conservative candidate for Wakefield for the 1857 general election and in the absence of any other candidate, he was elected unopposed.
Not a frequent speaker in the House of Commons, he spoke only three times in the two years he was an Member of Parliament. 1859 general election and subsequent corruption inquiry
At the 1859 he was re-adopted as the Conservative candidate but was on this occasion opposed by a Liberal candidate, William Henry Leatham.
Following Leatham"s victory, supporters of Charlesworth petitioned Parliament for the election to be declared void. Parliament"s General Committee on Elections reported on 27 July that the election was void and that Leatham was, via his agents, guilty of bribery.
The committee also resolved "That there is reason to believe that corrupt practices have extensively prevailed at the last election for the Borough of Wakefield". As a result of this finding a Commission was established to look into the alleged corruption.
The Commission sat for three weeks between October and December 1859 and found that not only had Leatham conducted bribery on a large scale but so had Dodgson-Charlesworth.
Leatham was found to have spent at least £3,900 and Dodgson-Charlesworth at least £4,150 on bribing voters. Dodgson-Charlesworth was also held to have hired several prize fighters for the dual purposes of exerting an improper influence on the election and causing intimidation to voters supporting Leatham. Between them, the two candidates bribed 142 of the 866 electors of the borough.
Number criminal proceedings followed but it ended Dodgson-Charlesworth"s political career and the borough of Wakefield did not elect another Member of Parliament until 1862.
On the death of his father Dodgson-Charlesworth inherited Chapelthorpe Hall and continued to live there, managing his colliery business until his death in 1880.
17th United Kingdom Parliament.