Editing Macclesfield (section)

=== Administrative history ===
Macclesfield was historically a [[Township (England)|township]] in the [[ancient parish]] of [[Prestbury, Cheshire|Prestbury]].<ref name=commissioners/><ref>{{cite web |title=Macclesfield Township / Civil Parish |url=https://visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10064442 |website=A Vision of Britain through Time |publisher=GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth |access-date=22 February 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |title=Book of Reference to the Plan of the Parish of Prestbury (Part I) |date=1873 |publisher=Ordnance Survey |location=London |url=https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Book_of_Reference_to_the_Plan_of_the_Par/49MHAAAAQAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=RA1-PP11&printsec=frontcover |access-date=22 February 2025}}</ref> From the 17th century onwards, parishes were gradually given various civil functions under the [[English Poor Laws|Poor Laws]], in addition to their original ecclesiastical functions. In some cases, including Prestbury, the civil functions were exercised by each township separately rather than the parish as a whole. In 1866, the legal definition of 'parish' was changed to be the areas used for administering the poor laws, and so Macclesfield became a [[civil parish]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Youngs |first1=Frederic |title=Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England: Volume II, Northern England |date=1991 |publisher=[[Royal Historical Society]] |location=[[London]] |isbn=0861931270 |page=xv}}</ref>

Macclesfield was also a [[chapelry]] from at least the 13th century, when St Michael's Church (originally dedicated to All Saints) was built as a [[chapel of ease]] to [[St Peter's Church, Prestbury]]. St Michael's formally became a parish church in 1835, when Macclesfield was made a separate [[ecclesiastical parish]] from Prestbury.<ref>{{London Gazette|issue=19312|page=1823|date=2 October 1835}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last1=Youngs |first1=Frederic |title=Guide to the Local Administrative Units of England: Volume II, Northern England |date=1991 |publisher=[[Royal Historical Society]] |location=[[London]] |isbn=0861931270 |page=24}}</ref>

The Macclesfield township was administered as a [[ancient borough|borough]] from at least the time of its 1261 charter. The borough was administered from a [[guildhall]] in the Market Place from at least the 13th century. [[Macclesfield Town Hall]] was completed in 1824 on the site of the guildhall.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Shaw |first1=Mike |last2=Clark |first2=Jo |title=Cheshire Historic Towns Survey: Macclesfield |date=2002 |publisher=Cheshire County Council and English Heritage |page=12 |url=https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/Book_of_Reference_to_the_Plan_of_the_Par/49MHAAAAQAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=RA1-PP11&printsec=frontcover |access-date=22 February 2025 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201123180138/http://www.cheshirearchaeology.org.uk/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/HTS_Arch_Assess_Macclesfield.pdf |archive-date=23 November 2020}}</ref><ref>{{NHLE|desc=Town Hall|num=1206935|grade=II*}}</ref>

A Macclesfield constituency was created in 1832, covering the borough plus adjoining parts of the townships of [[Hurdsfield House|Hurdsfield]] and [[Sutton Lane Ends|Sutton]], where the urban area had grown beyond the borough boundaries.<ref name=commissioners/><ref>{{cite book |title=Parliamentary Boundaries Act |date=1832 |page=335 |url=https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/The_Statutes_of_the_United_Kingdom_of_Gr/Uq0uAAAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PA335&printsec=frontcover |access-date=22 February 2025}}</ref> The borough was reformed in 1836 to become a [[municipal borough]] under the [[Municipal Corporations Act 1835]], which standardised how most boroughs operated across the country. As part of the 1836 reforms, the borough was enlarged to match the constituency.<ref>{{cite book |title=Municipal Corporations Act |date=1835 |page=457 |url=https://archive.org/details/statutesunitedk35britgoog/page/456/mode/2up |access-date=22 February 2025}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Macclesfield Municipal Borough |url=https://visionofbritain.org.uk/unit/10137135 |website=A Vision of Britain through Time |publisher=GB Historical GIS / University of Portsmouth |access-date=22 February 2025}}</ref>

The result of the [[1880 United Kingdom general election|1880 general election]] for the Macclesfield constituency was declared void due to corruption, and no by-election was allowed to be held.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Paterson |first1=William |title=Practical Statutes |date=1881 |publisher=Law Times |location=London |page=168 |url=https://www.google.co.uk/books/edition/The_Practical_Statutes_of_the_Session/I4NCAQAAMAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&pg=PA168&printsec=frontcover |access-date=22 February 2025}}</ref> In 1885, the constituency was replaced by a much larger [[county constituency]], also called Macclesfield, which took in surrounding towns and villages as well as the borough of Macclesfield.
 
The municipal borough of Macclesfield was abolished in 1974 under the [[Local Government Act 1972]]. A much larger [[non-metropolitan district|non-metropolitan]] [[Macclesfield (borough)|borough of Macclesfield]] was created instead, which also covered an extensive surrounding area, including the towns of [[Bollington]], [[Knutsford]], and [[Wilmslow]].<ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Definition) Order 1972|year=1972|number=2039|accessdate=3 March 2023}}</ref><ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The English Non-metropolitan Districts (Names) Order 1973|year=1973|number=551|accessdate=3 March 2023}}</ref>

In 2009, Cheshire East Council was created, taking over the functions of the borough council and [[Cheshire County Council]], which were both abolished.<ref>{{cite legislation UK|type=si|si=The Cheshire (Structural Changes) Order 2008|year=2008|number=634|access-date=8 May 2024}}</ref> The area of the pre-1974 municipal borough of Macclesfield had been [[unparished area|unparished]] since the 1974 reforms; a new civil parish of Macclesfield was created covering the area in 2015, with its parish council adopting the name Macclesfield Town Council.<ref>{{cite web |title=The Cheshire East Borough Council (Reorganisation of Community Governance) (Macclesfield) Order 2015 |url=https://webarchive.nationalarchives.gov.uk/ukgwa/20221202003005mp_/https://s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/lgbce/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/26581/Macclesfield-RoCG-Order-2015.pdf |website=Local Government Boundary Commission for England |publisher=The National Archives |access-date=22 February 2025}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Greer |first=Stuart |date=17 October 2014 |title=It's 'full steam ahead' for a new Macclesfield town council |work=Macclesfield Express |url=http://www.macclesfield-express.co.uk/news/its-full-steam-ahead-new-7950303 |access-date=15 June 2016 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304052820/http://www.macclesfield-express.co.uk/news/its-full-steam-ahead-new-7950303 |url-status=live }}</ref>