Daventry was the only Conservative seat left in Northamptonshire after Labour’s tidal wave in 1997. It lies in the south west of the county and borders 4 other counties - Leicestershire, Warwickshire, Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire.
The town of Daventry has expanded over the last few decades - it is close to the M1, between Northampton and Rugby, and has grown up on the car industry. The population growth prompted the building of many private housing estates, whilst the good communication links to London and the north attracted new industries to the town.
Aside from Daventry itself, the only other towns of any note are Brackley and Towcester. The latter is most famous for its racecourse. However, most of the seat is actually rural, and the countryside harbours many prosperous small villages as well as a number of elegant mansions.
Silverstone, site of the British Grand Prix is found here; Thenford, the village where Michael Heseltine has his country mansion is situated in the constituency; and the seat of the Spencer family is found at Althorp. It is on their estate at Althorp Park that the body of Diana, Princess of Wales was buried.
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