The division of Pembroke currently includes the Clarence City municipal area south of Geilston Creek Road and west of the Meehan Range and includes Geilston Bay, Lindisfarne, Rose Bay, Rosny, Bellerive, Warrane, Mornington, Howrah and Tranmere.

Pembroke has been part of Tasmania and Van Diemen’s Land since 1836, when the county of that name was first gazetted. The original electorate took its name from the county and covered much the same area of south-east Tasmania.

Under Governor Arthur, Van Diemen’s Land was divided into counties, each of 1600 square miles (4144 square kilometres), each of which was subdivided into “hundreds” of 100 square miles (259 square kilometres), and each “hundred” divided into four 25 square mile (65 square kilometres) parishes.

Surveyors and land commissioners working under Surveyor-General George Frankland had a strong say in the naming of the counties, many taking them from British places with which they had links.

Hence, Pembroke the Tasmanian county and Legislative Council division take their name from the Welsh county of Pembrokeshire, recently re-created by the British Government after being absorbed into the larger county of Dyfed in 1972.

Probably the best-known feature of Pembrokeshire is Pembroke Castle, built by Roger de Montgomery in 1093 on Milford Haven as a strategic fortress in the Norman conquest of England. It is said to be the birthplace of the first Tudor king, Henry VII in 1457.