Richard Parker, 9th Earl of Macclesfield

Tatiana Cleone Anne Wheaton-Smith

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(m. 1967;div. 1985)​

Sandra Hope Fiore

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(after 1986)​

The Right Honourable The Earl of Macclesfield
Member of the House of Lords
Lord Temporal
In office 7 December 1992 –11 November 1999 as a hereditary peer
Parent(s)	George Parker, 8th Earl of Macclesfield Valerie Mansfield

Shirburn Castle

Richard Timothy George Mansfield Parker, 9th Earl of Macclesfield (born 31 May 1943), is a British hereditary peer. He was a member of the House of Lords from 1992 until 1999.

Early life

The son of George Parker, 8th Earl of Macclesfield, and his wife Valerie Mansfield, he was educated at Stowe School and Worcester College, Oxford. ^[1]

Career

On 7 December 1992 he succeeded his father in his titles. ^[1]

Shirburn Castle

Macclesfield was the last of the Parker family to live at Shirburn Castle, from which he was evicted in 2005 by other members of a family company which owned the property. They contended in court that he was "no more than tenant at will". ^{[2] [3]} However, the contents of the castle had been given to Macclesfield in 1967 by his grandfather, including three important libraries. ^[4]

Macclesfield then decided to sell the libraries and some other items from the castle, ^{[5] [6]} including the Macclesfield Psalter, now in the Fitzwilliam Museum, and the Macclesfield Alphabet Book, now in the British Library. ^[7] The receipts came to more than £16 million, "the highest total ever for any sale of scientific books and manuscripts". ^[8] A painting by George Stubbs, "Brood Mares and Foals", was sold at auction in 2010 for £10,121,250, a record price for Stubbs. ^[9]

Personal life

On 11 August 1967 he married firstly Tatiana Cleone Anne Wheaton-Smith, daughter of Major Craig Wheaton-Smith. They were divorced in 1985, and in 1986 he married Sandra Hope Fiore. By his first wife he has three daughters: ^[1]

• Lady Tanya Susan (born 1971)
• Lady Katherine Anne (born 1973)
• Lady Marion Jane (born 1973)

As he has no male issue, the heir presumptive is his younger brother, the Hon. (Jonathan) David Geoffrey Parker (born 1945).

Notes

1. Pursuant to the House of Lords Act 1999.

References

1. Burkes Peerage , volume 2 (2003), p. 2456.
2. Neutral Citation Number: [2003] EWHC 1846 (Ch) (archived version), accessed 18 December 2021.
3. Barker, Godfrey (13 April 2012). "Who's laughing now?". London Evening Standard. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
4. Quarrie, Paul (22 January 2006). "The scientific library of the earls of Macclesfield" . Notes and Records of the Royal Society. 60 (1): 5–24. doi:10.1098/rsnr.2005.0124. ISSN   0035-9149 . Retrieved 19 June 2025.
5. Vogel, Carol (20 February 2004). "Inside Arts | From an Earl's Attic". The New York Times. Retrieved 29 June 2025.
6. Sothebys, 2004: Sales Results: The Library of The Earl of Macclesfield Removed from Shirburn Castle Part Two: Science A-C
7. Gaskell, Roger; Fara, Patricia (March 2005). "Selling the silver: country house libraries and the history of science" . Endeavour. 29 (1): 14–19. doi:10.1016/j.endeavour.2005.01.005 . Retrieved 19 June 2025.
8. Sotheby's, press release, 26 October 2005: The Scientific Library of The Earls of Macclesfield Realises Over £14 Million
9. Sotheby's Press Release: Sotheby’s Evening Sale of Old Master & British Paintings Realises £23,577,600 / $37,054,556 / €28,179,870. 8 December 2010.

Peerage of Great Britain
Preceded by George Parker	Earl of Macclesfield 1992–present Member of the House of Lords (1992–1999)	Incumbent Heir presumptive: Hon. David Parker
	Baron Parker 1992–present