Elizabeth Clare McLaren-Throckmorton (née d'Abreu; 18 August 1935 – 31 October 2017), known professionally as Clare Tritton, QC, was a British barrister and descendant of the Throckmorton baronets. She was the tenant of the Throckmorton family's main residence,

Coughton Court Coughton Court () is an English Tudor country house, situated on the main road between Studley and Alcester in Warwickshire. It is a Grade I listed building. The house has a long crenellated façade directly facing the main road, at the cent ...

near

Alcester Alcester () is a market town and civil parish of Roman origin at the junction of the River Alne and River Arrow in the Stratford-on-Avon District in Warwickshire, England, approximately west of Stratford-upon-Avon, and 7 miles south of Redditc ...

in Warwickshire, England, now owned by the

National Trust The National Trust, formally the National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, is a charity and membership organisation for heritage conservation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. In Scotland, there is a separate and ...

. She was also the owner of the Molland Estate in

North Devon North Devon is a local government district in Devon, England. North Devon Council is based in Barnstaple. Other towns and villages in the North Devon District include Braunton, Fremington, Ilfracombe, Instow, South Molton, Lynton and Lynmouth ...

Personal life

Clare McLaren-Throckmorton was born as Elizabeth Clare d'Abreu, one of three daughters, of Professor Alphonsus Ligouri d'Abreu (

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

FRCS Fellowship of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons (FRCS) is a professional qualification to practise as a senior surgeon in Ireland or the United Kingdom. It is bestowed on an intercollegiate basis by the four Royal Colleges of Surgeons (the Royal C ...

), a surgeon, and the former Elizabeth Ursula Arienwen Throckmorton. She has two younger sisters, Felicity and Veronica. Felicity Ann d'Abreu (b. 12 December 1938), the middle sister, married, firstly, Charles Reginald Hugh Crosland, in 1959; they have three daughters. Her first marriage dissolved, Felicity Crosland married, secondly, the British writer

Roald Dahl Roald Dahl (13 September 1916 – 23 November 1990) was a British novelist, short-story writer, poet, screenwriter, and wartime fighter ace of Norwegian descent. His books have sold more than 250 million copies worldwide. Dahl has be ...

(22 years her senior) in 1983. Dahl died seven years later. Veronica Teresa d'Abreu (b. 10 July 1948), the youngest of the d'Abreu sisters, married Marius Peregrine Lechmere Barran in 1972; they have four daughters.

Marriages

Clare McLaren-Throckmorton's first marriage was to Alan George Tritton, CBE, DL, of Lyons Hall, Great Leighs, Chelmsford, Essex, formerly director of Barclays Bank,

High Sheriff of Essex The High Sheriff of Essex was an ancient sheriff title originating in the time of the Angles, not long after the invasion of the Kingdom of England, which was in existence for around a thousand years. On 1 April 1974, under the provisions of the ...

1992, CBE June 1999 for services to Anglo-Indial relations & preservation of the cultural heritage. They had the following three children: Christina Margaret Tritton (born 1960), Robert Guy Henton Tritton (born 1963), and Charles Courtenay Tritton (born 1965). That marriage was dissolved. Another marriage of hers was to John Andrew McLaren (born 2 July 1932 – died 6 January 2007). In order to preserve the Throckmorton family name, she became Mrs. McLaren-Throckmorton.

Throckmorton Baronets

The Throckmorton family were infamous in England for their part in the Throckmorton Plot of 1583 which aimed to murder

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was Queen of England and Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is sometimes referred to as the "Virgin Queen". El ...

and replace her with Mary Stuart. They were also "indirectly" involved in the

Gunpowder Plot The Gunpowder Plot of 1605, in earlier centuries often called the Gunpowder Treason Plot or the Jesuit Treason, was a failed assassination attempt against King James I by a group of provincial English Catholics led by Robert Catesby who sought ...

of 1605 through their association with

Robert Catesby Robert Catesby (c. 1572 – 8 November 1605) was the leader of a group of English Catholics who planned the failed Gunpowder Plot of 1605. Born in Warwickshire, Catesby was educated in Oxford. His family were prominent recusant Catholics, and ...

. McLaren-Throckmorton is a member of the Throckmorton family via her mother, Elizabeth, the sister of Sir Robert Throckmorton, 11th Baronet. The 10th Baronet, Sir Richard Throckmorton, was her great-grandfather. The 12th and last Baronet, Sir Anthony Throckmorton, died in 1994; thus the title is now extinct.

Professional life

Clare McLaren-Throckmorton trained as a barrister and specialised in

European Community Law European Union law is a system of rules operating within the member states of the European Union (EU). Since the founding of the European Coal and Steel Community following World War II, the EU has developed the aim to "promote peace, its valu ...

with a particular interest in competition law. She served on the Monopolies and Mergers Commission and on the Financial Intermediaries, Managers and Brokers Regulatory Association (FIMBRA). She relinquished her non-executive directorship of the Birmingham Royal Ballet Trust Company. She was a non-executive director of

Severn Trent Water Severn Trent plc is a water company based in Coventry, England. It supplies 4.6 million households and business across the Midlands and Wales. It is traded on the London Stock Exchange and a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. Severn Trent, the ...

, and was also a Trustee Director of some of the company's pension schemes. Furthermore, she was the Chief Executive of Throckmorton Estates, the organisation which controls the Throckmorton family's assets, including the Molland Estate in

. This does not include

which is owned by The National Trust although the grounds are managed by Throckmorton Estates. She died surrounded by her family 31 October 2017 at the age of 82.McLaren-Throckmorton
/ref>

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:McLaren-Throckmorton, Clare 1935 births 2017 deaths British barristers People from Alcester 20th-century King's Counsel People educated at St Leonards-Mayfield School