Robert Redmayne Parker (born 1954) is a British rural business adviser, land manager, and ceremonial officer. He worked with the

Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food An agriculture ministry (also called an) agriculture department, agriculture board, agriculture council, or agriculture agency, or ministry of rural development) is a ministry charged with agriculture. The ministry is often headed by a minister f ...

, prior to its merger into the

Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is a department of His Majesty's Government responsible for environmental protection, food production and standards, agriculture, fisheries and rural communities in the United K ...

, and for the

Country Land and Business Association The Country Land and Business Association (CLA) is a membership organisation for owners of land, property and businesses in rural England and Wales. It was until quite recently called the Country Landowners' Association. Membership CLA members ...

. Since 1975, he has been the owner of

Browsholme Hall Browsholme Hall is a privately owned Tudor house in the parish of Bowland Forest Low in the borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire (although historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire), England. It is claimed to be the oldest surviving family ...

, his

family seat A family seat or sometimes just called seat is the principal residence of the landed gentry and aristocracy. The residence usually denotes the social, economic, political, or historic connection of the family within a given area. Some families to ...

Bowland Forest Low Bowland Forest Low is a civil parish in the Ribble Valley district of Lancashire, England, covering some of the Forest of Bowland. According to the 2001 census, the parish had a population of 168, falling to 160 at the 2011 Census. The parish i ...

. In 2010, Parker was appointed as Bowbearer of the

Forest of Bowland The Forest of Bowland, also known as the Bowland Fells and formerly the Chase of Bowland, is an area of gritstone fells, deep valleys and peat moorland, mostly in north-east Lancashire, England, with a small part in North Yorkshire (however ro ...

by William Bowland, 16th

Lord of Bowland The Lordship of Bowland is a feudal barony associated with the Forest of Bowland in Lancashire, England. The lordship fell into disuse between 1885 and 2008, during which time it was widely believed to have lapsed; it was revived in 2008. In 18 ...

, becoming the first bowbearer of Bowland in almost one hundred and fifty years.

Early life

Parker was born in 1954 to Edmund Christopher Parker and Diana Elizabeth Marriott. Through his father, he is a member of the

landed gentry The landed gentry, or the ''gentry'', is a largely historical British social class of landowners who could live entirely from rental income, or at least had a country estate. While distinct from, and socially below, the British peerage, th ...

, descending from a branch of the Parker family that once owned

Alkincoats Hall Alkincoats Hall was a country house in Colne, Lancashire, England. Part of the estate in which the hall stood is now the 35-acre (14 ha) Alkincoats public park. Originally built in the north of the estate in 1575, the hall was enlarged in 1720 an ...

. His mother was the former governor of Addenbrooke’s Hospital and secretary to the Earl of Cranbrook. Parker's maternal grandfather was

William Marriott William Marriott may refer to: *William Marriott (engineer) (1857–1943), engineer and locomotive superintendent *William Marriott (baseball) (1893–1969), baseball player, 1917–1927 *William Marriott (magician) (ca. 1910), British magician and ...

, the Swiss-born engineer and railway superintendent who founded the North Norfolk Railway. He has two half siblings, Simon and Carolina, from his mother's first marriage to Captain John Swynfen Jervis. Parker inherited

, his

, in 1975 after the death of his fourth cousin once removed and godfather, Colonel Robert Goulbourne Parker DSO.

Career

Parker has worked for the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries and Food (United Kingdom) and the

as a rural business advisor.

Bowbearer of Bowland

In 2010, William Bowland, Lord of Bowland appointed Parker as the Bowbearer of the

, an ancient ceremonial title of an attendant who, by tradition, accompanies the

(also known as the

Lord of the Fells Lord of the Fells is a customary title of the Lords of Bowland. The title is thought to have become customary during the high medieval period as a description of the Lords' rugged upland demesne. Bowland Fells, more widely known as the Forest o ...

) during hunts and serves as an officer in the Lord's forest courts. Parker was the first Bowbearer of Bowland to be appointed in nearly one hundred and fifty years. Parker's ancestors had claimed the office as a hereditary right, with successive generations holding the title between the 17th and 18th centuries. In April 2011, Bowland accompanied the 16th Lord of Bowland, along with other representatives from the Bowland Higher Division Parish Council, the Forest authorities, and community leaders and dignitaries, on an official visit to the village of

Dunsop Bridge Dunsop Bridge is a village in the Borough of Ribble Valley, Lancashire, England, north-west of Clitheroe, south-east of Lancaster and west of Skipton. It is in the civil parish of Bowland Forest High. Historically, the village is part of the ...

. In October 2012, Parker was formally presented with his Bowbearer's "wand of office" by Lord of Bowland at a public ceremony in

Slaidburn Slaidburn () is a village and civil parish within the Ribble Valley district of Lancashire, England. The parish covers just over 5,000 acres of the Forest of Bowland. Historically in the West Riding of Yorkshire, Slaidburn lies near the head of ...

. This ceremony marked the 90th anniversary of the final meeting of the manorial court at the town's Tudor courthouse.

Personal life

Parker married Amanda Jane Backhouse in 1985. His wife served as

High Sheriff of Lancashire The High Sheriff of Lancashire is an ancient officer, now largely ceremonial, granted to Lancashire, a county in North West England. High Shrievalties are the oldest secular titles under the Crown, in England and Wales. The High Sheriff of Lanca ...

in 2015. They have two children. In 2010, he and his wife restored the estate's 17th-century tithe barn for use as an event space.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Redmayne Parker, Robert Living people 1954 births Businesspeople in agriculture Ceremonial officers in England

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...