James Patrick Montagu Burgoyne Winthrop Stopford, 9th

Earl of Courtown The Earl of Courtown, in the County of Wexford, is a title in the Peerage of Ireland. It was created on 12 April 1762 for James Stopford, 1st Baron Courtown. He had previously represented County Wexford and Fethard in the Irish House of Comm ...

(also known as Patrick Courtown; born 19 March 1954), styled Viscount Stopford between 1957 and 1975, is an Irish peer and politician. He is one of the 92

hereditary peer The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of September 2022, there are 807 hereditary peers: 29 dukes (including five royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 190 earls, 111 viscounts, and 443 barons (disregarding subsid ...

s elected to remain in the

House of Lords The House of Lords, also known as the House of Peers, is the Bicameralism, upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Membership is by Life peer, appointment, Hereditary peer, heredity or Lords Spiritual, official function. Like the ...

after the

House of Lords Act 1999 The House of Lords Act 1999 (c. 34) is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that reformed the House of Lords, one of the chambers of Parliament. The Act was given Royal Assent on 11 November 1999. For centuries, the House of Lords ...

and sits for the

Conservatives Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

. The son of

James Stopford, 8th Earl of Courtown James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguati ...

and Patricia Winthrop, he has a brother named Jeremy, and three sisters: Elizabeth, Mary and Felicity. He was educated at

Eton Eton most commonly refers to Eton College, a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. Eton may also refer to: Places *Eton, Berkshire, a town in Berkshire, England * Eton, Georgia, a town in the United States * Éton, a commune in the Meuse dep ...

and at

Berkshire College of Agriculture Berkshire College of Agriculture is a further education agricultural college at Hall Place in Burchetts Green, Maidenhead, Berkshire. It was founded in 1949, as the Berkshire Institute of Agriculture. Courses The college was built to provide a t ...

. He later attended the

Royal Agricultural College ;(from Virgil's Georgics)"Caring for the Fieldsand the Beasts" , established = 2013 - University status – College , type = Public , president = King Charles , vice_chancellor = Peter McCaffery , students ...

Cirencester Cirencester (, ; see below for more variations) is a market town in Gloucestershire, England, west of London. Cirencester lies on the River Churn, a tributary of the River Thames, and is the largest town in the Cotswolds. It is the home of ...

. He succeeded to the Earldom of Courtown in 1975. In 1985, he married Elisabeth Dunnett, daughter of Ian Rodger Dunnett. The Earl took his seat in the

as 8th

Baron Saltersford Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knigh ...

in 1979. In 1995, he was appointed a

Lord in Waiting Lords-in-waiting (male) or baronesses-in-waiting (female) are peers who hold office in the Royal Household of the sovereign of the United Kingdom. In the official Court Circular they are styled "Lord in Waiting" or "Baroness in Waiting" (withou ...

to Her Majesty The Queen, and a Government Whip. He was a government spokesman for the Home Office, Department of Transport and the Scottish Office. In 2013 he was appointed a Conservative party whip. Following the 2015 election, he joined the Government, again as a Lord in Waiting to Her Majesty and as a Government Whip. He was promoted to Deputy Chief Whip and

Captain of the Yeomen of the Guard The Captain of the King's Bodyguard of the Yeomen of the Guard is a UK Government post usually held by the Government Deputy Chief Whip in the House of Lords. The present Captain is The 9th Earl of Courtown, who was appointed to the position ...

in the May ministry in July 2016. The Courtown ancestral home, Courtown House, was demolished in the 1960s, but the Earl visited its location in 2010, with members of his family, and unveiled a plaque in memory of his father at the local church. The Earl's heir apparent is his son James, who is currently styled as Viscount Stopford.

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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Courtown, Patrick Stopford, 9th Earl of 1954 births Living people People educated at Eton College Alumni of the Royal Agricultural University Conservative Party (UK) Baronesses- and Lords-in-Waiting Hereditary peers elected under the House of Lords Act

James James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguati ...

Earls of Courtown