Margaret Alison of Mar, 31st Countess of Mar (born 19 September 1940), is a Scottish

hereditary peer The hereditary peers form part of the peerage in the United Kingdom. As of April 2025, there are 800 hereditary peers: 30 dukes (including six royal dukes), 34 marquesses, 189 earls, 108 viscounts, and 439 barons (not counting subsidiary ...

and politician. She was a

crossbench A crossbencher is a minor party or independent politician, independent member of some legislatures, such as the Parliament of Australia. In the British House of Lords the term refers to members of the parliamentary group of non-political peers. ...

member of the

House of Lords The House of Lords is the upper house of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. Like the lower house, the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons, it meets in the Palace of Westminster in London, England. One of the oldest ext ...

from 1975 to 2020 and was one of 92 hereditary peers elected to remain in the Lords in 1999. She is the holder of the original earldom of Mar, the oldest peerage title in the United Kingdom. She is the only ''

suo jure ''Suo jure'' is a Latin phrase, used in English to mean 'in his own right' or 'in her own right'. In most nobility-related contexts, it means 'in her own right', since in those situations the phrase is normally used of women; in practice, especi ...

countess Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

and was the only female hereditary peer in the House of Lords from 2014 to 2020. She is also a farmer and former specialist

goats The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a species of goat-antelope that is mostly kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the famil ...

cheesemaker Cheesemaking (or caseiculture) is the craft of making cheese. The production of cheese, like many other food preservation processes, allows the nutritional and economic value of a food material, in this case milk, to be preserved in concentrate ...

in Great Witley,

Worcestershire Worcestershire ( , ; written abbreviation: Worcs) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the West Midlands (region), West Midlands of England. It is bordered by Shropshire, Staffordshire, and the West Midlands (county), West ...

Early life

She was born Margaret Alison Lane, the daughter of Millicent Mary Salton and James Clifton Lane, later James of Mar, 30th Earl of Mar, the

heir presumptive An heir presumptive is the person entitled to inherit a throne, peerage, or other hereditary honour, but whose position can be displaced by the birth of a person with a better claim to the position in question. This is in contrast to an heir app ...

of Lionel Erskine-Young, 29th Earl of Mar, his first cousin once removed (both were descended from a sister of John Goodeve-Erskine, 27th Earl of Mar). Margaret had two younger siblings: David of Mar, Master of Mar, and Lady Janet of Mar. In 1959, her father was officially recognised in the style ''of Mar'', and from that year his three children were also styled ''of Mar'', the name ''Lane'' being abandoned.

Career

From 1959 to 1962, she was a civil servant with the

Ministry of Pensions and National Insurance Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian mi ...

, before taking a position as a nursing auxiliary at the Bromsgrove Cottage Hospital from 1964 to 1969. She was a sales superintendent for British Telecom between 1969 and 1982, after which she took up farming.

Mistress of Mar

When Margaret's father succeeded as 30th Earl of Mar in 1965 she became Lady Margaret of Mar, and her brother became The Master of Mar, Lord

Garioch Garioch (, , ) is one of six committee areas in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. It has a population of 46,254 (2006 estimate), which gives it the largest population of Aberdeenshire's six committee areas. The Garioch consists primarily of the distric ...

. When Lord Garioch died in 1967, Margaret became ''The Mistress of Mar'' as the elder heir-portioner presumptive in general of her father.

Countess of Mar

When in 1975 her father the 30th Earl died, Lady Margaret became the 31st holder of the Mar earldom, the premier earldom of Scotland, and entered the House of Lords, making her maiden speech in April 1976. After the passing of

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 ...

, Lady Mar was elected to serve as one of the ninety-two hereditary peers retained in the House, receiving the highest number of votes of all peers. She sat as a

crossbencher A crossbencher is a minor party or independent member of some legislatures, such as the Parliament of Australia. In the British House of Lords the term refers to members of the parliamentary group of non-political peers. They take their name fr ...

, meaning she was not aligned with any particular political party. She retired from the House on 1 May 2020. Lady Mar held a number of positions within the House of Lords: * Deputy Chair of Committees 1997–2007 * Select Committee on European Communities Sub-Committee C (Environment, Public Health and Consumer Protection) 1997–1999 * Deputy Speaker 1999–2007, 2009–2012 and 2014–2020 * Select Committee on European Union Sub-Committee D (Environment, Agriculture, Public Health and Consumer Protection / Environment and Agriculture) 2001–2005 Lady Mar was also a member of the

Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments The Joint Committee on Statutory Instruments is a joint committee of the Parliament of the United Kingdom. The remit of the committee is to scrutinise all statutory instruments made in exercise of powers granted by Acts of Parliament. Instruments ...

, a member of the Lords Refreshment Committee, and a member of the panel of Deputy Chairmen of Committees. Lady Mar was also secretary of the All Party Parliamentary Group on Pesticides and Organophosphates. Lady Mar has also held a variety of non-political offices: * Member of the Immigration Appeal Tribunal 1985–2006 * Chairman, Honest Food 2000–2005 * Chairman, Environmental Medicine Foundation 1997–2003 * President, Guild of Agricultural Journalists 2007–2010 * Patron, Dispensing Doctors' Association 1985–1986 * Patron, Worcestor Mobile Disabled Group 1991–2003 * Patron, Gulf Veterans' Association * President, Elderly Accommodation Counsel, 1994–present * Honorary Associate of the

Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) is the regulatory body for veterinary surgeons in the United Kingdom, established in 1844 by royal charter. It is responsible for monitoring the educational, ethical and clinical standards of the ...

2006–present * Honorary Associate of the British Veterinary Association 2007–present

Illness

In the summer of 1989, while dipping her sheep through a tank of organophosphorous chemicals, Lady Mar was subjected to a splash of chemicals on her foot, and three weeks later developed headaches and muscular pains. She was eventually diagnosed with

chronic fatigue syndrome Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a disabling Chronic condition, chronic illness. People with ME/CFS experience profound fatigue that does not go away with rest, as well as sleep issues and problems with memory ...

. Since then Lady Mar used her seat in the

almost exclusively to press the government to provide suitable care and support for patients with similar long-term and poorly understood medical conditions, and to better regulate the use of organophosphates. This also led to her membership on the EU sub-committees listed above. As a consequence of her illness, Lady Mar founded the organisation Forward-ME to co-ordinate the activities of a fairly broad spectrum of charities and voluntary organisations working with patients with chronic fatigue syndrome, which is also known as

myalgic encephalomyelitis Myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS) is a disabling chronic illness. People with ME/CFS experience profound fatigue that does not go away with rest, as well as sleep issues and problems with memory or concentration. T ...

(ME).

Family

Lady Mar has married three times: first to Edwin Noel Artiss, then to John Salton, and finally to John Jenkin. From the first marriage she had a daughter: Susan Helen of Mar, Mistress of Mar (born 1963), the heir presumptive to her mother's peerage. Lady Susan is married to Bruce Alexander Wyllie, and has two daughters, Isabel and Frances.

Arms

Notes

References

Bibliography

* Burke's Peerage * Debrett's Peerage * Extracts of Matriculations of Arms
dodonline.co.ukLady Mar's record in the House of LordsForward-ME
of which Lady Mar is chairman

by Lady Mar {{DEFAULTSORT:Mar, Margaret of Mar, 31st Countess of 1940 births Living people 20th-century Scottish people 21st-century Scottish politicians 20th-century Scottish women 21st-century Scottish women politicians People with myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome Daughters of Scottish earls Earls or mormaers of Mar Scottish countesses Hereditary women peers Cheesemakers Crossbench hereditary peers Scottish royalty and nobility with disabilities Dukes of Mar Lords Erskine Hereditary peers elected under the House of Lords Act 1999 Peers retired under the House of Lords Reform Act 2014 Female hereditary members of the House of Lords British politicians with disabilities