William James Robert Peel, 3rd Earl Peel (born 3 October 1947), styled Viscount Clanfield until 1969, is a British

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 ...

who was a

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

peer from 15 May 1973 until October 2006 when, on his appointment as

Lord Chamberlain The Lord Chamberlain of the Household is the most senior officer of the Royal Households of the United Kingdom, Royal Household of the United Kingdom, supervising the departments which support and provide advice to the Monarchy of the United Ki ...

of the Royal Household, he became 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. ...

(non-partisan) 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 ...

Background and education

Peel is the eldest son of

Arthur Peel, 2nd Earl Peel Arthur William Ashton Peel, 2nd Earl Peel (29 May 1901 – 22 September 1969), styled Viscount Clanfield from 1929 to 1937, was a British peer. Peel was the son of William Peel, 1st Earl Peel, by the Honourable Eleanor "Ella" Williamson, daugh ...

, and Kathleen McGrath, daughter of Michael McGrath. He is a great-great-grandson of Prime Minister Sir Robert Peel. He attended Ampleforth College, and then went on to the

University of Tours The University of Tours (), formerly François Rabelais University of Tours (), is a public university in Tours, France. Founded in 1969, the university was formerly named after the French writer François Rabelais. It is the largest university ...

in France and the

Royal Agricultural University The Royal Agricultural University (RAU), formerly the Royal Agricultural College, is a public university in Cirencester, Gloucestershire, England. Established in 1845, it was the first agricultural college in the English-speaking world. ...

Cirencester Cirencester ( , ; see #Pronunciation, below for more variations) is a market town and civil parish in the Cotswold District of Gloucestershire, England. Cirencester lies on the River Churn, a tributary of the River Thames. It is the List of ...

Career

Peel was a member of the Prince's Council, part of the

Duchy of Cornwall A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important difference between "sovereign ...

, from 1993 to 2006, and

Lord Warden of the Stannaries The Lord Warden of the Stannaries (from for Tin, Tin, Sn) used to exercise judicial and military functions in Cornwall, England, UK, and is still the official who, upon the commission of the British monarchy, monarch or Duke of Cornwall for the ...

from 1994 to 2006. He was a member of the

Nature Conservancy Council The Nature Conservancy Council (NCC) was a United Kingdom government agency responsible for designating and managing National Nature Reserves and other nature conservation areas in Great Britain between 1973 and 1991 (it did not cover Northern ...

, with

English Nature English Nature was the Executive agency, United Kingdom government agency that promoted the Conservation (ethic), conservation of wildlife, geology and wild places throughout England between 1990 and 2006. It was a non-departmental public body ...

, from 1991 to 1996. He was Chairman of the Game Conservancy Trust from 1994 to 2000, then

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from 2000 to 2008, and was President of the Yorkshire Wildlife Trust from 1989 to 1996. Peel was also on the Yorkshire Dales National Park Committee for six years and became a Deputy Lieutenant of

North Yorkshire North Yorkshire is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in Northern England.The Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority areas of City of York, York and North Yorkshire (district), North Yorkshire are in Yorkshire and t ...

in 1998. Peel was elected as one of the 42 Conservative hereditary peers who were to remain in the House of Lords 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 ...

came into force, he placed 14th in the election with 142 votes. Since July 2006 he has sat as 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. In June 2006, it was announced that Peel would succeed Richard Luce, Baron Luce, as

. On 11 October 2006, he kissed hands with The Queen upon his appointment and was invested as a Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO), and became Chancellor of the Order. On 14 November 2006, Lord Peel was sworn in as a Member of the Privy Council. In February 2021, Andrew Parker, Baron Parker of Minsmere, was appointed to succeed Peel as Lord Chamberlain. Peel was due to retire at the end of 2020 but extended his notice period as his successor was searched for amid the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic (also known as the coronavirus pandemic and COVID pandemic), caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), began with an disease outbreak, outbreak of COVID-19 in Wuhan, China, in December ...

. He retired on 31 March. On 13 April 2021, Peel returned his Wand and Insignia of Office as Lord Chamberlain and the Badge of Chancellor of the Royal Victorian Order on leaving office. At the same time he was invested with the

Royal Victorian Chain The Royal Victorian Chain is a State decoration, decoration instituted in 1902 by King Edward VII as a personal award of the monarch (i.e. not an award made on the advice of any Commonwealth realm government). It ranks above the Royal Victorian Or ...

Family

Peel married Veronica Naomi Livingston Timpson (born 21 January 1950) and had two children: Ashton and Iona. The marriage was dissolved in 1987. Peel married a second time to Charlotte Clementine Soames (born 18 July 1954), daughter of Christopher Soames, Baron Soames, and his wife, Mary Churchill, daughter of

Sir Winston Churchill Sir Winston Leonard Spencer Churchill (30 November 1874 – 24 January 1965) was a British statesman, military officer, and writer who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1940 to 1945 (Winston Churchill in the Second World War, ...

, on 15 April 1989. They had one daughter, Lady Antonia Peel, in 1991.

Honours

Arms

Notes

References

External links

The Lord Chamberlain
- Royal Household official website
Appointment of Lord Peel as Lord ChamberlainDodOnline Biography
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Peel, William Peel, 3rd Earl 1947 births Living people Alumni of the Royal Agricultural University Deputy lieutenants of North Yorkshire Earls in the Peerage of the United Kingdom Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People educated at Ampleforth College

William William is a masculine given name of Germanic languages, Germanic origin. It became popular in England after the Norman Conquest, Norman conquest in 1066,All Things William"Meaning & Origin of the Name"/ref> and remained so throughout the Middle ...

English businesspeople Crossbench hereditary peers Viscounts Peel Peel baronets Permanent Lords-in-Waiting Hereditary peers elected under the House of Lords Act 1999