CLARKE OF STONE-CUM-EBONY, Rt Hon Baron 1943-2026

[Richard R]

From the Telegraph of 18 April 2026: CLARKE Anthony. The Right Honourable the Lord Clarke of Stone-cum-Ebony. On April 16th peacefully, after Alzheimer's became part of his later life. A man of integrity, intellect and above all love and friendship. Dearly loved by Rosemary, Ben, Tom, Sally and his six grandchildren. With sincere thanks to Hastings Court Care Home. Private cremation followed by a memorial service in the Temple Church at a date to be announced.

He was s of Harry Alston CLARKE 1901-79 and Isobel KAY. He m 1968 Rosemary d of K W ADAM of Barnham, W Sussex, and had two sons and a dau as above. Hon Ben Clarke’s son Max b 2015 is the only gc mentioned in Lord Clarke’s DPB online entry.

[sven_me...@web.de]

Retired since 14 September 2020, only vote listed 8 April 2019, no spoken contributions listed

[Henry W]

Lord Clarke of Stone-cum-Ebony is an interesting case.  A life peer (under the Life Peerages Act 1958), he was de facto a Law Life Peer.  He was given a Life Peerage in May 2009 towards the end of his stint as Master of the Rolls (2005 - Sept 2009).  In October 2009 he was elevated to the newly minted Supreme Court, and so was disqualified from sitting in the Lords.  He retired from the Supreme Court in 2017, and as above retired from the Lords in 2020.

[sven_me...@web.de]

Do we know did he already suffer from Alzheimer's when he retired from the Lords?

[S R Eglesfield]

Lady Clarke, née Rosemary ADAM (born 1945/6), is the daughter of Kenneth Warren ADAM (20 IV 1917 - 27 V 1995) and his first wife (married 1940, as her first husband), Leonora Jeannette Walford ASHER (1919 - 8 III 2003). Through her mother, she is a first cousin four times removed downwards of Amelia MOSES (1835 - 1898), the wife (married 1856) of Sir George JESSEL (13 II 1824 - 21 III 1883), who, from 1873 to 1883, was a predecessor of her late husband as Master of the Rolls.

 

Lady Clarke is therefore also a second cousin three times removed downwards of Sir Charles James JESSEL, 1st Bt (11 V 1860 - 15 VII 1928) and his brother Herbert Merton JESSEL, 1st Baron Jessel (27 X 1866 - 1 XI 1950), who were sons of Sir George and Lady Jessel. She is also a fourth cousin once removed downwards of the Life Peer, Baron Goldsmith of Richmond Park, whose great-grandmother, Alice Emma MOSES (1843 - 12 I 1922), was a sister of Lady Jessel:

 

Abraham Lyon MOSES = Abigail LAZARUS

(1775 - 26 II 1854)         | 

                                       |            

|                                                   |

Eleazar MOSES / MERTON       Joseph Benjamin MOSES

(1808 - 1878)                              (1810 - 1879)

= (1) Adeline SYMONS               = Caroline KÖNIGSWARTER

|       (1810 - 1862)                       |  (1810 - 1889)

|                                                    |                                                                           

|                                                    |                                                                           |

Henry Moses MERTON               Amelia MOSES                                                   Alice Emma MOSES

(21 XII 1832 - 25 IV 1865)           (1835 - 1898)                                                      (1843 - 12 I 1922)

= Emily Rachel WAGG                = Sir George JESSEL                                          = Adolphe Benedict Hayum GOLDSCHMIDT

|  (1841 - 12 III 1907)                    | (13 II 1824 - 21 III 1883) (married 1856)           | (1838 - 6 IV 1918) (married 1866)

|  (married 1862)                         |                                                                        |

|                                                     |                                 |                                         |

Edith Jeannette MERTON            Sir Charles James  Herbert Merton JESSEL      Francis Benedict Hayum GOLDSMITH

(1864 - 24 IV 1914)                       JESSEL, 1st Bt       1st Baron Jessel                 (22 XI 1878 - 14 II 1967)

= Lionel David WALFORD            (11 V 1860 -           (27 X 1866 -                         = Marcelle MOULLIER

|   (c.1854 - 12 VI 1923)                  15 VII 1928)          1 XI 1950)                            |  (30 XI 1903 - 4 III 1985) (married 1929)

|   (married 1891)                                                                                                      |

|                                                                                                                                 |

Sylvia Rachel Merton WALFORD                                                                             Sir James Michael GOLDSMITH

(1892 - 8 VII 1943)                                                                                                    (26 II 1933 - 18 VII 1997)

= Cecil ASHER                                                                                                           = (3) Lady Annabel VANE-TEMPEST-STEWART

|  (26 I 1892 - 30 V 1983)                                                                                           |        (11 VI 1934 - 18 X 2025)

|   (married 1891)                                                                                                       |        (married 1978)

|                                                                                                                                  |

Leonora Jeannette Walford ASHER                                                                          Frank Zacharias Robin ("Zac") GOLDSMITH

(1919 - 8 III 2003)                                                                                                      Baron Goldsmith of Richmond Park

= (1) Kenneth Warren ADAM                                                                                     (born 20 I 1975)

|       (20 IV 1917 - 27 V 1995)                                                                                    MP (Conservative) for Richmond Park, 2010-16 and 2017-19.

|       (married 1940)

|

Rosemary ADAM

(born 1945/6)

 

Sir George Jessel was a brother of Henry JESSEL (1821 - 4 IV 1870), whose grandson, Cdr Richard Frederick JESSEL, DSO, OBE, DSC & bar (24 XI 1902 - 14 II 1988), was the husband (married 1926) of Winifred May LEVY (12 XII 1905 - 29 VI 1977), a granddaughter maternally of the 1st Viscount Bearsted. They were the parents of Thomas Francis Henry ("Toby") JESSEL (11 VII 1934 - 3 XII 2018), MP (Conservative) for Twickenham, 1970-97.

 

Toby Jessel's elder sister, Peggy Ann JESSEL (21 I 1933 - 12 III 2024), was the wife (married 1953) of John Howard WALFORD (16 V 1927 - 3 II 2008), who was Lady Clarke's second cousin once removed upwards, his grandfather, Howard Joseph WALFORD (1855 - 17 X 1920), having been the brother of her great-grandfather, Lionel David Walford (who can be seen in the table above).

[bx...@yahoo.com]

Thank you, S R, for the additional information and  the family tree.

Brooke

[Richard R]

From the Times of 19 June 2026

From the Times of 19 June 2026: CLARKE A service of thanksgiving will be held for The Rt Hon the Lord Clarke at the Temple Church, London, on Thursday 5th November 2026 at 6pm, followed by a reception in Middle Temple Hall. Dearly loved husband of Rosemary, father and grandfather; formerly Master of the Rolls and a Justice of the Supreme Court. All who knew him are welcome… No flowers, please; donations, if desired, to the RNLI.