Anthony Noel, 5th Earl of Gainsborough

Anthony Gerard Edward Noel, 5th Earl of Gainsborough (24 October 1923 – 29 December 2009) was a British peer.

He succeeded his father, Arthur Noel, 4th Earl of Gainsborough to the earldom in 1927.

He attended Worth Priory in Sussex. When war was declared, he was on his way to America, so he studied at Georgetown School in Washington DC. Returning to Britain in 1943 he was declared unfit for military service and worked for Vickers Supermarine in Southampton.^[1]

He married Mary Stourton at the Brompton Oratory, 23 July 1947. When he was 30, the estate was free from debt and he moved back into Exton Hall.

He served as chairman of Oakham Rural District Council, 1952-67 before becoming vice-chairman and then chairman of Rutland County Council, 1970-73.

As president of the Rural District Councils Association in 1965, he played a prominent role in opposing the Redcliffe-Maud Report's proposals for reorganising local councils which were implemented under the Local Government Act 1972.

Lord Gainsborough was Master of the Worshipful Company of Gardeners (1967); President, British Association, Sovereign Military Order of Malta (1968-74); Knight of the Venerable Order of St John (1970); Chairman of the Hospital of St John and St Elizabeth from 1970 to 1980, and President of the Hospital from then until his death.

He was succeeded by his son Anthony Gerard Edward Noel, 6th Earl of Gainsborough.

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