Sir William Cunliffe Brooks, 1st Baronet, DL JP (30 September 1819 – 9 June 1900) was an English barrister, banker and Conservative politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1869 and 1892.

[2] He went on the Northern Circuit until the death of his father in 1864 when he became sole partner of Cunliffe Brooks and Co, Manchester.

Brooks lavished money on Glen Tanar, building a large house, cottages for estate workers, a school, stables and kennels.

He also installed numerous carved stones and memorials in the surrounding countryside, many of which make playful references to his name or celebrate the virtues of drinking water rather than alcohol.

They have many descendants in both England and America, including Sir James Cockburn, Lady Ethel Cecil, Diana Lewis and Isabella Overington.