Arthur Augustus William Harry Ponsonby, 1st Baron Ponsonby of Shulbrede (16 February 1871 - 23 March 1946) was a British politician, writer, and social activist. He was the son of Sir Henry Ponsonby, Private Secretary to Queen Victoria. February 16 is the 47th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1871 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... March 23 is the 82nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (83rd in Leap years). ... 1946 was a common year starting on Tuesday. ... Victoria Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, Empress of India Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria) (24 May 1819–22 January 1901) was a Queen of the United Kingdom, reigning from 20 June 1837 until her death. ...

Lord Ponsonby is probably most remembered for the statement: "When war is declared, truth is the first casualty." which he made in his book Falsehood in Wartime: Propaganda Lies of the First World War (1928).

He was educated at Eton and Balliol College, Oxford, and joined the Diplomatic Service, taking assignments in Constantinople and Copenhagen. The Kings College of Our Lady of Eton beside Windsor, commonly known as Eton College or just Eton, is a public school (that is, an independent, fee-charging secondary school) for boys. ... Full name Balliol College Motto - Named after John de Balliol Previous names - Established 1263 Sister College St Johns College, Cambridge Master Andrew Graham (academic) Location Broad Street Undergraduates 403 Graduates 228 Homepage Boatclub Balliol College, founded in 1263, is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford... Oxford is a city and local government district in Oxfordshire, England, with a population of 134,248 (2001 census). ... Map of Constantinople. ... City nickname: none Location in Denmark Area  - Total  - Water 526 km² xxx km² xx% Population  - City (2004)  - Metropolitan  - Density 502,204 1,116,979 954/km2 [including water] xxx/km2 [land only] Time zone Eastern: UTC+1 Latitude Longitude 55°43 N 12°34 E Copenhagen (Danish: København) is...

In 1906 he ran unsuccessfully as a member of the Liberal Party, but succeeded in becoming MP for Stirling Burghs in 1908. 1906 was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... The Liberal Party was one of the two major British political parties from the early 19th century until the 1920s, and a third party of varying strength and importance up to 1988, when it merged with the Social Democratic Party to form a new party which would become known as... 1908 is a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

He was opposed to Britain's inolvment in World War I, and joined with George Cadbury, Ramsay MacDonald, E. D. Morel, Arnold Rowntree and Charles Trevelyan, to form the Union of Democratic Control (UDC), which became a very prominent anti-war organisation in Britain. Ypres, 1917, in the vicinity of the Battle of Passchendaele. ... George Cadbury (September 19, 1839 - October 24, 1922) was the third son of Quaker John Cadbury, the founder of Cadburys cocoa and chocolate company. ... The Right Honourable James Ramsay MacDonald (12 October 1866–9 November 1937), British politician, was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. ... Sir Charles Edward Trevelyan (1807 - 1886) was a British politcian. ...

He was defeated in the General Election of 1918, but joining the Labour Party became the MP for the Brightside division of Sheffield in 1922. 1918 was a common year starting on Tuesday (see link for calendar). ... The Labour Party is a centre-left political party in the United Kingdom (see British politics), and one of the United Kingdoms three main political parties. ... Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough in the north of England. ... 1922 was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ...

Ramsay MacDonald appointed him to be Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in 1924 and Parliamentary Secretary to the Ministry of Transport in 1929. He became a Baron in 1930 and served as a leader in the House of Lords until 1935. The Right Honourable James Ramsay MacDonald (12 October 1866–9 November 1937), British politician, was twice Prime Minister of the United Kingdom. ... 1924 was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1929 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ... 1930 is a common year starting on Wednesday. ... This article is about the British House of Lords. ... 1935 was a common year starting on Tuesday (link will take you to calendar). ...

In 1940 Ponsonby resigned from the Labour Party, opposing its decision to join the National Government. 1940 was a leap year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ...

He died on 23 March 1946. March 23 is the 82nd day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (83rd in Leap years). ... 1946 was a common year starting on Tuesday. ...

External links

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations by or about:

Arthur Ponsonby, 1st Baron Ponsonby of Shulbrede

• Review of Falsehood in Wartime
• Two pictures of Ponsonby at The National Portrait Gallery (UK)
• Brief bio at Spartacus Schoolnet
• Introduction to Falsehood in Wartime online
• The Corpse Factory at The Journal of Historical Review
• The Ponsonby Rule Google HTML of a PDF document.
• Arthur Ponsonby's Dream