A. C. Headlam, 1862- New College 1881-1885 1885-1897, 1924-
H. H. Henson, 1863- Non-Collegiate 1881-1884 1884-1891,
1896-1903; 1939
C. G. Lang, 1864-1945 Balliol 1882-1886 1888-1928
F. W. Pember, 1862- Balliol 1880-1884 1884-1910-
Warden, 1914-1932
W. G. F. Phillimore, Christ Church 18683-1867 1867-
1845-1929
R. E. Prothero, 1852-1937 Balliol 1871-1875 1875-1891
E. Ridley, 1843-1928 Corpus Christi 1862-1866 1866-1882
M. W. Ridley, 1842-1904 Balliol 1861-1865 1865-1874
J. Simon, 1873- Wadham 1892-1896 1897-
F. J. N. Thesiger, Magdalen 1887-1891 1892-1899,
1868-1933 1929-1933
The Reverend Cyril A. Alington married Hester Lyttelton, daughter of the fourth
Baron Lyttelton and sister of the famous eight brothers whom we have mentioned. He
was Headmaster of Eton (1916-1933) in succession to his brother-in-law Edward
Lyttelton, and at the same time chaplain to King George V (1921-1933). Since 1933 he
has been Dean of Durham.
Sir William Anson can best be discussed later. He, Lord Goschen, and H. A. L. Fisher
were the chief instruments by which the Milner Group entered into All Souls.
George Nathaniel Curzon (Lord Curzon after 1898, 1859-1925) studied at Eton and
Balliol (1872-1882). At the latter he was intimate with the future Lords Midleton,
Selborne, and Salisbury. On graduating, he went on a trip to the Near East with Edward
Lyttelton. Elected a Fellow of All Souls in 1883, he became assistant private secretary to
Lord Salisbury two years later. This set his future career. As Harold Nicolson says of him
in the
obedience to Lord Salisbury, an intense interest in foreign and colonial policy, and the
enjoyment of the social amenities." A Member of Parliament from 1886 to 1898, he
traveled widely, chiefly in Asia (1887-1894), financing his trips by writing for
He was Under Secretary in the India Office (1891-1892), Under Secretary in the Foreign
Office (1895-1898), and Viceroy of India (1899-1905) by Lord Salisbury's appointment.
In the last-named post he had many controversies with the "Balfour-Brodrick
combination" (as Nicolson calls it), and his career was more difficult thereafter, for,
although he did achieve high office again, he failed to obtain the premiership, and the
offices he did obtain always gave him the appearance rather than the reality of power.
These offices included Lord Privy Seal (1915-1916, 1924-1925), Leader in Lords (1916-
1924), Lord President of the Council (1916-1919), member of the Imperial War Cabinet
(1916-1918), and Foreign Secretary (1919-1924). Throughout this later period, he was
generally in opposition to what was being supported by the Cecil Bloc and the Milner
Group, but his desire for high office led him to make constant compromises with his
convictions.
Arthur Henry Hardinge (Sir Arthur after 1904) and his cousin, Charles Hardinge
(Baron Hardinge of Penshurst after 1910), were both aided in their careers by Lord
Salisbury. The former, a Fellow of All Souls in 1881 and an assistant secretary to Lord
Salisbury four years later, rose to be Minister to Persia, Belgium, and Portugal (1900-
1913) and Ambassador to Spain (1913-1919). The latter worked up in the diplomatic
service to be First Secretary at the Embassy in St. Petersburg (1898-1903), then was
Assistant Under Secretary and Permanent Under Secretary for Foreign Affairs (1903-
1904, 1906-1910, 1916-1920), Ambassador at St. Petersburg (1904-1906), Viceroy of
India (1910-1916), and Ambassador at Paris (1920-1922). Charles Hardinge, although
almost unknown to many people, is one of the most significant figures in the formation of
British foreign policy in the twentieth century. He was the close personal friend and most
important adviser on foreign policy of King Edward VII and accompanied the King on all
his foreign diplomatic tours. His post as Under Secretary was kept available for him
during these trips and in later life during his service as Ambassador and Viceroy. He
presents the only case in British history where an ax-Ambassador and ax-Viceroy was to
be found in the position of Under Secretary. He was probably the most important single
person in the formation of the Entente Cordiale in 1904 and was very influential in the
formation of the understanding with Russia in 1907. His son, Captain Alexander
Hardinge, married Milner's stepdaughter, Helen Mary Cecil, in 1921 and succeeded his
father as Baron Hardinge of Penshurst in 1944. He was equerry and assistant private
secretary to King George V (1920-1936) and private secretary and extra equerry to both
Edward VIII and George VI (1936-1943). He had a son, George Edward Hardinge (born
1921), who married Janet Christian Goschen, daughter of Lieutenant Colonel F. C. C.