Sir Thomas Barclay (20 February 1853 – 20 January 1941) was a distinguished authority on International Law, a writer on economic subjects and a British Liberal politician. Barclay was born at

Dunfermline Dunfermline (; , ) is a city, parish, and former royal burgh in Fife, Scotland, from the northern shore of the Firth of Forth. Dunfermline was the de facto capital of the Kingdom of Scotland between the 11th and 15th centuries. The earliest ...

in 1853, the eldest son of George Barclay of

Cupar Cupar ( ; ) is a town, former royal burgh and parish in Fife, Scotland. It lies between Dundee and Glenrothes. According to a 2011 population estimate, Cupar had a population around 9,000, making it the ninth-largest settlement in Fife, and the ...

. He was educated at Cupar Academy, the College of Dunkirk, the Johanneum Classical School, Hamburg, University College, London, and the Universities of Paris and Jena. Initially he followed his father's footsteps in being a journalist for ''The Times'' having written articles for various newspapers from 1876 and he was posted to their Paris office. When he was called to the bar in 1881, he then devoted himself to a legal practice. A former

Liberal Unionist The Liberal Unionist Party was a British political party that was formed in 1886 by a faction that broke away from the Liberal Party. Led by Lord Hartington (later the Duke of Devonshire) and Joseph Chamberlain, the party established a political ...

, he was a Member of Parliament (MP) for

Blackburn (UK Parliament constituency) Blackburn is a List of United Kingdom Parliament constituencies, constituency in Lancashire, England, which is represented in the House of Commons of the United Kingdom, House of Commons of the UK Parliament by independent politician Adnan Huss ...

between the two general elections of 1910 (

January January is the first month of the year in the Julian calendar, Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. The first day of the month is known as New Year's Day. It is, on average, the coldest month of the year within most of the No ...

and

December December is the twelfth and final month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. December's name derives from the Latin word ''decem'' (meaning ten) because it was originally the tenth month of the year in t ...

). He was also a deputy Chairman of the

International Law Association The International Law Association (ILA) is a non-profit organisation based in Great Britain that — according to its constitution — promotes "the study, clarification and development of international law" and "the furtherance of international ...

. From 1899 to 1900 he headed the British

Chamber of commerce A chamber of commerce, or board of trade, is a form of business network. For example, a local organization of businesses whose goal is to further the interests of businesses. Business owners in towns and cities form these local societies to a ...

and economic work in France involving that helped lead to the

Entente cordiale The Entente Cordiale (; ) comprised a series of agreements signed on 8 April 1904 between the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, United Kingdom and the French Third Republic, French Republic which saw a significant improvement in Fr ...

For these works he would be nominated for the

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize (Swedish language, Swedish and ) is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the Will and testament, will of Sweden, Swedish industrialist, inventor, and armaments manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobe ...

in 1905, 1906, 1907, 1908, 1910, 1913, 1914, 1923, 1925, and 1928. Barclay was knighted in the birthday honours of 1904. He was married to Marie Thérèse Teuscher, the translator of Villiers de l'Isle Adam's "La Révolte"; the couple had three children.

References

External links

* * * * * other books written by Barcla
at archive.org
1853 births 1941 deaths International law scholars Liberal Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1910 Alumni of University College London Politicians from Dunfermline Liberal Unionist Party parliamentary candidates {{England-Liberal-UK-MP-stub