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Lord Kilbracken
Lord Kilbracken in later life
Principal Private Secretary to the Prime Minister
In office 1880–1882
Prime Minister	William Ewart Gladstone
Preceded by	Montagu Corry
Succeeded by	Edward Walter Hamilton
Personal details
Born	John Arthur Godley (1847-06-17)17 June 1847
Died	27 June 1932(1932-06-27) (aged 85)
Spouse	Sarah (Sarina) James ​ ​(m. 1871)​
Children	5
Relatives	Hugh Godley John Robert Godley Charlotte Godley A. D. Godley Alexander Godley
Education	Radley College Rugby School
Alma mater	Balliol College, Oxford
Awards	GCB (1908)

John Arthur Godley, 1st Baron Kilbracken, GCB (17 June 1847 – 27 June 1932), was an Anglo-Irish aristocrat and British civil servant and the longest serving, and probably the most influential, Permanent Under-Secretary of State for India.

Early life

Arthur Godley was the only son of John Robert Godley, a colonial reformer, and Charlotte Godley, a letter-writer and community leader. From April 1850 to December 1852, he was with his parents in New Zealand; his father has become to be regarded as the founder of Canterbury. Godley Jr. was painted by Mary Townsend in 1851; the original is held by Canterbury Museum. He studied at Radley, Rugby, and Balliol College, Oxford (where he won the Gaisford Prize for Greek Verse).

Career

His first important role was acting as Assistant Private Secretary to William Ewart Gladstone, then Prime Minister, during the years 1872 to 1874 and called to Lincoln's Inn bar in 1876. He was elected a fellow of Hertford College, Oxford for the period 1874 to 1881. In 1880 Godley was appointed Commissioner for Inland Revenue, a position he held till 1882. Appointed Under-Secretary of State at the India Office in 1883, he remained there for 26 years, retiring in 1909. He was a member of the 'Royal Commission on Indian Finance and Currency' in 1913.

He was bestowed a GCB in the 1908 Birthday honours list, and on 8 December 1909 he was raised to the peerage as The Baron Kilbracken, of Killegar in the County of Leitrim.

His autobiography, Reminiscences of Lord Kilbracken, was published in 1931, the year before he died.

Personal life

Lord Kilbracken was a first cousin of the classical scholar A. D. Godley. He was married to Sarah (Sarina) James daughter of 1st Baron Northbourne on 26 September 1871 until her death on 13 September 1921. The union bore 2 sons and three daughters. The barony was inherited by his eldest and only surviving son, Hugh.

References

1. ^ Hesilrige 1921, p. 515.
2. Hughes, Beryl. "Charlotte Godley". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 23 April 2017.
3. Hensley, Gerald. "Godley, John Robert". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 13 February 2022.
4. "Painting: John Arthur Godley". Canterbury Museum, Christchurch. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
5. "Page 4642 | Supplement 28151, 23 June 1908 | London Gazette | The Gazette". www.thegazette.co.uk. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
6. "No. 28317". The London Gazette. 14 December 1909. p. 9514.
7. Kilbracken 1931.
8. "Part 1: A. D. Godley, Doyen of Magdalen College, Oxford". Anglo Celt. Retrieved 12 February 2022.
9. "Person Page". www.thepeerage.com. Retrieved 12 February 2022.

Book cited

• Hesilrige, Arthur G. M. (1921). Debrett's Peerage and Titles of courtesy. 160A, Fleet street, London, UK: Dean & Son. p. 515.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
• Kilbracken, Arthur Godley (1931). Reminiscences of Lord Kilbracken. London, UK: Macmillan Publishers.

• 1847 births
• 1932 deaths
• Barons Kilbracken
• Godley family
• Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
• Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford
• Fellows of Hertford College, Oxford
• People educated at Radley College
• People educated at Rugby School
• Permanent Under-Secretaries of State for India
• Principal Private Secretaries to the Prime Minister
• Civil servants in the Board of Inland Revenue
• Peers created by Edward VII