Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour
(1848-1930), Prime Minister and philosopher20th Century Portraits Catalogue Entry
Sitter in 140 portraits
Born at Whittingehame House, East Lothian and educated at Eton College and Trinity College, Cambridge; Balfour first made his mark as a philosopher, publishing A Defence of Philosophic Doubt in 1879; he entered politics in 1874 through the patronage of his uncle, Lord Salisbury, as a Conservative member for Hertford; succeeded Salisbury as Prime Minister in 1902 but was unable to keep together a party divided by issues of Free Trade and Protectionism and resigned in 1905; during the First World War he worked as First Lord of the Admiralty and, from 1916 to 1919, as Foreign Secretary; Balfour continued in politics until the age of eighty, having served for twenty-seven years as a member of the cabinet.
'Luncheon Party at the House of Commons'
probably by Roland Parker Stone, for Benjamin Stone
platinum print, 17 July 1908
NPG x135568
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour; Sir Ernest Henry Shackleton
by Benjamin Stone
platinum print, 29 June 1909
NPG x87729
'Luncheon Party at the House of Commons'
by Roland Parker Stone, for Benjamin Stone
platinum print, 29 June 1909
NPG x135574
'Sir Benjamin Stone's Luncheon Party at the House of Commons'
by Benjamin Stone
platinum print, 29 June 1909
NPG x135575
'Luncheon Party to the President and Members of the Russian Duma at the House of Commons'
by Benjamin Stone
platinum print, 22 June 1909
NPG x135581
'Luncheon Party to the Delegates of the Imperial Ottomon Parliament at the House of Commons'
by Benjamin Stone
platinum print, 22 July 1909
NPG x135604
'Luncheon Party to the Delegates of the Imperial Ottomon Parliament at the House of Commons'
by Benjamin Stone
platinum print, 22 July 1909
NPG x135605
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour; Gilbert Talbot
by Olive Edis
platinum print on photographer's card mount, 1914
NPG x186
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour
by Olive Edis
whole-plate autochrome, 1914
NPG x7175
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour
by Olive Edis
platinum print, 1914
NPG x182
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour
by Olive Edis
platinum print on photographer's card mount, 1914
NPG x184
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour
by Olive Edis
matte bromide print on photographer's card mount, 1914
NPG x185
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour
by Olive Edis
platinum print on photographer's mount, 1914
NPG x187
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour
by James Russell & Sons
vintage print, published 1916
NPG x137233
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour
by Walter Stoneman, for James Russell & Sons
bromide print, circa 1916
NPG Ax39003
Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour; Sir Cecil Arthur Spring-Rice
by Bain News Service
bromide print, 24 April 1917
NPG x197888
by Vandyk
10 x 12 inch glass negative, 25 June 1918
NPG x32125
by Vandyk
10 x 12 inch glass negative, 25 June 1918
NPG x32126
by Vandyk
10 x 12 inch glass negative, 25 June 1918
NPG x32127
by Vandyk
10 x 12 inch glass negative, 25 June 1918
NPG x32124
Related People
- Gerald William Balfour, 2nd Earl of Balfour (brother)
- Eustace James Balfour (brother)
- Lady Evelyn ('Eve') Barbara Balfour (niece)
- Eleanor ('Nora') Mildred Sidgwick (née Balfour) (sister)
Comments back to top
We are currently unable to accept new comments, but any past comments are available to read below.
If you need information from us, please use our Archive enquiry service . Please note that we cannot provide valuations. You can buy a print or greeting card of most illustrated portraits. Select the portrait of interest to you, then look out for a Buy a Print button. Prices start at around £6 for unframed prints, £16 for framed prints. If you wish to license an image, select the portrait of interest to you, then look out for a Use this image button, or contact our Rights and Images service. We digitise over 8,000 portraits a year and we cannot guarantee being able to digitise images that are not already scheduled.