Peter Ritchie Calder
Encyclopedia
Peter Ritchie Ritchie-Calder, Baron Ritchie-Calder (1 July 1906, Forfar
, Angus
- 31 January 1982, Edinburgh
) was a noted Scottish
author
, journalist
and academic.
Calder first worked as a journalist in Dundee
and Glasgow
, where he became noted as a socialist
and peace activist
; as Science Editor of the News Chronicle
, he wrote under the name of 'Ritchie Calder'.
After moving to London
before World War II
, he accepted an appointment as the Director of Plans and Campaigns at the Political Warfare Executive
branch of the Government, which was responsible for the allied war propaganda
effort. He wrote propaganda posters and leaflets and speeches for allied leaders. He was a member of the 1941 Committee
, a group of liberal
politician
s, writers and other people of influence in the United Kingdom
. In 1941 he became popular with his book Carry on London, which described the effects of the German bombardment of London, Coventry
and other cities in Great Britain
.
After the war Ritchie-Calder returned to his former activities as a writer and specialised in internationalism
, the peace
movement and in the public understanding of science
. He worked also with the United Nations
and was President of the National Peace Council
and of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
. He also worked for the News Chronicle newspaper as Science Editor.
Sir Lawrence Bragg's original announcement of the discovery of the structure of DNA
was made at a Solvay conference on proteins in Belgium on 8 April 1953 but went unreported by the UK press, he then gave a talk at Guys Hospital Medical School in London on Thursday, May 14, 1953 which resulted in an article by Ritchie Calder in The News Chronicle of London, on Friday, May 15, 1953, entitled "Why You Are You. Nearer Secret of Life."
Calder was an ardent peace activist and humanist. In 1955, Calder recorded and released an album on Folkways Records
entitled, Science in Our Lives. In 1980 he was one of the signatories of A Secular Humanist Declaration
, a statement of belief in Democratic
Secular Humanism
, issued by the Council for Democratic and Secular Humanism ("CODESH"), now the Council for Secular Humanism
("CSH").
He also taught International Relations
at the University of Edinburgh
, from 1961 to 1967. He was created a life peer as Baron Ritchie-Calder, of Balmashanner in the Royal Burgh of Forfar
in 1966 and received the 1960 Kalinga prize.
Lord Ritchie-Calder was the father of science writer Nigel Calder
(b.1931), writer and historian
Angus Calder
(1942-2008), mathematician Allan Calder and educationist Isla Calder (1946-2000). He was also the grandfather of travel writer Simon Calder
.
Forfar
Forfar is a parish, town and former royal burgh of approximately 13,500 people in Angus, located in the East Central Lowlands of Scotland. Forfar is the county town of Angus, which was officially known as Forfarshire from the 18th century until 1929, when the ancient name was reinstated, and...
, Angus
Angus
Angus is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Perth and Kinross and Dundee City...
- 31 January 1982, Edinburgh
Edinburgh
Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...
) was a noted Scottish
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
, journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and academic.
Calder first worked as a journalist in Dundee
Dundee
Dundee is the fourth-largest city in Scotland and the 39th most populous settlement in the United Kingdom. It lies within the eastern central Lowlands on the north bank of the Firth of Tay, which feeds into the North Sea...
and Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, where he became noted as a socialist
Socialism
Socialism is an economic system characterized by social ownership of the means of production and cooperative management of the economy; or a political philosophy advocating such a system. "Social ownership" may refer to any one of, or a combination of, the following: cooperative enterprises,...
and peace activist
Peace activist
This list of peace activists includes people who proactively advocate diplomatic, non-military resolution of political disputes, usually through nonviolent means.A peace activist is an activist of the peace movement.*Jane Addams*Martti Ahtisaari...
; as Science Editor of the News Chronicle
News Chronicle
The News Chronicle was a British daily newspaper. It ceased publication on 17 October 1960, being absorbed into the Daily Mail. Its offices were in Bouverie Street, off Fleet Street, London, EC4Y 8DP, England.-Daily Chronicle:...
, he wrote under the name of 'Ritchie Calder'.
After moving to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
before World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, he accepted an appointment as the Director of Plans and Campaigns at the Political Warfare Executive
Political Warfare Executive
During World War II, the Political Warfare Executive was a British clandestine body created to produce and disseminate both white and black propaganda, with the aim of damaging enemy morale and sustaining the morale of the Occupied countries....
branch of the Government, which was responsible for the allied war propaganda
Propaganda
Propaganda is a form of communication that is aimed at influencing the attitude of a community toward some cause or position so as to benefit oneself or one's group....
effort. He wrote propaganda posters and leaflets and speeches for allied leaders. He was a member of the 1941 Committee
1941 Committee
The 1941 Committee was a group of British politicians, writers and other people of influence who got together in 1940. Its members comprised liberals, and those further left, who were not generally involved with a political party. Its immediate purpose was to press for more efficient production in...
, a group of liberal
Liberalism
Liberalism is the belief in the importance of liberty and equal rights. Liberals espouse a wide array of views depending on their understanding of these principles, but generally, liberals support ideas such as constitutionalism, liberal democracy, free and fair elections, human rights,...
politician
Politician
A politician, political leader, or political figure is an individual who is involved in influencing public policy and decision making...
s, writers and other people of influence in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. In 1941 he became popular with his book Carry on London, which described the effects of the German bombardment of London, Coventry
Coventry
Coventry is a city and metropolitan borough in the county of West Midlands in England. Coventry is the 9th largest city in England and the 11th largest in the United Kingdom. It is also the second largest city in the English Midlands, after Birmingham, with a population of 300,848, although...
and other cities in Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
.
After the war Ritchie-Calder returned to his former activities as a writer and specialised in internationalism
Internationalism (politics)
Internationalism is a political movement which advocates a greater economic and political cooperation among nations for the theoretical benefit of all...
, the peace
Peace
Peace is a state of harmony characterized by the lack of violent conflict. Commonly understood as the absence of hostility, peace also suggests the existence of healthy or newly healed interpersonal or international relationships, prosperity in matters of social or economic welfare, the...
movement and in the public understanding of science
Public understanding of science
Public understanding of science may refer to:* Public Understanding of Science , an academic journal* Public awareness of science...
. He worked also with the United Nations
United Nations
The United Nations is an international organization whose stated aims are facilitating cooperation in international law, international security, economic development, social progress, human rights, and achievement of world peace...
and was President of the National Peace Council
National Peace Council
The National Peace Council, founded in 1908, and disbanded in 2000, acted as the co-ordinating body for almost 200 groups across Britain, with a membership ranging from small village peace groups to national trade unions and local authorities...
and of the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament is an anti-nuclear organisation that advocates unilateral nuclear disarmament by the United Kingdom, international nuclear disarmament and tighter international arms regulation through agreements such as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty...
. He also worked for the News Chronicle newspaper as Science Editor.
Sir Lawrence Bragg's original announcement of the discovery of the structure of DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
was made at a Solvay conference on proteins in Belgium on 8 April 1953 but went unreported by the UK press, he then gave a talk at Guys Hospital Medical School in London on Thursday, May 14, 1953 which resulted in an article by Ritchie Calder in The News Chronicle of London, on Friday, May 15, 1953, entitled "Why You Are You. Nearer Secret of Life."
Calder was an ardent peace activist and humanist. In 1955, Calder recorded and released an album on Folkways Records
Folkways Records
Folkways Records was a record label founded by Moses Asch that documented folk, world, and children's music. It was acquired by the Smithsonian Institution in 1987, and is now part of Smithsonian Folkways.-History:...
entitled, Science in Our Lives. In 1980 he was one of the signatories of A Secular Humanist Declaration
A Secular Humanist Declaration
A Secular Humanist Declaration was an argument for and statement of support for democratic secular humanism. The document was issued in 1980 by The Council for Democratic and Secular Humanism , now the Council for Secular Humanism...
, a statement of belief in Democratic
Democracy
Democracy is generally defined as a form of government in which all adult citizens have an equal say in the decisions that affect their lives. Ideally, this includes equal participation in the proposal, development and passage of legislation into law...
Secular Humanism
Secular humanism
Secular Humanism, alternatively known as Humanism , is a secular philosophy that embraces human reason, ethics, justice, and the search for human fulfillment...
, issued by the Council for Democratic and Secular Humanism ("CODESH"), now the Council for Secular Humanism
Council for Secular Humanism
The Council for Secular Humanism is a secular humanist organization headquartered in Amherst, New York. In 1980 CODESH issued A Secular Humanist Declaration, an argument for and statement of belief in Democratic Secular Humanism...
("CSH").
He also taught International Relations
International relations
International relations is the study of relationships between countries, including the roles of states, inter-governmental organizations , international nongovernmental organizations , non-governmental organizations and multinational corporations...
at the University of Edinburgh
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh, founded in 1583, is a public research university located in Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The university is deeply embedded in the fabric of the city, with many of the buildings in the historic Old Town belonging to the university...
, from 1961 to 1967. He was created a life peer as Baron Ritchie-Calder, of Balmashanner in the Royal Burgh of Forfar
Forfar
Forfar is a parish, town and former royal burgh of approximately 13,500 people in Angus, located in the East Central Lowlands of Scotland. Forfar is the county town of Angus, which was officially known as Forfarshire from the 18th century until 1929, when the ancient name was reinstated, and...
in 1966 and received the 1960 Kalinga prize.
Lord Ritchie-Calder was the father of science writer Nigel Calder
Nigel Calder
Nigel Calder is a British science writer.Between 1956 and 1966, Calder wrote for the magazine New Scientist, serving as editor from 1962 until 1966...
(b.1931), writer and historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
Angus Calder
Angus Calder
Angus Lindsay Ritchie Calder was a Scottish academic, writer, historian, educator and literary editor with a background in English literature, politics and cultural studies.-Education:...
(1942-2008), mathematician Allan Calder and educationist Isla Calder (1946-2000). He was also the grandfather of travel writer Simon Calder
Simon Calder
Simon Calder , is an English travel writer, currently the senior travel editor for The Independent newspaper.-Biography:...
.
External links
- Peter Ritchie Calder. Scottish Gazetteer.
- Science in Our Lives Album Details at Smithsonian FolkwaysSmithsonian FolkwaysSmithsonian Folkways is the nonprofit record label of the Smithsonian Institution. It is a part of the Smithsonian's Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage, located at Capital Gallery in downtown Washington, D.C. The label was founded in 1987 after the family of Moses Asch, founder of Folkways...