Henry John Sinclair, 2nd Baron Pentland (6 June 1907 – 14 February 1984) was the President of th

from its formation in 1953 and the President of th
Gurdjieff Foundation of California
from its inception in 1955. He held both posts until his death. He also helped ensure the publication of English editions of

Gurdjieff George Ivanovich Gurdjieff (; rus, Гео́ргий Ива́нович Гурджи́ев, r=Geórgy Ivánovich Gurdzhíev, p=ɡʲɪˈorɡʲɪj ɪˈvanəvʲɪd͡ʑ ɡʊrd͡ʐˈʐɨ(j)ɪf; hy, Գեորգի Իվանովիչ Գյուրջիև; c. 1 ...

's and

Ouspensky Pyotr Demianovich Ouspenskii (known in English as Peter D. Ouspensky; rus, Пётр Демья́нович Успе́нский, Pyotr Demyánovich Uspénskiy; 5 March 1878 – 2 October 1947) was a Russian esotericism, esotericist known for his ...

's books and worked to found Gurdjieff centers throughout North America. The

transatlantic Transatlantic, Trans-Atlantic or TransAtlantic may refer to: Film * Transatlantic Pictures, a film production company from 1948 to 1950 * Transatlantic Enterprises, an American production company in the late 1970s * ''Transatlantic'' (1931 film), ...

Baron Pentland was a businessman and member of the House of Lords who spent much of his career conducting government and commercial affairs with the United States. He was director and vice president of the American British Electric Corporation

Education and career

Pentland was educated at

Wellington College Wellington College may refer to: *Wellington College, Berkshire, an independent school in Crowthorne, Berkshire, England ** Wellington College International Shanghai ** Wellington College International Tianjin * Wellington College, Wellington, Ne ...

. He inherited the title from his father,

John Sinclair, 1st Baron Pentland John Sinclair, 1st Baron Pentland, (7 July 1860 – 11 January 1925) was a Scottish Liberal Party politician, soldier, peer, administrator and Privy Councillor who served as the Secretary of Scotland from 1905 to 1912 and the Governor of M ...

, in 1925, aged only eighteen. He was admitted to

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

, and graduated with an MA in 1929. He was elected President of the

Cambridge Union The Cambridge Union Society, also known as the Cambridge Union, is a debating and free speech society in Cambridge, England, and the largest society in the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1815, it is the oldest continuously running debatin ...

in 1929. He qualified as a civil engineer. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

he served in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

and later appointed Assistant Secretary of the

Combined Production and Resources Board The Combined Production and Resources Board was a temporary World War II government agency that allocated the combined economic resources of the United States and Britain. It was set up by President Franklin D. Roosevelt and Prime Minister Winston ...

, 1944–1945 at Washington, D.C. He was a director and vice president of the American British Electric Corporation. Known for his affiliation with the

Work Work may refer to: * Work (human activity), intentional activity people perform to support themselves, others, or the community ** Manual labour, physical work done by humans ** House work, housework, or homemaking ** Working animal, an animal tr ...

of G. I. Gurdjieff, he became president of the American Gurdjieff Foundation upon its establishment in 1953, retaining the position until his death in New York in 1984.

Family

Lord Pentland married Lucy Elisabeth Babington Smith, daughter of Sir

Henry Babington Smith Sir Henry Babington-Smith (29 January 1863 – 29 September 1923) was a senior British civil servant, who served in a wide range of posts overseas, mostly financial, before becoming a director of the Bank of England. He was related to the Babi ...

on 11 September 1941; the couple had one daughter, Mary Sinclair (born 21 November 1942).

Books by Lord Pentland

''Exchanges Within; Questions from Everyday Life; Selected Meetings with John Pentland in California. 1955-1984''. Continuum: New York. 1997.

References

External links

Eminent Gurdjieffians: Lord Pentland, by James Moore

1907 births 1984 deaths Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom People educated at Wellington College, Berkshire Presidents of the Cambridge Union English expatriates in the United States {{UK-baron-stub Students of George Gurdjieff