John Colin Campbell Davidson, 1st Viscount Davidson, (23 February 1889 – 11 December 1970), known before his elevation to the peerage as J. C. C. Davidson, was a British civil servant and Conservative Party politician, best known for his close alliance with Stanley Baldwin. Initially a civil servant, Davidson was private secretary to Bonar Law between 1915 and 1920. After entering parliament in 1920, he served under Baldwin as Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster between 1923 and 1924 and as Parliamentary and Financial Secretary to the Admiralty between 1924 and 1926. From 1926 to 1930 he was Chairman of the Conservative Party. He was once again Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster between 1931 and 1937, firstly under Ramsay MacDonald and from 1935 onwards under Baldwin. On Baldwin's retirement in 1937, Davidson left the House of Commons and was ennobled as Viscount Davidson. Despite being only 48, he never took any further active part in politics. His wife Frances, Viscountess Davidson, succeeded him as MP for Hemel Hempstead. Lord Davidson died in London in 1970. Background and education Davidson was born at Aberdeen, the younger child and only son of Sir James Mackenzie Davidson, a physician and pioneer of X-rays, by Georgina Barbara Watt Henderson, daughter of William Henderson, of Aberdeen. His grandfather John Davidson had accumulated a large fortune in Argentina, of which Davidson inherited a half. He was educated at Fretherne House preparatory school, Westminster and Pembroke College, Cambridge, and was called to the Bar, Middle Temple, in 1913. Civil service career, 1910–1920 After leaving Cambridge in 1910, Davidson joined the Colonial Office, where he became unpaid private secretary to Lord Crewe, the Secretary of State for the Colonies. He continued in this post when Lewis Harcourt succeeded Crewe as Colonial secretary at the end of 1910. Davidson was anxious to serve in the First World War, but Harcourt considered him so valuable that he managed to convince him to stay at the Colonial Office. In 1915 Bonar Law replaced Harcourt as head of the Colonial Office, and was urged to retain Davidson as private secretary. They became close friends and Law came to rely as heavily on Davidson as Harcourt had done. In December 1916 Bonar Law was appointed Chancellor of the Exchequer and Leader of the House of Commons and insisted on taking Davidson with him as private secretary. Davidson managed to persuade Bonar Law