| The Earl of Bessborough | |
|---|---|
| The then Viscount Duncannon, by Leslie Ward, 1904 | |
| Spouse(s) | Blanche Vere Guest |
| Father | Walter Ponsonby, 7th Earl of Bessborough |
| Mother | Lady Louisa Susan Cornwallis Eliot |
| Born | 1 March 1851 |
| Died | 1 December 1920 (aged 69) |
Edward Ponsonby, 8th Earl of Bessborough, KP, CB, CVO (1 March 1851 – 1 December 1920) was a British peer.
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Ponsonby was the eldest son of Reverend Walter Ponsonby, 7th Earl of Bessborough and his wife, Louisa, daughter of Edward Eliot, 3rd Earl of St Germans.
He qualified as a barrister in 1879 and was secretary to Lord Robert Grosvenor (a younger son of Hugh Grosvenor, 1st Duke of Westminster) at HM Treasury from 1880–84 and to Arthur Peel, Speaker of the House of Commons from 1884-95. After Peel's retirement in 1895, Ponsonby was appointed a CB that year and also took the courtesy title of Viscount Duncannon following his father's accession to the earldom of Bessborough, also in that year. In 1898, he was High Sheriff of Carlow, appointed a CVO in 1902 and a KP in 1914. He was also involved in business and became a director of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway in March 1895, and served as its Chairman from February 1908 until his death.
On 22 April 1875, Ponsonby married Blanche Guest (the sister of Ivor Guest, 1st Baron Wimborne) and they had six children:
Ponsonby inherited the earldom from his father in 1906 and on his death in 1920, his titles passed to his eldest son, Vere. His death procurred an erroneous obituary of Lord Desborough being published after The Times confused the two peers.
| Business positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Lord Cottesloe |
Chairman of the Board of Directors of the London, Brighton and South Coast Railway 1908–1920 |
Succeeded by Charles C. Macrae |
| Peerage of Ireland | ||
| Preceded by Walter Ponsonby |
Earl of Bessborough 1906–1920 |
Succeeded by Vere Ponsonby |