Sir Maurice Drummond Peterson GCMG (10 March 1889 – 15 March 1952) was a British diplomatist.

Peterson entered the foreign service in 1913 and served from 1921 to 1922 as private secretary to Arthur Balfour

Arthur Balfour

Arthur James Balfour, 1st Earl of Balfour, KG, OM, PC, DL was a British Conservative politician and statesman...

 during the Washington Naval Conference

Washington Naval Conference

The Washington Naval Conference also called the Washington Arms Conference, was a military conference called by President Warren G. Harding and held in Washington from 12 November 1921 to 6 February 1922. Conducted outside the auspices of the League of Nations, it was attended by nine nations...

. During the Second Italo-Abyssinian War

Second Italo-Abyssinian War

The Second Italo–Abyssinian War was a colonial war that started in October 1935 and ended in May 1936. The war was fought between the armed forces of the Kingdom of Italy and the armed forces of the Ethiopian Empire...

 he was responsible for the Abyssinian department in the Foreign Office.
From January 12, 1937 to February 27, 1939 he was ambassador in Bagdad

Bagdad

-Places:Australia* Bagdad, TasmaniaMexico* Bagdad, TamaulipasPoland* Bagdad, PolandUnited States* Bagdad, Arizona* Bagdad, California* Bagdad, Butte County, California* Bagdad, Florida* Bagdad, Kentucky* Bagdad, New York* Bagdad, Virginia...

.
From February 27, 1939 to 1940 he was ambassador to the regime of Francisco Franco

Francisco Franco

Francisco Franco y Bahamonde was a Spanish general, dictator and head of state of Spain from October 1936 , and de facto regent of the nominally restored Kingdom of Spain from 1947 until his death in November, 1975...

.
Form 1940 to 1946 he was chief adviser in the Ministry of Truth

Ministry of Truth

The Ministry of Truth is one of the four ministries that govern Oceania in George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four...

 for Overseas Publicity and tried to exert Censorship

Censorship

thumb|[[Book burning]] following the [[1973 Chilean coup d'état|1973 coup]] that installed the [[Military government of Chile |Pinochet regime]] in Chile...

 on Erika Mann

Erika Mann

Erika Julia Hedwig Mann was a German actress and writer, the eldest daughter of novelist Thomas Mann and Katia Mann.-Life:...

.
From 1946 to 1949 as ambassador to the regime of Joseph Stalin

Joseph Stalin

Joseph Vissarionovich Stalin was the Premier of the Soviet Union from 6 May 1941 to 5 March 1953. He was among the Bolshevik revolutionaries who brought about the October Revolution and had held the position of first General Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union's Central Committee...

.