He was Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the University of Virginia, having taught at the Uni-versity for 33 years. His previous appointments had been at the University of Edinburgh and the University of St. Andrews.

Born in Milan, Italy, he attended Shrewsbury School and Magdalen College, Oxford, where he was awarded a first-class degree in Modern Greats. He served with the Royal Armoured Corps during the Second World War and helped interrogate German officers after the cessation of hostilities, including Admiral Donitz and Field Marshall Keitel.

He was a former President of the Lewis Carroll Society of North America and the author of "The Philosopher's Alice," an annotated edition of "Alice in Wonderland" and "Through the Looking Glass." A noted wit and raconteur, Peter taught close to 10,000 undergraduates during his career at the University, with his Introduction to Philosophy and Basic Logic classes, leading generations of students into the study of philosophy.

His academic work ranged from deeply learned contributions to the Cambridge Edition of Immanuel Kant's works to his legendary article on 'Nothing' in the Encyclopedia of Philosophy. He also served as chairman of the Corcoran Department of Philosophy and as President of the Virginia Philosophical Association.

He is survived by his twin brother John, of Bath, England.

A funeral service will be held at 3:10 p.m. Thursday afternoon at Warriston Crematorium Cloister Chapel in Edinburgh.