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List of ambassadors of the United States to the United Kingdom

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Ambassador of the United States of America to the United Kingdom
Ambassador of the United States to the Court of St James's
Seal of the United States Department of State
United States ambassador flag
since January 18, 2017
U.S. Department of State
Embassy of the United States, London
StyleHis Excellency (Formal)
Mr. Ambassador (Informal)
Reports toU.S. Secretary of State
ResidenceWinfield House
SeatLondon, United Kingdom
AppointerThe President
with the advice and consent of the Senate
Term lengthAt the pleasure of the President
No fixed term
Inaugural holderJohn Adams
as Minister Plenipotentiary to the Court of St. James's
Formation1785
DeputyConsul General
Daniel James Lawton
(As Deputy Chief of Mission is currently serving as Chargé d'affaires a.i.)
WebsiteUS Embassy – London

The United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom (known formally in the United Kingdom as Ambassador of the United States to the Court of St James's) is the official representative of the President and the Government of the United States of America to the Queen and Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The position is regarded as one of the most prestigious positions in the United States Foreign Service due to the so-called "Special Relationship".[1] The ambassadorship has been held by various notable politicians, including five who would later become presidents: John Adams, James Monroe, John Quincy Adams, Martin Van Buren and James Buchanan. However, the modern tendency of American presidents (of both parties) is to appoint keen political fundraisers from previous presidential campaigns, despite the importance and prestige of the office.[citation needed]

The ambassador and the embassy staff at large work at the American Embassy in Grosvenor Square, London. The official residence of the ambassador is Winfield House in Regent's Park.

The post of ambassador is currently vacant; however, President Trump has nominated Woody Johnson as his choice for the post. On June 26, 2017, Johnson's name was referred to the Senate Committee on Foreign Relations.[2][3] Lewis Lukens is currently serving as Chargé d'affaires ad interim until Johnson is approved by the Senate. The most recent Ambassador was Matthew Barzun.

Duties

The ambassador's main duty is to present U.S. policies to the Government of the United Kingdom and people and to report British policies and views to the Federal government of the United States. He serves as a primary channel of communication between the two nations and plays an important role in treaty negotiations.

The ambassador is the head of the United States's consular service in the United Kingdom. As well as directing diplomatic activity in support of trade, he is ultimately responsible for visa services and for the provision of consular support to American citizens in the UK. He also oversees cultural relations between the two countries.

Ambassadors who later became U.S. presidents

List of U.S. Chiefs of Mission to the Court of St. James

Ministers (1785–1811)

Name Portrait Appointment Presentation Termination Appointer Notes
John Adams February 24, 1785 June 1, 1785 February 20, 1788   Congress Left post [a]
Thomas Pinckney January 12, 1792 August 9, 1792 July 27, 1796   George Washington Left post
Rufus King May 20, 1796 July 27, 1796 May 16, 1803 Left post
James Monroe 1803 August 17, 1803 October 7, 1807   Thomas Jefferson Left post
William Pinkney February 26, 1808 April 27, 1808 May 7, 1811 Left post
Jonathan Russell July 27, 1811 November 15, 1811 June 18, 1812 James Madison Left post [b]

Ministers (1815–1893)

Diplomatic relations with Great Britain were restored after the War of 1812. The Congress of Vienna (1815) established a uniform system of diplomatic rank. As a republic, the United States maintained diplomatic relations with Great Britain at the second-highest rank of Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary. The rank was colloquially known as Minister, and the position continued to be referred to as "United States Minister to Great Britain."

Name Portrait Appointment Presentation Termination Appointer Notes
John Quincy Adams April 28, 1814 June 8, 1815 May 14, 1817   James Madison Left post
Richard Rush 1817 February 12, 1818 April 27, 1825 James Monroe Left post
Rufus King May 5, 1825 November 11, 1825 June 16, 1826 John Quincy Adams Left post
Albert Gallatin May 10, 1826 September 1, 1826 October 4, 1827 Left post
James Barbour May 23, 1828 November 24, 1828 October 1, 1829 Left post
Louis McLane 1829 October 12, 1829 June 13, 1831   Andrew Jackson Left post
Martin Van Buren August 8, 1831 September 21, 1831 March 19, 1832 Left post
Aaron Vail July 13, 1832 July 13, 1836 Left post [c]
Andrew Stevenson March 16, 1836 July 13, 1836 October 21, 1841 Left post
Edward Everett 1841 December 16, 1841 August 8, 1845   William Henry Harrison Left post
Louis McLane 1845 August 8, 1845 August 18, 1846   James K. Polk Left post
George Bancroft September 9, 1846 November 12, 1846 August 31, 1849 Left post
Abbott Lawrence August 20, 1849 October 20, 1849 October 12, 1852   Zachary Taylor Left post
Joseph R. Ingersoll August 21, 1852 October 16, 1852 August 23, 1853 Millard Fillmore Left post
James Buchanan August 20, 1849 August 23, 1853 March 15, 1856   Franklin Pierce Left post
George M. Dallas February 4, 1856 April 4, 1856 May 16, 1861 Left post
Charles Francis Adams Sr. March 20, 1861 May 16, 1861 May 13, 1868   Abraham Lincoln Left post
Reverdy Johnson June 12, 1868 September 14, 1868 May 13, 1869   Andrew Johnson Left post
John Lothrop Motley April 13, 1869 June 18, 1869 December 6, 1870   Ulysses S. Grant Left post
Robert C. Schenck December 22, 1870 June 23, 1871 March 3, 1876 Left post
Edwards Pierrepont May 22, 1876 July 11, 1876 December 22, 1877 Left post
John Welsh November 9, 1877 December 22, 1877 August 14, 1879 Rutherford B. Hayes Left post
James Russell Lowell January 26, 1880 March 11, 1880 May 19, 1885 Left post
Edward John Phelps March 23, 1885 May 19, 1885 January 31, 1889   Grover Cleveland Left post
Robert Todd Lincoln March 30, 1889 May 25, 1889 May 4, 1893   Benjamin Harrison Left post

Ambassadors (1893–present)

Although France became a republic in 1870, the country continued to exchange ambassadors with other Great Powers. In 1893, the United States followed the French precedent and upgraded its relations with other Great Powers to the ambassadorial level. The United States Legation in London became the United States Embassy, and the United States Minister to Great Britain became the United States Ambassador to Great Britain.

Name Portrait Appointment Presentation Termination Appointer Notes
Thomas F. Bayard 1893 June 22, 1893 March 17, 1897   Grover Cleveland Left post
John Hay 1897 May 3, 1897 September 12, 1898   William McKinley Left post
Joseph Hodges Choate January 19, 1899 March 6, 1899 May 23, 1905 Left post
Whitelaw Reid March 8, 1905 June 5, 1905 December 15, 1912 Theodore Roosevelt Died in office
Walter Hines Page April 21, 1913 May 30, 1913 October 3, 1918   Woodrow Wilson Left post
John W. Davis November 21, 1918 December 18, 1918 March 9, 1921 Left post
George Brinton McClellan Harvey April 16, 1921 May 12, 1921 November 3, 1923   Warren G. Harding Left post
Frank B. Kellogg 1924 January 14, 1924 February 10, 1925 Calvin Coolidge Left post
Alanson B. Houghton February 24, 1925 April 27, 1925 March 28, 1929 Left post
Charles G. Dawes April 16, 1929 June 15, 1929 December 30, 1931 Herbert Hoover Left post
Andrew W. Mellon February 5, 1932 April 9, 1932 March 17, 1933 Left post
Robert Worth Bingham March 23, 1933 May 23, 1933 November 19, 1937   Franklin D. Roosevelt Left post
Joseph P. Kennedy January 17, 1938 March 8, 1938 October 22, 1940 Left post
John G. Winant February 11, 1941 March 1, 1941 April 10, 1946 Left post
W. Averell Harriman April 2, 1946 April 30, 1946 October 1, 1946 Harry S. Truman Left post
Lewis W. Douglas March 6, 1947 March 25, 1947 November 16, 1950 Left post
Walter S. Gifford December 12, 1950 December 21, 1950 January 23, 1953 Left post
Winthrop W. Aldrich February 2, 1953 February 20, 1953 February 1, 1957   Dwight D. Eisenhower Left post
John Hay Whitney February 11, 1957 February 28, 1957 January 14, 1961 Left post
David K. E. Bruce February 22, 1961 March 17, 1961 March 20, 1969   John F. Kennedy Left post
Walter Annenberg March 14, 1969 April 29, 1969 October 30, 1974   Richard Nixon Left post
Elliot Richardson February 20, 1975 March 21, 1975 January 16, 1976 Gerald Ford Left post
Anne Armstrong January 29, 1976 March 17, 1976 March 3, 1977 Left post
Kingman Brewster, Jr. April 29, 1977 June 3, 1977 February 23, 1981   Jimmy Carter Left post
John J. Louis, Jr. May 7, 1981 May 27, 1981 November 7, 1983   Ronald Reagan Left post
Charles H. Price II November 11, 1983 December 20, 1983 February 28, 1989 Left post
Henry E. Catto, Jr. File:Henry Catto.jpg April 14, 1989 May 17, 1989 March 13, 1991 George H. W. Bush Left post
Raymond G. H. Seitz April 25, 1991 June 25, 1991 May 10, 1994 Left post
William J. Crowe, Jr. May 13, 1994 June 2, 1994 September 20, 1997   Bill Clinton Left post
Philip Lader August 1, 1997 September 22, 1997 February 28, 2001 Left post
William S. Farish III July 12, 2001 August 1, 2001 June 11, 2004   George W. Bush Left post
Robert H. Tuttle July 9, 2005 October 19, 2005 February 6, 2009 Left post
Louis Susman July 13, 2009 October 13, 2009 April 3, 2013   Barack Obama Left post
Matthew Barzun August 6, 2013 December 4, 2013 January 18, 2017[5] Left post.[6] Lewis Lukens became the chargé d'affaires.
Woody Johnson January 19, 2017[7] TBC   Donald Trump Confirmed by Senate

See also

Notes

  1. ^ John Adams became so frustrated with his cool reception at the court that he closed the legation in 1788 and the post remained vacant for four years.[4]
  2. ^ From 1811 to the outbreak of the War of 1812, chargé d'affaires Johnathan Russell was the chief United States officer in London. The United States severed relations with the United Kingdom on the outbreak of the War of 1812 – Normal relations were restored in 1815.[4]
  3. ^ Chargé d'affaires

References

  1. ^ Collier, Peter; Horowitz, David (2002). The Kennedys: An American Drama. p. 6.
  2. ^ Borger, Julian (January 19, 2016). "New York Jets owner Woody Johnson to be US ambassador to UK". The Guardian. Retrieved January 20, 2017.
  3. ^ "Tracking how many key positions Trump has filled so far". Washington Post. July 14, 2017. Retrieved July 17, 2017.
  4. ^ a b "United Kingdom". Diplomatic History of the United States. U.S. Department of State. Retrieved May 30, 2011.
  5. ^ "Biography of Ambassador Matthew W. Barzun". U.S. Embassy & Consulates in the United Kingdom. Retrieved January 18, 2017.
  6. ^ Davis, Julie Hirschfeld (January 5, 2017). "In Break With Precedent, Obama Envoys Are Denied Extensions Past Inauguration Day". The New York Times.
  7. ^ "Who is Woody Johnson, Trump's new ambassador to the UK?". RT International. Retrieved January 20, 2017.

Further reading

  • Alison R. Holmes and J. Simon Rofe, The Embassy in Grosvenor Square: American Ambassadors to the United Kingdom, 1938–2008. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2012.
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