This is a list of
ambassadors of the United States
Ambassadors of the United States are persons nominated by the president to serve as the country's diplomatic representatives to foreign nations, international organizations, and as ambassadors-at-large. Under Article II, Section 2 of the U.S ...
to
Lesotho.
Prior to 1965, the area of southern Africa that is now Lesotho was a
Crown colony by the name of
Basutoland. Along with most of the empire's other
colonies
In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...
and protectorates, Basutoland gained full independence from Britain in the 1960s. The nation was granted full autonomy on April 30, 1965. On October 4, 1966,
Basutoland was granted independence, governed by a constitutional
monarchy
A monarchy is a government#Forms, form of government in which a person, the monarch, is head of state for life or until abdication. The legitimacy (political)#monarchy, political legitimacy and authority of the monarch may vary from restric ...
with a bicameral parliament. At the same time the name of the country was changed to The Kingdom of Lesotho.
The United States immediately
recognized Lesotho after the nation gained its independence. An embassy in
Maseru
Maseru is the capital and largest city of Lesotho. It is also the capital of the Maseru District. Located on the Caledon River, Maseru lies directly on the Lesotho–South Africa border. Maseru had a population of 330,760 in the 2016 census. T ...
was established on October 4, 1966, Lesotho's independence day. Richard St. F. Post was appointed as
chargé d'affaires ''ad interim'' pending the arrival of an ambassador. The first ambassador,
Charles J. Nelson was appointed on June 9, 1971. Until 1979 one ambassador was accredited to Lesotho,
Swaziland, and
Botswana
Botswana (, ), officially the Republic of Botswana ( tn, Lefatshe la Botswana, label= Setswana, ), is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. Botswana is topographically flat, with approximately 70 percent of its territory being the Kalaha ...
. The ambassador was resident in
Gaborone
Gaborone ( , , ) is the capital and largest city of Botswana with a population of 246,325 based on the 2022 census, about 10% of the total population of Botswana. Its agglomeration is home to 421,907 inhabitants at the 2011 census.
Gaboron ...
, Botswana.
Ambassadors
*Note: Pending appointment of the first ambassador, the following officers served as chargé d'affaires ''ad interim'': Richard St. F. Post (October 1966–July 1968), Norman E. Barth (July 1968–August 1969), and Stephen G. Gebelt (October 1969–December 1970).
Notes
See also
*
Lesotho–United States relations
Lesotho–United States relations are bilateral relations between the Kingdom of Lesotho and the United States of America.
History
The United States was one of the first four countries to establish an embassy in Maseru after Lesotho gained ...
*
Foreign relations of Lesotho
*
Ambassadors of the United States
Ambassadors of the United States are persons nominated by the president to serve as the country's diplomatic representatives to foreign nations, international organizations, and as ambassadors-at-large. Under Article II, Section 2 of the U.S ...
References
United States Department of State: Background notes on Lesotho*
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ambassadors of the United States to Lesotho
Lesotho
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...