Dame Caroline Elizabeth Wilson (born 12 August 1970) is a British

diplomat A diplomat (from grc, δίπλωμα; romanized ''diploma'') is a person appointed by a state or an intergovernmental institution such as the United Nations or the European Union to conduct diplomacy with one or more other states or internati ...

and

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solic ...

who assumed office as the British Ambassador to China in September 2020.

Early life and education

Wilson was born on 12 August 1970. She was educated at Sevenoaks School before attending

Downing College, Cambridge Downing College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge and currently has around 650 students. Founded in 1800, it was the only college to be added to Cambridge University between 1596 and 1869, and is often described as the olde ...

, where she gained an MA in law. She was

called to the Bar The call to the bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received "call to ...

at Middle Temple in 1993, then gained a degree in European Community law (''licence spéciale en droit européen'') at the Institute for European Studies of the Université Libre de Bruxelles.

Career

Wilson joined the

Foreign and Commonwealth Office The Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) is a Departments of the Government of the United Kingdom, department of the Government of the United Kingdom. Equivalent to other countries' Ministry of Foreign Affairs, ministries of fore ...

(FCO) in 1995 and served in Beijing, Brussels and Moscow in various posts. She was the Consul-General to Hong Kong and Non-Resident Consul General to Macau from 2012 to 2016. She became Europe Director at the FCO in 2016. She appeared in a 2018 BBC documentary titled ''Inside the Foreign Office'', which saw her accompany then-

Foreign Secretary The secretary of state for foreign, Commonwealth and development affairs, known as the foreign secretary, is a minister of the Crown of the Government of the United Kingdom and head of the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office. Seen as ...

Boris Johnson on diplomatic engagements in Europe. In June 2020, she was appointed as British Ambassador to China; she succeeded Dame Barbara Woodward in September 2020. In November 2021, '' The Times'' and other newspapers reported "a row" between British foreign secretary Liz Truss and Wilson relating to a letter Wilson had sent to

National Security Council A national security council (NSC) is usually an executive branch governmental body responsible for coordinating policy on national security issues and advising chief executives on matters related to national security. An NSC is often headed by a na ...

members about relations with the Chinese government, questioning Truss's hawkish stance against China.

Personal life

In addition to her native English, Wilson speaks French, German, Russian, Mandarin Chinese, and Cantonese.

Honours

Wilson was appointed

Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

(CMG) in the

2016 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 2016 were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebrati ...

and Dame Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (DCMG) in the

2021 New Year Honours The 2021 New Year Honours are appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms to various orders and honours to recognise and reward good works by citizens of those countries. The New Year Honours are awarded as part of the New Year celebration ...

for services to British foreign policy. She was called as a Bencher at Middle Temple in 2013. In 2018, she became an honorary fellow of Downing College, Cambridge.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wilson, Caroline 1970 births Living people Dames Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George People educated at Sevenoaks School Alumni of Downing College, Cambridge Members of the Middle Temple Université libre de Bruxelles alumni British women diplomats Consuls-General of the United Kingdom in Hong Kong