Sir John Beith (4 April 1914 – 4 September 2000) was a British diplomat, ambassador to Israel and Belgium.

Career

John Greville Stanley Beith was educated at

Eton College Eton College () is a public school in Eton, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1440 by Henry VI under the name ''Kynge's College of Our Ladye of Eton besyde Windesore'',Nevill, p. 3 ff. intended as a sister institution to King's College, C ...

and

King's College, Cambridge King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Formally The King's College of Our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge, the college lies beside the River Cam and faces out onto King's Parade in the centre of the city ...

. He entered the

Diplomatic Service Diplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel obtains diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to ...

in 1937 and served at the

Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * Unit ...

until 1940 when he was posted to

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

. When the German army approached Athens in April 1941 the British Embassy was evacuated and Beith spent the rest of the war in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires ( or ; ), officially the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires ( es, link=no, Ciudad Autónoma de Buenos Aires), is the capital and primate city of Argentina. The city is located on the western shore of the Río de la Plata, on South ...

. He returned to the Foreign Office 1945–49 and was then Head of the UK Permanent Delegation to the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and international security, security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be ...

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

1950–53, Head of Chancery at

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

1953–54 and Head of Chancery at

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

1954–59. He returned to the Foreign Office again as head of the Levant department 1959–61 and head of the North and East Africa department 1961–63. He was Ambassador to Israel 1963–65, assistant

Secretary-General of NATO The secretary general of NATO is the chief civil servant of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The officeholder is an international diplomat responsible for coordinating the workings of the alliance, leading NATO's international staff ...

1966–67 and Assistant

Under-Secretary of State Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State (or just Parliamentary Secretary, particularly in departments not led by a Secretary of State) is the lowest of three tiers of government minister in the UK government, immediately junior to a Minister o ...

at the Foreign Office 1967–69, during which he led the British delegation in talks on the future of

Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...

, which ended with the 1967 Gibraltar sovereignty referendum. Beith's final diplomatic post was as Ambassador to Belgium, 1969–74. John Beith was appointed CMG in the

New Year Honours The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, with New Year's Day, 1 January, being marked by naming new members of orders of chivalry and recipients of other official honours. A number of other Commonwealth realms also mark this ...

of 1959 and knighted KCMG in the

Queen's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning British monarch's official birthday by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are present ...

of 1969.

Few postwar British diplomats had a greater gift for making friends in the countries to which they were accredited, or for solving knotty problems over a drink or meal, than Sir John Beith ... Foreigners rightly considered him a man of utmost probity, who saw both sides of a question and with whom it was a pleasure to do business.
— Obituary, ''The Guardian'', London, 13 September 2000

Family

In 1949 John Beith married Diana Gregory-Hood, daughter of

Sir John Gilmour, 2nd Baronet Lieutenant-Colonel Sir John Gilmour, 2nd Baronet (27 May 1876 – 30 March 1940) was a Scottish Unionist politician. He notably served as Home Secretary from 1932 to 1935. Early life Gilmour was the son of Sir John Gilmour, 1st Baronet, chai ...

. Her father's sister, Mary Gilmour, had married

Hughe Knatchbull-Hugessen Sir Hughe Montgomery Knatchbull-Hugessen (26 March 1886 – 21 March 1971) was a British diplomat, civil servant and author. He is best remembered as the diplomat whose secrets were stolen by his Kosovar Albanian valet and passed on to Naz ...

who was ambassador to Belgium 1944–47.

References

MUIRHEAD, Sir David (Francis)
Who Was Who, A & C Black, 1920–2008; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2007, retrieved 8 June 2012 *Sir John Beith: Cultured diplomat who represented Britain in Belgium and Israel, ''The Times'', 13 September 2000, page 21
Sir John Beith
''The Guardian'', London, 13 September 2000

''The Telegraph'', London, 6 September 2000 {{DEFAULTSORT:Beith, John Greville Stanley 1914 births 2000 deaths People educated at Eton College Alumni of King's College, Cambridge Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Israel Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Belgium Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George