John Nichol Irwin II (December 31, 1913 – February 28, 2000) was an American diplomat and attorney during the

Cold War The Cold War was a period of global Geopolitics, geopolitical rivalry between the United States (US) and the Soviet Union (USSR) and their respective allies, the capitalist Western Bloc and communist Eastern Bloc, which lasted from 1947 unt ...

. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he served in the Army in the Pacific as a member of General

Douglas MacArthur Douglas MacArthur (26 January 18805 April 1964) was an American general who served as a top commander during World War II and the Korean War, achieving the rank of General of the Army (United States), General of the Army. He served with dis ...

's staff and reached the rank of lieutenant colonel.

Biography

He was born on December 31, 1913, in

Keokuk, Iowa Keokuk is a city in and a county seat of Lee County, Iowa, United States. It is Iowa's southernmost city. The population was 9,900 at the time of the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census. The city is named after the Sauk people, Sauk chief K ...

. After graduating from the

Fordham University School of Law Fordham University School of Law is the law school of Fordham University. The school is located in Manhattan in New York City, and is one of eight ABA-approved law schools in that city. According to Fordham University School of Law's ABA- ...

, he became an attorney, eventually working as a lawyer at Patterson, Belknap & Webb. He was the last person to hold the position of

Under Secretary of State Under Secretary of State (U/S) is a title used by senior officials of the United States Department of State who rank above the Assistant Secretaries and below the Deputy Secretary. From 1919 to 1972, the Under Secretary was the second-ranking of ...

when that was the U.S. State Department's second-ranking office (1970-1972). In 1972, he became the first person to hold the office of Deputy Secretary of State, which succeeded the office of Under Secretary; he held that office until February 1, 1973. In both capacities, his superior was Secretary William P. Rogers. Irwin resigned from the position of Deputy Secretary to serve as U.S.

Ambassador An ambassador is an official envoy, especially a high-ranking diplomat who represents a state and is usually accredited to another sovereign state or to an international organization as the resident representative of their own government or so ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. In 1973, Irwin bought the Luis Maria Baca Grant No. 5, also known as the O RO Ranch, near

Seligman, Arizona Seligman () is a census-designated place (CDP) on the northern border of Yavapai County, Arizona, United States. The population was 446 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It is one of the stops on Historic U.S. Route 66 (Arizona), hi ...

, from the Greene Cattle Company. In 1977, Irwin bought the Quien Sabe Ranch near Tres Pinos, California. He died on February 28, 2000, in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound. With a population of 135,081 as determined by the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, New Haven is List ...

, at the age of 86.

References

United States under secretaries of state United States deputy secretaries of state Ambassadors of the United States to France People from Keokuk, Iowa 1913 births 2000 deaths Iowa Republicans Connecticut Republicans Nixon administration personnel Lawrenceville School alumni Princeton University alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford Fordham University alumni {{US-diplomat-stub