Patricia Mary Byrne (June 1, 1925 – November 23, 2007) was an American diplomat who served as United States Ambassador to Burma from November 1979 to September 1983, and

United States Ambassador to Mali The United States ambassador to Mali is the official representative of the government of the United States to the government of Mali. Ambassadors *Thomas Kenneth Wright (1960-1961) *William Jules Handley (1961-1964) *Charles Robert Moore (1965-19 ...

from December 1976 to October 1979.

Early life and education

Byrne was born in

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along the southern shore of Lake Erie, across the U.S. ...

, the daughter of Edward F. and Mary Kreutzer Byrne, and was a resident of

South Euclid South Euclid is a city in Cuyahoga County, Ohio, United States. It is an inner-ring suburb of Cleveland located on the city's east side. As of the 2010 census the population was 22,295. Geography Acting approximately as a central point for the ...

, Ohio. She graduated second in her class from high school in Cleveland. She credits her father for encouraging her independence and her ambition to enter the foreign service. Byrne was an honors student at

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely follo ...

, where she shaped her studies toward her foreign service career goals, studying French, Spanish and Russian. She graduated in 1946 with an A.B. degree. During two of her college summers she returned to Cleveland, one year working as a riveter in a warplane factory, and another year assembling gun parts. A Vassar fellowship allowed her to attend graduate school at the School of Advanced International Studies at

Johns Hopkins University Johns Hopkins University (Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland. Founded in 1876, Johns Hopkins is the oldest research university in the United States and in the western hem ...

based in

Washington, D.C. ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...

and she earned a master's degree there in 1947. Byrne attended the

National War College The National War College (NWC) of the United States is a school in the National Defense University. It is housed in Roosevelt Hall on Fort Lesley J. McNair, Washington, D.C., the third-oldest Army post still active. History The National War Colle ...

from 1968 to 1969 when she became the school's first female graduate.

Career

After completing her studies, Byrne began working for the

Central Intelligence Agency The Central Intelligence Agency (CIA ), known informally as the Agency and historically as the Company, is a civilian foreign intelligence service of the federal government of the United States, officially tasked with gathering, processing, ...

and took the competitive Foreign Service examination. She was one of 19 women selected for U.S. Foreign Service, where she served from 1949 to 1989. After Byrne joined the Foreign Service, she 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 ...

. She was assigned to

Saigon , population_density_km2 = 4,292 , population_density_metro_km2 = 697.2 , population_demonym = Saigonese , blank_name = GRP (Nominal) , blank_info = 2019 , blank1_name = – Total , blank1_ ...

from 1950 to 1955. After serving as a desk officer for Laos at the State Department, she accepted international assignments in

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a list of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolia, Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with ...

and

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist ...

. Byrne served as a member of the U.S. Delegation to the Geneva Conference on Laos from 1961 to 1962. After graduating, she served at the embassy in Paris. In 1973 she became deputy chief of mission in Columbo,

Sri Lanka Sri Lanka (, ; si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා, Śrī Laṅkā, translit-std=ISO (); ta, இலங்கை, Ilaṅkai, translit-std=ISO ()), formerly known as Ceylon and officially the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka, is an ...

. From 1975 to 1976, Byrne took the senior seminar at the Foreign Service Institute in foreign policy. In 1984 Byrne was a foreign affairs fellow assigned to

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...

's Institute for the Study of Diplomacy.

Personal life

Byrne retired in Washington, where she was a member of the Diplomatic and Consular Officers, Retired, and was twice elected to the group's board. She died on November 23, 2007.

References

External links

Burma at the U.S. Department of State
{{DEFAULTSORT:Byrne, Patricia M. 1925 births 2007 deaths Diplomats from Cleveland Ambassadors of the United States to Myanmar Ambassadors of the United States to Mali Vassar College alumni Paul H. Nitze School of Advanced International Studies alumni National War College alumni American women ambassadors United States Foreign Service personnel 20th-century American women 21st-century American women