The British Ambassador to the United States is in charge of the

British Embassy, Washington, D.C. The British Embassy, Washington D.C. (alternatively in the US, Embassy of the United Kingdom, Washington, D.C.) is the British sovereign's diplomatic mission to the United States of America, representing the interests of the United Kingdom and ...

, the United Kingdom's diplomatic mission to the United States. The official title is His Majesty's Ambassador to the United States of America. The ambassador's residence is on

Massachusetts Avenue Massachusetts Avenue may refer to: * Massachusetts Avenue (metropolitan Boston), Massachusetts ** Massachusetts Avenue (MBTA Orange Line station), a subway station on the MBTA Orange Line ** Massachusetts Avenue (MBTA Silver Line station), a stati ...

in Washington, D.C. It was designed by Sir

Edwin Lutyens Sir Edwin Landseer Lutyens ( ; 29 March 1869 – 1 January 1944) was an English architect known for imaginatively adapting traditional architectural styles to the requirements of his era. He designed many English country houses, war memori ...

and built in 1928.

Duties

The position of ambassador to the United States is considered to be one of the most important and prestigious posts in His Majesty's Diplomatic Service, along with that of

Permanent Under-Secretary of State A permanent secretary (also known as a principal secretary) is the most senior civil servant of a department or ministry charged with running the department or ministry's day-to-day activities. Permanent secretaries are the non-political civil ...

at 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 ...

. The ambassador's main duty is to present British policies to the American government and people, and to report American policies and views to the Government of the United Kingdom. They serve as the primary channel of communication between the two nations, and play an important role in treaty negotiations. The ambassador is the head of the United Kingdom's consular service in the United States. As well as directing diplomatic activity in support of trade, they are ultimately responsible for visa services and for the provision of consular support to British citizens in America. They also oversee cultural relations between the two countries.

History

The first British envoy to the United States was Sir John Temple, who was appointed consul general in 1785 and was based in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

at the estate at Richmond Hill (Manhattan) which served previously as a headquarters for

George Washington George Washington (February 22, 1732, 1799) was an American military officer, statesman, and Founding Father who served as the first president of the United States from 1789 to 1797. Appointed by the Continental Congress as commander of th ...

. George Hammond was appointed on 5 July 1791. He held the title of Minister in Washington or Minister to the United States of America. In 1809, David Erskine and President James Madison negotiated a compromise on Anglo-American disputes over shipping in the Atlantic, which might have averted the War of 1812. However, the deal was rejected by King George III and the British Government recalled Erskine. By the 1850s, the envoy's title was Her Majesty's Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United States of America, and the United Kingdom had consulates in several American cities. Under the direction of Sir John Crampton in 1854 and 1855, British consuls attempted to enlist American volunteers to fight in the Crimean War. The American government strenuously objected, and President

Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. He was a northern Democrat who believed that the abolitionist movement was a fundamental threat to the nation's unity ...

asked for Crampton to be recalled. The United Kingdom refused, and in May 1856 the American government dismissed Crampton, along with the United Kingdom's consuls in

, Philadelphia and Cincinnati. After much negotiation, the United Kingdom was allowed to re-establish its Legation in Washington the following year, and

Lord Napier Lord Napier, of Merchistoun, is a title in the Peerage of Scotland. It was created in 1627 for Sir Archibald Napier, 1st Baronet. Earlier that year, he already held the Napier Baronetcy, of Merchistoun in the County of Midlothian, created in ...

became the new minister. In 1893, the British diplomatic mission in Washington was raised from a

Legation A legation was a diplomatic representative office of lower rank than an embassy. Where an embassy was headed by an ambassador, a legation was headed by a Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, minister. Ambassadors diplomatic rank, out ...

to an Embassy, and

Sir Julian Pauncefote Julian Pauncefote, 1st Baron Pauncefote (13 September 1828 – 24 May 1902), known as Sir Julian Pauncefote between 1874 and 1899, was a British barrister, judge and diplomat. He was Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs between ...

, Minister since 1889, was appointed as the United Kingdom's first ambassador to the United States, with the title Her Britannic Majesty's Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to the United States. The role has in the past been offered to three former Prime Ministers: the Earl of Rosebery, David Lloyd George and

Sir Edward Heath Sir Edward Richard George Heath (9 July 191617 July 2005), often known as Ted Heath, was a British politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1970 to 1974 and Leader of the Conservative Party from 1965 to 1975. Heath a ...

, all of whom declined.

Heads of mission

Minister plenipotentiary (1791–1795)

As a republic, the United States was not entitled to receive an ambassador. Instead, the United Kingdom dispatched a diplomat with the lower rank of ''minister plenipotentiary''. This placed the United Kingdom on equal footing with France, which also maintained a minister plenipotentiary in the United States. 1791–1795: George Hammond

Envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary (1796–1893)

In 1796, the United Kingdom raised its representation to '' envoy extraordinary and minister plenipotentiary'', or ''minister''. Diplomatic relations would be maintained at this rank for almost 100 years. *1796–1800: Sir Robert Liston *1800–1804:

Sir Edward Thornton Sir Edward Thornton, FRS (22 October 1766 – 3 July 1852) was a British diplomat, and father of Sir Edward Thornton (1817–1906). He was born in London, the third son (of three sons and two daughters; a brother was the merchant Thomas Thorn ...

*1803–1806: Anthony Merry *1807–1809: Hon. David Erskine *1809–1811: Francis Jackson *1811–1812: Sir Augustus Foster *1812–1815: ''No representation due to the War of 1812'' *1815–1820: Hon. Sir Charles Bagot *1820–1824:

Stratford Canning Stratford Canning, 1st Viscount Stratford de Redcliffe, (4 November 1786 – 14 August 1880) was a British diplomat who became best known as the longtime British Ambassador to the Ottoman Empire. A cousin of George Canning, he served as Envoy ...

*1825–1835: Sir Charles Vaughan *1835–1843: Sir Henry Fox *1843–1847: Richard Pakenham *1849–1852:

Sir Henry Bulwer ''Sir'' is a formal honorific address in English for men, derived from Sire in the High Middle Ages. Both are derived from the old French "Sieur" (Lord), brought to England by the French-speaking Normans, and which now exist in French only ...

*1852–1856: Sir John Crampton, Bt *1857–1858:

*1858–1865: Lord Lyons *1865–1867: Sir Frederick Bruce *1867–1881:

*1881–1888: Hon. Lionel Sackville-West *1889–''1893'':

Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary (from 1893)

*1893–1902:

(Lord Pauncefote from 1899) *1902–1903: Hon. Sir Michael Herbert *1903–1906:

Sir Mortimer Durand Sir Henry Mortimer Durand, (14 February 1850 – 8 June 1924) was a British Anglo-Indian diplomat and member of the Indian Civil Service. Background Born at Sehore, Bhopal, India, he was the son of Sir Henry Marion Durand, the Resident of Ba ...

*1907–1913:

James Bryce James Bryce may refer to: *James Bryce (geologist) (1806–1877), Irish naturalist and geologist * James Bryce (footballer) (1884–1916), Scottish footballer *James Bryce, 1st Viscount Bryce (1838–1922), British jurist, historian and politician ...

(later Viscount Bryce) *1913–1918: Sir Cecil Spring Rice *1918–1919: The Earl of Reading *1919–1920:

Viscount Grey of Fallodon A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

*1920–1924: Sir Auckland Geddes *1924–1930: Sir Esme Howard *1930–1939: Sir Ronald Lindsay *1939–1940: The Marquess of Lothian *1940–1946:

Viscount Halifax A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. In many countries a viscount, and its historical equivalents, was a non-hereditary, administrative or judicial ...

(Earl of Halifax from 1944) *1946–1948: Lord Inverchapel *1948–1952: Sir Oliver Franks *1953–1956: Sir Roger Makins *1956–1961: Sir Harold Caccia *1961–1965: Hon. Sir David Ormsby-Gore (Lord Harlech from 1964) *1965–1969: Sir Patrick Dean *1969–1971: Rt. Hon. John Freeman *1971–1974: The Earl of Cromer *1974–1977: Hon. Sir Peter Ramsbotham *1977–1979: Hon. Peter Jay *1979–1982:

Sir Nicholas Henderson Sir John Nicholas Henderson, (1 April 191916 March 2009), known as Nicko Henderson, was a British diplomat and writer, who served as British Ambassador to the United States from 1979 to 1982. Life and career Henderson was born in London, the ...

*1982–1986: Sir Oliver Wright *1986–1991: Sir Antony Acland *1991–1995: Sir Robin Renwick *1995–1997: Sir John Kerr *1997–2003:

Sir Christopher Meyer Sir Christopher John Rome Meyer (22 February 1944 – 27 July 2022) was a British diplomat who served as the Ambassador to the United States (1997–2003), Ambassador to Germany (1997), and the chairman of the Press Complaints Commission (20 ...

*2003–2007:

Sir David Manning Sir David Geoffrey Manning, (born 5 December 1949) is a former British diplomat, who was the British Ambassador to the United States from 2003 to 2007. He authored the so-called " Manning Memo", that summarized the details of a meeting between ...

*2007–2012: Sir Nigel Sheinwald *2012–2016: Sir Peter Westmacott *2016–2019: Lord Darroch of Kew *2020–present: Dame Karen Pierce

Ambassadors in fiction

* Sir Everard Everett, in Wodehouse's '' Jeeves and the Feudal Spirit'' * Lord John Marbury, in NBC's '' The West Wing''. * Sir Mark Brydon, in the BBC's ''

The State Within ''The State Within'' is a six-part British television political thriller series, written and created by Lizzie Mickery and Daniel Percival, that was broadcast on BBC One in the United Kingdom from Thursday, 2 November 2006. The series, directed ...

''.

References

External links

UK and United States of America
gov.uk {{Lists of heads of UK diplomatic missions United States of America United Kingdom