William Joseph Sebald (November 5, 1901 – August 10, 1980) was an American diplomat who served as

United States Ambassador to Burma This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to Burma. In 1989 the military government of Burma changed the name of the nation to Myanmar, but the United States government—and all other Western governments—do not accept the name and stil ...

from April 1952 to July 1954, and to Australia from 1957 to 1961.

Education and career

Sebald graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy in 1922. Sebald moved to Kobe, Japan in 1925 as part of an officer's language program. Sebald resigned from the Navy in 1930. In 1933, Sebald earned his

juris doctor degree The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

specializing in international law from the

University of Maryland The University of Maryland, College Park (University of Maryland, UMD, or simply Maryland) is a public land-grant research university in College Park, Maryland. Founded in 1856, UMD is the flagship institution of the University System of M ...

. He moved back to Japan and practiced law at his father-in-laws firm from 1933 to 1939. Sebald also received an honorary doctor of laws degree from the University of Maryland for his study and work in Japanese law in 1949. Sebald served during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

with the

Office of Naval Intelligence The Office of Naval Intelligence (ONI) is the military intelligence agency of the United States Navy. Established in 1882 primarily to advance the Navy's modernization efforts, it is the oldest member of the U.S. Intelligence Community and serve ...

(ONI) back in the United States starting in 1939. Then he was on the staff of Admiral

Ernest King Ernest Joseph King (23 November 1878 – 25 June 1956) was an American naval officer who served as Commander in Chief, United States Fleet (COMINCH) and Chief of Naval Operations (CNO) during World War II. As COMINCH-CNO, he directed the U ...

. He was a political adviser to General Douglas MacArthur, with ambassador rank. Sebald was U.S. Ambassador to Burma (1952–1954), Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for East Asian and Pacific Affairs (1954–1956), and Ambassador to Australia (1957–1961). Sebald retired in 1961.

Personal life and death

Sebald met his wife Edith France deBecker in Kobe, Japan. They were married in 1927. He died from emphysema in

Naples, Florida Naples is a city in Collier County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the historical city (i.e. in the immediate vicinity of downtown Naples) was 19,115. Naples is a principal city of the Naples-Marco Island, Flori ...

, on August 10, 1980, at the age of 78.

Works

*''With MacArthur in Japan: A Personal History of the Occupation'', Norton, 1965,

References

External links

*
William Joseph Sebald
at

Office of the Historian The Office of the Historian is an office of the United States Department of State within the Foreign Service Institute. It is legally responsible for the preparation and publication of the official historical documentary record of U.S. foreign p ...

, Bureau of Public Affairs,

United States Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an United States federal executive departments, executive department of the Federal government of the United States, U.S. federal government responsible for the country's fore ...

*
William J. Sebald Papers, 1887–1980 MS 207
held by Special Collections & Archives, Nimitz Library at the United States Naval Academy {{DEFAULTSORT:Sebald, William J. 1901 births 1980 deaths Ambassadors of the United States to Japan Ambassadors of the United States to Myanmar Ambassadors of the United States to Australia Diplomats from Baltimore United States Naval Academy alumni United States Foreign Service personnel 20th-century American diplomats