The Consulate General of the United States of America in Hamburg is a

diplomatic mission A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually den ...

representing the United States of America to the city of Hamburg and the State of Schleswig Holstein in the Federal Republic of

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. The

Government of Hamburg The government of Hamburg is divided into executive, legislative and judicial branches. Hamburg is a city-state and municipality, and thus its governance deals with several details of both state and local community politics. It takes place in two ...

counts the promotion of the then Vice-Consul John Parish to the rank of a consul in 1793 as the establishment of the first mission. The consulate-general represents the interests of the United States government in the German states of Hamburg, Bremen,

Lower Saxony Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

Mecklenburg-Vorpommern Mecklenburg-Vorpommern (MV; ; nds, Mäkelborg-Vörpommern), also known by its anglicized name Mecklenburg–Western Pomerania, is a state in the north-east of Germany. Of the country's sixteen states, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern ranks 14th in po ...

, and

Schleswig-Holstein Schleswig-Holstein (; da, Slesvig-Holsten; nds, Sleswig-Holsteen; frr, Slaswik-Holstiinj) is the northernmost of the 16 states of Germany, comprising most of the historical duchy of Holstein and the southern part of the former Duchy of Sc ...

History

The first American mission to

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

was established in 1790 and

John Parish John Parish (born 11 April 1959) is an English musician, songwriter, composer and record producer. Parish is best known for his work with singer-songwriter PJ Harvey. He has also worked with such artists as Eels, Aldous Harding, Tracy Chapm ...

was named Vice Consul. In 1793 Parish was promoted to the rank of a consul. In 1897, Hugh Pitcairn was appointed to the consulate, and in 1903 appointed to be Consul General by President

Roosevelt Roosevelt may refer to: *Theodore Roosevelt (1858–1919), 26th U.S. president * Franklin D. Roosevelt (1882–1945), 32nd U.S. president Businesses and organisations * Roosevelt Hotel (disambiguation) * Roosevelt & Son, a merchant bank * Rooseve ...

. During the participation of the US in the

First First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...

and

Second World War 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 opposi ...

all consulates in the German Empire were closed. On 1 March 1946 the US Government reopened the consulate in Hamburg, and in 1950 purchased the building at ''Alsterufer'' on the shore of Lake

Außenalster Außenalster () or Outer Alster Lake is the larger one of two artificial lakes, which are formed by the Alster River and are both located within the city limits of Hamburg, Germany. The other „lake“ is the Binnenalster. The Außenalster and i ...

. In 2007 Ms. Karen E. Johnson succeeded Duane C. Butcher as consul general in Hamburg. As of 2009, 31 consuls and 22 consuls general had served in Hamburg. The current Consul General is Darion Akins, who began serving in July 2019.

Facilities

In 1882 the larger one of the two houses was built, and in 1893 the smaller building was finished by architect

Martin Haller Martin Emil Ferdinand Haller (1835–1925) was a German architect, who designed the Hamburg Rathaus and the building of the Consulate General of the United States in Hamburg, and a member of the Hamburg Parliament. Early life and family H ...

, who also designed the

Hamburg Rathaus Hamburg City Hall (german: link=no, Hamburger Rathaus, ) is the seat of local government of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg, Germany. It is the seat of the government of Hamburg and as such, the seat of one of Germany's 16 state parlia ...

. From 1933 until 1945 the

Nazi Party The Nazi Party, officially the National Socialist German Workers' Party (german: Nationalsozialistische Deutsche Arbeiterpartei or NSDAP), was a far-right political party in Germany active between 1920 and 1945 that created and supported t ...

used the houses as Hamburg headquarters. After the war, the British forces confiscated the houses, and in 1950 the US Government bought them from the heirs of the original owners. Eventually a structure was built between the two houses to create one single building. After a renovation the consulate moved into the house in 1951. The Consulate General is commonly called ''das Weiße Haus an der Alster'' (the

White House The White House is the official residence and workplace of the president of the United States. It is located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., and has been the residence of every U.S. president since John Adams in ...

on the

Alster The Alster () is a right tributary of the Elbe river in Northern Germany. It has its source near Henstedt-Ulzburg, Schleswig-Holstein, flows somewhat southwards through much of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg and joins the Elbe in central ...

) in Hamburg. Since threats against American embassies, 9/11, and a direct threat against the consulate in Hamburg, the security of the US Consulate General in Hamburg was often strengthened. On 1 April 2009, the ''

Hamburger Morgenpost The ''Hamburger Morgenpost'' (Hamburg Morning Post) (also known as Mopo) is a daily German newspaper published in Hamburg in tabloid format. As of 2006 the ''Hamburger Morgenpost'' was the second-largest newspaper in Hamburg after '' Bild Zeitu ...

'' used the consulate for an

April Fools' Day April Fools' Day or All Fools' Day is an annual custom on 1 April consisting of practical jokes and hoaxes. Jokesters often expose their actions by shouting "April Fools!" at the recipient. Mass media can be involved in these pranks, which may ...

news, that because of security reasons the consulate will move to a WW II shelter at

Heiligengeistfeld Heiligengeistfeld (German: "Holy Ghost Field") is an area of Hamburg in the St. Pauli quarter. The ''Hamburger Dom'' funfair has been held there since 1893. When the area is not used for exhibitions, circuses or the Dom it is a car park. A buildi ...

. In the late 1990s portions of what used to be a larger property belonging to and surrounding the Consulate were sold off to raise needed cash for the US Embassy in Berlin. The Consulate is known for placing a large Christmas tree every year on the balcony over the entrance.

Neighbourhood

The artificial lake

is in front of the American consulate in the

Rotherbaum Rotherbaum () is a quarter of Eimsbüttel, a borough of Hamburg, Germany. In 2020 the population was 17,114. In German, "roter Baum" means ''red tree''. The "th", which in general was abolished in the spelling reform of 1900, was preserved in na ...

quarter. The railway station

Dammtor Dammtor is a zone (''Ort'') of the German city of Hamburg, situated between the quarters of Rotherbaum (in the borough of Eimsbüttel) and Neustadt (in the borough of Mitte). History Originally, the ''Dammthor'' was a city gate between the '' ...

is nearby to the South.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Consulate General Of The United States In Hamburg

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

Hamburg (male), (female) en, Hamburger(s), Hamburgian(s) , timezone1 = Central (CET) , utc_offset1 = +1 , timezone1_DST = Central (CEST) , utc_offset1_DST = +2 , postal ...

Germany–United States relations Politics of Hamburg Buildings and structures in Hamburg-Mitte