Julian Pauncefote, 1st Baron Pauncefote
Encyclopedia
Julian Pauncefote, 1st Baron Pauncefote GCB
, GCMG
, PC (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 1882 and 1889 when he was appointed Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United States, an office that was upgraded to that of Ambassador to the United States in 1893. Elevated to the peerage as Baron Pauncefote in 1899, he died in office in 1902.
, Bavaria
, the son of Robert Pauncefote and Emma, daughter of Robert Smith. His father had been born Robert Smith but had assumed the surname of Pauncefote in lieu of his patronymic in 1809. Robert Smith was the grandson of John Smith, brother of Sir George Smith, 1st Baronet (see Bromley Baronets
) and Abel Smith, ancestor of the Barons Carrington
and the Barons Bicester
. He was educated at Paris
, Geneva
, and Marlborough College
. Intending to join the British Indian Army
, he obtained a commission in the Madras Light Cavalry, but never took up his post, instead being called to the bar
in 1852.
at the time, and served in this capacity until the latter's death in October that same year. Eight years later, he decided to go and practise as a barrister
in Hong Kong
, and in 1866 became the colony's
attorney general
. In 1874, he was appointed Chief Justice
of the Leeward Islands
and knighted
, and two years later returned to London
as Assistant Permanent Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies
, assuming the same post at the Foreign Office in 1876.
Having been made Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
(KCMG) in 1879 and a Companion of the Order of the Bath
(CB) the following year, Pauncefote was promoted Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in 1882. He was appointed first British delegate to the Suez Canal Conference in Paris
in 1885, and was rewarded for his services in this respect with appointment as a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George
(GCMG). In 1888 he became a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
(KCB), and the following year was sent to the United States
as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary. After his position was elevated in 1893 to Ambassador, he was Britain's representative at negotiations and signatory of the Tripartite Convention in 1899 that partitioned the Samoan islands. In 1901 he negotiated the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty
(with American Secretary of State John Hay
), nullifying the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty
of 1850, giving the United States
the right to create and control a canal across Central America
.
Having finally become a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
in 1892, Pauncefote the following year became the first British Ambassador to the United States. He was sworn of the Privy Council in 1894 and raised to the peerage as Baron Pauncefote, of Preston in the County of Gloucester
, in 1899.
in May 1902, aged 73, and was buried at East Stoke
near Newark-on-Trent. The peerage
became extinct at his death as he left no surviving male heirs.
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
, GCMG
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
, PC (13 September 1828 – 24 May 1902), known as Sir Julian Pauncefote between 1874 and 1899, was a British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
barrister, judge and diplomat. He was Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs between 1882 and 1889 when he was appointed Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United States, an office that was upgraded to that of Ambassador to the United States in 1893. Elevated to the peerage as Baron Pauncefote in 1899, he died in office in 1902.
Background and education
Pauncefote was born in MunichMunich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Bavaria
Bavaria
Bavaria, formally the Free State of Bavaria is a state of Germany, located in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the largest state by area, forming almost 20% of the total land area of Germany...
, the son of Robert Pauncefote and Emma, daughter of Robert Smith. His father had been born Robert Smith but had assumed the surname of Pauncefote in lieu of his patronymic in 1809. Robert Smith was the grandson of John Smith, brother of Sir George Smith, 1st Baronet (see Bromley Baronets
Bromley Baronets
The Smith, later Bromley, later Pauncefote-Bromley, later Bromley-Wilson, later Bromley Baronetcy, of East Stoke in the County of Nottingham, is a title in the Baronetage of Great Britain. It was created on 31 October 1757 for George Smith, High Sheriff of Nottinghamshire from 1757 to 1759. He was...
) and Abel Smith, ancestor of the Barons Carrington
Baron Carrington
Baron Carrington is a title that has been created three times, once in the Peerage of England, once in the Peerage of Ireland and once in the Peerage of Great Britain. The first creation came in the Peerage of England in 1643 in favour of Sir Charles Smyth. Only a few days later he was created...
and the Barons Bicester
Baron Bicester
Baron Bicester, of Tusmore in the County of Oxford, is a title in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 29 June 1938 for the businessman Vivian Smith. the title is held by his grandson, the third Baron, who succeeded his uncle in 1968....
. He was educated at Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, and Marlborough College
Marlborough College
Marlborough College is a British co-educational independent school for day and boarding pupils, located in Marlborough, Wiltshire.Founded in 1843 for the education of the sons of Church of England clergy, the school now accepts both boys and girls of all beliefs. Currently there are just over 800...
. Intending to join the British Indian Army
British Indian Army
The British Indian Army, officially simply the Indian Army, was the principal army of the British Raj in India before the partition of India in 1947...
, he obtained a commission in the Madras Light Cavalry, but never took up his post, instead being called to the bar
Call to the bar
The Call to the Bar is a legal term of art in most common law jurisdictions where persons must be qualified to be allowed to argue in court on behalf of another party, and are then said to have been "called to the bar" or to have received a "call to the bar"...
in 1852.
Diplomatic career
In July 1855, Pauncefote became private secretary to Sir William Molesworth, Secretary of State for the ColoniesSecretary of State for the Colonies
The Secretary of State for the Colonies or Colonial Secretary was the British Cabinet minister in charge of managing the United Kingdom's various colonial dependencies....
at the time, and served in this capacity until the latter's death in October that same year. Eight years later, he decided to go and practise as a barrister
Barrister
A barrister is a member of one of the two classes of lawyer found in many common law jurisdictions with split legal professions. Barristers specialise in courtroom advocacy, drafting legal pleadings and giving expert legal opinions...
in Hong Kong
Hong Kong
Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour...
, and in 1866 became the colony's
Colony
In politics and history, a colony is a territory under the immediate political control of a state. For colonies in antiquity, city-states would often found their own colonies. Some colonies were historically countries, while others were territories without definite statehood from their inception....
attorney general
Attorney General
In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general, or attorney-general, is the main legal advisor to the government, and in some jurisdictions he or she may also have executive responsibility for law enforcement or responsibility for public prosecutions.The term is used to refer to any person...
. In 1874, he was appointed Chief Justice
Chief Justice
The Chief Justice in many countries is the name for the presiding member of a Supreme Court in Commonwealth or other countries with an Anglo-Saxon justice system based on English common law, such as the Supreme Court of Canada, the Constitutional Court of South Africa, the Court of Final Appeal of...
of the Leeward Islands
Leeward Islands
The Leeward Islands are a group of islands in the West Indies. They are the northern islands of the Lesser Antilles chain. As a group they start east of Puerto Rico and reach southward to Dominica. They are situated where the northeastern Caribbean Sea meets the western Atlantic Ocean...
and knighted
Knight Bachelor
The rank of Knight Bachelor is a part of the British honours system. It is the most basic rank of a man who has been knighted by the monarch but not as a member of one of the organised Orders of Chivalry...
, and two years later returned to London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
as Assistant Permanent Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies
Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies
The Under-Secretary of State for the Colonies was a junior Ministerial post in the United Kingdom government, subordinate to the Secretary of State for the Colonies and, from 1948, also to a Minister of State....
, assuming the same post at the Foreign Office in 1876.
Having been made Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
(KCMG) in 1879 and a Companion of the Order of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(CB) the following year, Pauncefote was promoted Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs in 1882. He was appointed first British delegate to the Suez Canal Conference in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
in 1885, and was rewarded for his services in this respect with appointment as a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George
Order of St Michael and St George
The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is an order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince Regent, later George IV of the United Kingdom, while he was acting as Prince Regent for his father, George III....
(GCMG). In 1888 he became a Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
(KCB), and the following year was sent to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary. After his position was elevated in 1893 to Ambassador, he was Britain's representative at negotiations and signatory of the Tripartite Convention in 1899 that partitioned the Samoan islands. In 1901 he negotiated the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty
Hay-Pauncefote Treaty
The United States and the United Kingdom signed the Hay-Pauncefote Treaty on 18 November 1901. The Treaty nullified the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty of 1850 and gave the United States the right to create and control a canal across the Central American isthmus to connect the Pacific Ocean and the Atlantic...
(with American Secretary of State John Hay
John Hay
John Milton Hay was an American statesman, diplomat, author, journalist, and private secretary and assistant to Abraham Lincoln.-Early life:...
), nullifying the Clayton-Bulwer Treaty
Clayton-Bulwer Treaty
The Clayton–Bulwer Treaty was a treaty between the United States and the United Kingdom, negotiated in 1850 by John M. Clayton and Sir Henry Lytton Bulwer, later Lord Dalling...
of 1850, giving the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
the right to create and control a canal across Central America
Central America
Central America is the central geographic region of the Americas. It is the southernmost, isthmian portion of the North American continent, which connects with South America on the southeast. When considered part of the unified continental model, it is considered a subcontinent...
.
Having finally become a Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath
Order of the Bath
The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate mediæval ceremony for creating a knight, which involved bathing as one of its elements. The knights so created were known as Knights of the Bath...
in 1892, Pauncefote the following year became the first British Ambassador to the United States. He was sworn of the Privy Council in 1894 and raised to the peerage as Baron Pauncefote, of Preston in the County of Gloucester
Gloucestershire
Gloucestershire is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn, and the entire Forest of Dean....
, in 1899.
Family
Lord Pauncefote married Selina, daughter of William Cubitt, in 1859. They had one son, who died as an infant, and four daughters. He died in office at the British Embassy in Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
in May 1902, aged 73, and was buried at East Stoke
East Stoke, Nottinghamshire
East Stoke is a small village in Nottinghamshire nestled between the A46 Fosse Way trunk road and the River Trent. It lies about 6 miles southwest of Newark...
near Newark-on-Trent. The peerage
Peerage
The Peerage is a legal system of largely hereditary titles in the United Kingdom, which constitute the ranks of British nobility and is part of the British honours system...
became extinct at his death as he left no surviving male heirs.