British Diplomacy from the Unification of Germany to the Spanish Civil War, 1863-1939 - Key Data

Esmé Howard (1863-1939) was an influential British diplomat during the early 20th century. As a young man, he worked as private secretary to the British ambassador in Berlin and witnessed the forging of the recently unified Germany. During the 1900s, he held various diplomatic positions in Crete, Budapest, and Berne and between 1913 and 1919 he was posted to Stockholm and was mainly trusted with tackling blockade diplomacy during the First World War. The zenith of his career occurred between 1924 and 1930, when he was a successful British ambassador to the United States. Upon his retirement in 1930 he was elevated to the House of Lords for his work in Washington.

This collection contains extensive material collected over the fascinating and fruitful life of Esmé Howard. This includes a plethora of personal correspondence with important figures, further correspondence, memorandum, and other material from his many diplomatic occupations, his personal diaries, and files documenting his personal estate. As such, the collection offers a compelling account of British diplomacy during and after the First World War.