James W. Gerard
| James W. Gerard | |
|---|---|
Gerard in 1916
|
|
| United States Ambassador to Germany | |
|
In office October 29, 1913 – February 5, 1917 |
|
| Preceded by | John G. A. Leishman |
| Succeeded by | Ellis Loring Dresel |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
James Watson Gerard August 25, 1867 Geneseo, New York |
| Died | September 6, 1951 (aged 84) Southampton, New York |
James Watson Gerard Jr. (August 25, 1867 – September 6, 1951) was a United States lawyer and diplomat.
Gerard was born in Geneseo, New York. His father, James W. Gerard Sr. was a lawyer and Democratic Party politician in New York. Gerard Jr. graduated from Columbia University (A.B. 1890; A.M. 1891) and from New York Law School (LL.B. 1892). He was chairman of the Democratic campaign committee of New York County for four years. He served on the National Guard of the State of New York for four years. He served through the Spanish–American War (1898) on the staff of General McCoskry Butt. From 1900 to 1904 he was quartermaster, with the rank of major, of the 1st Brigade of the Guard. He was elected to the New York Supreme Court in 1907, where he served as a justice until 1911. Under President Woodrow Wilson, he served as the American Ambassador to Germany from 1913 to 1917.
In 1914, Gerard was the Democratic (Tammany Hall) candidate for U.S. Senator from New York. He defeated Anti-Tammany candidate Franklin D. Roosevelt in the Democratic primary, but lost the election to James W. Wadsworth, Jr.
At the outbreak of World War I in 1914, Gerard assumed the care of British interests in Germany, later visiting the camps where British prisoners were confined and doing much to alleviate their condition. His responsibilities were further increased by the fact that German interests in France, Great Britain, and Russia were placed in the care of the American embassies in those countries, the American embassy in Berlin thus becoming a sort of clearing house. From first-hand knowledge he was able to settle the question, much disputed among the Germans themselves, as to the official attitude of the German government toward the violation of Belgian neutrality.
...
Wikipedia