William Lindsay Scruggs
| William Lindsay Scruggs | |
|---|---|
| United States Ambassador to Colombia | |
|
In office July 24, 1873 – October 26, 1876 |
|
| President | Ulysses S. Grant |
| Preceded by | Stephen A. Hurlbut |
| Succeeded by | Ernest Dichman |
| United States Ambassador to Colombia | |
|
In office 19 July 1882 – 15 December 1885 |
|
| President | Chester A. Arthur |
| Preceded by | George Earl Maney |
| Succeeded by | Charles Donald Jacob |
| United States Ambassador to Venezuela | |
|
In office 30 May 1889 – 15 December 1892 |
|
| President | Grover Cleveland |
| Preceded by | Charles L. Scott |
| Succeeded by | Frank C. Partridge |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
September 14, 1836 Nashville, Tennessee |
| Died | July 18, 1912 (aged 75) Atlanta, Georgia |
| Resting place | unknown |
| Nationality | American |
| Occupation | Diplomat |
| Profession | Journalist, Author, Lawyer |
William Lindsay Scruggs (September 14, 1836 – July 18, 1912) was an American author, lawyer, and diplomat. He was a scholar of South American foreign policy and U.S. ambassador to Colombia and Venezuela. He played a key role in the Venezuela Crisis of 1895 and helped shape the modern interpretation of the Monroe Doctrine.
William L. Scruggs was born in Nashville in 1836. He was a lawyer and journalist in addition to being a diplomat.
Scruggs was U.S. Minister to Colombia from July 24, 1873 to October 26, 1876 and again from July 19, 1882 to December 15, 1885. In 1884 he became known as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, Colombia. Previously his title was simply Minister Resident, Colombia.
Scruggs was U.S. Minister to Venezuela from May 30, 1889 to December 15, 1892. In 1889 he became known as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary, Venezuela. Scruggs appeared to resign his ambassadorship to Venezuela in December 1892, but in fact had been dismissed by the US for bribing the President of Venezuela.
In 1893 Scruggs was recruited by the Venezuelan Government to operate on its behalf in Washington D.C. as a lobbyist and legal attache. As a lobbyist, Scruggs published the pamphlet entitled British Aggressions in Venezuela: The Monroe Doctrine on Trial. In the pamphlet, he attacked "British aggression" claiming that Venezuela was anxious to arbitrate over the Venezuela/British Guiana border dispute of territory at west of Essequibo river limited by Schomburgk Line. Scruggs also claimed that British policies in the disputed territory violated the Monroe Doctrine of 1823. It was this relationship that eventually led to his service as Special Counsel before the Boundary Commission, three years later.
Scruggs collaborated with Georgian compatriot Congressman Leonidas Livingston to propose House Resolution 252 to the third session of the 53rd Congress of the United States of America. The bill — written by Scruggs — recommended Venezuela and Great Britain settle the dispute by arbitration. President Grover Cleveland signed it into law on February 20, 1895, after passing both houses of the United States Congress. The vote had been unanimous. The president Cleveland adopted a broad interpretation of the Monroe Doctrine that did not just simply forbid new European colonies but declared an American interest in any matter within the hemisphere. British prime minister Lord Salisbury and British ambassador to the US Lord Pauncefote both misjudged the importance the American government placed on the dispute. The key issue in the crisis became Britain's refusal to include the territory east of the Schomburgk Line in the proposed international arbitration.
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