William Seeds
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Sir William Seeds KCMG |
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|---|---|
 |
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| Ambassador to the Soviet Union | |
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In office 1939–1940 |
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| Monarch | George VI |
| Preceded by | Viscount Chilston |
| Succeeded by | Sir Stafford Cripps |
| Personal details | |
| Born |
27 June 1882 Dublin |
| Died |
2 November 1973 London |
| Nationality | British |
| Spouse(s) | Arabella, Lady Seeds (d.1979) |
| Alma mater | Rugby School |
Sir William Seeds KCMG (1882–1973) was a British diplomat. He served as Ambassador to both Russia and Brazil.
Seeds was born in Dublin, Ireland, on 27 June 1882, to an Ulster Protestant family. He was the only son of Lady Kaye and Robert Seeds QC, the Queen's Advocate General. He was educated at Rugby School and was proficient in French, German, Spanish, Portuguese and Russian. In his late teens he spent two years (1899–1901) in Russia as a student living with several Russian families, studying the culture and language. He grew to love "the real old Russia like a story or play by Chekhov" On his return from Russia he studied in London to enter the diplomatic service whilst fully enjoying the many entertainments that Edwardian London nightlife had to offer. Seeds refers to his early years as the "prehistoric years" in his diaries.
Seeds entered His Majesty's Diplomatic Service in 1904 and served in Washington D.C. (1904–07), at the British Legation at Peking (1908-10) and at the British Embassy in Athens (1911–13). He was Chargé d'Affaires and British Consulate General in Lisbon (1913–1919) and Chargé d'Affaires and First Secretary in Berlin in 1919. He was appointed Consul General for Bavaria in November 1920 and transferred to Munich. He was Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the Republic of Colombia in Bogota from 1923 to 1925 and Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the United States of Venezuela from 1925 to 1926. In 1926–28 he was appointed Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary and Consul General to the Republic of Albania under the rule of King Zog.
In 1928 Seeds became British High Commissioner for the Rhineland in Coblenz, and during his tenure of the post he was mainly occupied in the arrangements for the evacuation. Two years later he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) by George V. Sir William served as Ambassador to Brazil (1930–35). Seeds' final and most controversial diplomatic post before retirement was as Ambassador to the Soviet Union (1939–40).
A tall and handsome man who charmed the ladies, Seeds was nevertheless known “not to suffer fools gladly, nor always sufficiently restrain his brilliant wit”
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