Brandon Hambright Grove Jr. (April 8, 1929 – May 20, 2016) was the United States Ambassador to the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) and Zaire (1984–87)[1] and served on the board of directors of the American Academy of Diplomacy.[2]

Brandon Grove
Director of the Foreign Service Institute
In office
July 5, 1988 – August 14, 1992
PresidentGeorge H. W. Bush
Bill Clinton
Preceded byCharles Bray
Succeeded byLawrence Taylor
United States Ambassador to Zaire
In office
September 18, 1984 – September 18, 1987
PresidentRonald Reagan
Preceded byPeter Constable
Succeeded byWilliam C. Harrop
U.S. Consul General in Jerusalem
In office
1980–1982
PresidentRonald Reagan
Preceded byMichael H. Newlin
Succeeded byWat T. Cluverius IV
Inspector General of the Department of State
Acting
In office
May 1, 1978 – July 5, 1978
PresidentRonald Reagan
Preceded byRobert M. Sayre
Succeeded byTheodore L. Eliot Jr.
United States Ambassador to East Germany
Acting
In office
December 9, 1974 – December 20, 1974
PresidentGerald Ford
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byJohn Sherman Cooper
Personal details
Born
Brandon Hambright Grove Jr.

(1929-04-08)April 8, 1929
Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
DiedMay 20, 2016(2016-05-20) (aged 87)
Washington, D.C., U.S.
SpouseMariana Moran
EducationBard College (BA)
Princeton University (MPA)

Grove received an undergraduate degree from Bard College in 1950 and a master's degree in public administration from Princeton University in 1952.[3]

Ambassador Brandon Grove's diplomatic career spanned thirty-five years in the U.S. Foreign Service under nine presidents and twelve secretaries of state.

Born in Chicago (April 8, 1929), he held degrees from Bard College and the Woodrow Wilson School of Princeton University. As an amphibious boat group commander in the U.S. Navy, he served to the rank of Lieutenant. Before joining the U.S. Foreign Service in 1959, he worked on the staff of Congressman Chester Bowles, of Connecticut.

His diplomatic assignments took him to posts in Africa, India, East and West Berlin, and Jerusalem, where he was consul general during Israel's war with Lebanon. In 1974, he became the first American diplomat accredited to East Germany, where he established the embassy in Berlin. During 1984-87, he served as President Reagan's ambassador to Zaire.[4]

Among assignments in Washington, he twice filled positions managing U.S. relations with Panama, Central America, and the Caribbean, first as director of the Office of Panamanian Affairs, and later as deputy assistant secretary of state for Inter-American Affairs. He served on the policy planning staffs of secretaries of state Henry Kissinger and Warren Christopher.

Ambassador Grove, during 1988-92, was director of the State Department's Foreign Service Institute responsible for foreign affairs training throughout the government. He coordinated the design and construction of its permanent facility at Arlington Hall, Virginia. At Hamilton College, Grove was the Sol M. Linowitz Professor of International Affairs, teaching a course on diplomacy in practice.

In 2000, Bard College awarded him its John Dewey Medal for Distinguished Public Service, and in 2010 the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters for his lifetime contributions to diplomacy. He has three times received the President's Meritorious Service Award.

The University of Missouri Press published his autobiography, Behind Embassy Walls: The Life and Times of an American Diplomat, in June 2005.

Ambassador Grove was president emeritus of the American Academy of Diplomacy.

Grove, Jr. died from complications of cancer on May 20, 2016, in Washington, D.C., aged 87.[5]

Publications

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  • Behind embassy walls: the life and times of an American diplomat (2005) (ISBN 978-0826215734)

References

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  1. ^ Simpson, Dan (27 July 2005). Diplomacy Is A Many-splendored Thing, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Retrieved December 1, 2010
  2. ^ Brandon Grove Archived July 20, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, American Academy of Diplomacy, Retrieved December 1, 2010
  3. ^ (22 May 2010). Bard College commencement today Archived 2012-03-18 at the Wayback Machine, Daily Freeman, Retrieved December 1, 2010
  4. ^ "The Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training Foreign Affairs Oral History Project AMBASSADOR BRANDON H. GROVE, JR" (PDF). Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training. 19 December 1990. Archived (PDF) from the original on 12 July 2024. Retrieved 12 July 2024.
  5. ^ Bart Barnes (May 24, 2016). "Brandon Grove Jr., diplomat who led Foreign Service Institute, dies at 87". The Washington Post. Retrieved May 25, 2016.
Diplomatic posts
New office United States Ambassador to East Germany
Acting

1974
Succeeded by
Preceded by United States Ambassador to Zaire
1984–1987
Succeeded by