Henry Serrano Villard
Encyclopedia
Henry Serrano Villard was an American foreign service officer
, ambassador
, and author.
, New York City
March 30, 1900. He was the great-grandson of William Lloyd Garrison
, the prominent American journalist
and abolitionist. He was the grandson of Henry Villard
, the American railroad tycoon who commissioned the construction of the Villard Houses
in Manhattan.
He graduated from Harvard
in 1921, having been inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa honor society. During his years at Harvard he served as editor of the The Harvard Crimson
, the university’s student newspaper
.
Henry Villard was married to Tamara Gringutes Villard (d. 1990) for 50 years. They had two children: Dimitri Villard and Alexandra Villard de Borchgrave, an author and the wife of American journalist
Arnaud de Borchgrave
.
Villard died of pneumonia
on January 21, 1996 in Los Angeles, California.
and started his foreign service as vice consul
in Tehran
, Iran in 1928. In his capacity as an expert on Africa, he was a leader within the Department of State
in the planning for the Allied invasion of North Africa during World War II
. After that successful operation he served as the U. S. liaison to the Free French Forces
in Africa.
In 1952 President Truman
appointed him as the first United States Ambassador to Libya
, where he served until 1954. President Eisenhower
sent him to Geneva
in 1958 as the Representative of the United States to the European Office of the United Nations
; he held that office 1958–60. President Eisenhower again called upon Villard in 1960 to fill the ambassadorial postings to the newly independent nations of Senegal
and Mauritania
, a dual posting to both nations while resident in Dakar
, Senegal. Upon the completion of those missions in 1961, he retired from the foreign service.
Another book was inspired by his experience as a volunteer ambulance driver in Italy during World War I
, and becoming friends with Ernest Hemingway
:
Other works include:
Foreign Service Officer
A Foreign Service Officer is a commissioned member of the United States Foreign Service. As diplomats, Foreign Service Officers formulate and implement the foreign policy of the United States. FSOs spend most of their careers overseas as members of U.S. embassies, consulates, and other diplomatic...
, ambassador
Ambassador
An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents a nation and is usually accredited to a foreign sovereign or government, or to an international organization....
, and author.
Life
Henry S. Villard was born in ManhattanManhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
, New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
March 30, 1900. He was the great-grandson of William Lloyd Garrison
William Lloyd Garrison
William Lloyd Garrison was a prominent American abolitionist, journalist, and social reformer. He is best known as the editor of the abolitionist newspaper The Liberator, and as one of the founders of the American Anti-Slavery Society, he promoted "immediate emancipation" of slaves in the United...
, the prominent American journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and abolitionist. He was the grandson of Henry Villard
Henry Villard
Henry Villard was an American journalist and financier who was an early president of the Northern Pacific Railway....
, the American railroad tycoon who commissioned the construction of the Villard Houses
Villard Houses
The Villard Houses are located at 455 Madison Avenue in the Manhattan Borough of New York City between 50th and 51st Street.- History :The building was constructed in 1884, designed by the architecture firm McKim, Mead and White three years after they started their company...
in Manhattan.
He graduated from Harvard
Harvard University
Harvard University is a private Ivy League university located in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States, established in 1636 by the Massachusetts legislature. Harvard is the oldest institution of higher learning in the United States and the first corporation chartered in the country...
in 1921, having been inducted into the Phi Beta Kappa honor society. During his years at Harvard he served as editor of the The Harvard Crimson
The Harvard Crimson
The Harvard Crimson, the daily student newspaper of Harvard University, was founded in 1873. It is the only daily newspaper in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and is run entirely by Harvard College undergraduates...
, the university’s student newspaper
Student newspaper
A student newspaper is a newspaper run by students of a university, high school, middle school, or other school. These papers traditionally cover local and, primarily, school or university news....
.
Henry Villard was married to Tamara Gringutes Villard (d. 1990) for 50 years. They had two children: Dimitri Villard and Alexandra Villard de Borchgrave, an author and the wife of American journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
Arnaud de Borchgrave
Arnaud de Borchgrave
Arnaud de Borchgrave is an American journalist who specializes in international politics.Born in Belgium to Audrey Dorothy Louise Townshend, daughter of Major General Sir Charles Vere Ferrers Townshend, and Belgian count Baudouin de Borchgrave d’Altena , head of Belgium's military intelligence...
.
Villard died of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
on January 21, 1996 in Los Angeles, California.
Foreign service career
In 1928 Villard joined the United States Foreign ServiceUnited States Foreign Service
The United States Foreign Service is a component of the United States federal government under the aegis of the United States Department of State. It consists of approximately 11,500 professionals carrying out the foreign policy of the United States and aiding U.S...
and started his foreign service as vice consul
Vice Consul
A vice consul is a subordinate officer, authorized to exercise consular functions in some particular part of a district controlled by a consulate....
in Tehran
Tehran
Tehran , sometimes spelled Teheran, is the capital of Iran and Tehran Province. With an estimated population of 8,429,807; it is also Iran's largest urban area and city, one of the largest cities in Western Asia, and is the world's 19th largest city.In the 20th century, Tehran was subject to...
, Iran in 1928. In his capacity as an expert on Africa, he was a leader within the Department of State
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
in the planning for the Allied invasion of North Africa during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. After that successful operation he served as the U. S. liaison to the Free French Forces
Free French Forces
The Free French Forces were French partisans in World War II who decided to continue fighting against the forces of the Axis powers after the surrender of France and subsequent German occupation and, in the case of Vichy France, collaboration with the Germans.-Definition:In many sources, Free...
in Africa.
In 1952 President Truman
Harry S. Truman
Harry S. Truman was the 33rd President of the United States . As President Franklin D. Roosevelt's third vice president and the 34th Vice President of the United States , he succeeded to the presidency on April 12, 1945, when President Roosevelt died less than three months after beginning his...
appointed him as the first United States Ambassador to Libya
United States Ambassador to Libya
The United States Ambassador to Libya is the official representative of the President of the United States to the head of state of Libya.Until its independence in 1951, Libya had been a colony of Italy and then under British and French occupation until 1951...
, where he served until 1954. President Eisenhower
Dwight D. Eisenhower
Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
sent him to Geneva
Geneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
in 1958 as the Representative of the United States to the European Office of the United Nations
Representative of the United States to the European Office of the United Nations
The Representative of the United States to the European Office of the United Nations is the chief of mission of the United States Mission to the European Office of the United Nations and Other International Organizations at the United Nations Office at Geneva...
; he held that office 1958–60. President Eisenhower again called upon Villard in 1960 to fill the ambassadorial postings to the newly independent nations of Senegal
United States Ambassador to Senegal
The United States Ambassador to Senegal is the official representative of the President of the United States to the head of state of Senegal. The ambassador is concurrently the ambassador to Guinea-Bissau, while resident in Dakar, Senegal....
and Mauritania
United States Ambassador to Mauritania
The United States embassy in Mauritania is located in Nouakchott. Mauritania – United States relations have been developing since 1960. The incumbent ambassador is Jo Ellen Powell.-Ambassadors:*Henry S. Villard – Career FSO...
, a dual posting to both nations while resident in Dakar
Dakar
Dakar is the capital city and largest city of Senegal. It is located on the Cap-Vert Peninsula on the Atlantic coast and is the westernmost city on the African mainland...
, Senegal. Upon the completion of those missions in 1961, he retired from the foreign service.
Author
Villard was the author of several books. He had a great interest in the early days of aviation and authored two books on the subject:- Contact! The Story of the Early Birds, an account of the WWI action of 9 April 1914Action of 9 April 1914The Action of 9 April 1914 was an important turning point in naval and aviation history. On the said date one of the first naval/air skirmishes took place. This engagement took place off the coast of western Mexico during the Mexican Revolution. The action was part of the naval campaign off...
, one of the first naval air skirmishes in the history of aviation, published by Smithsonian Press, 1987, ISBN 0874749425 - Blue Ribbon of the Air: The Gordon Bennett Races, the story of the Gordon Bennett Cup of ballooning, published by Smithsonian Press, 1987, ISBN 0-87474-942-5.
Another book was inspired by his experience as a volunteer ambulance driver in Italy during World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
, and becoming friends with Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Hemingway
Ernest Miller Hemingway was an American author and journalist. His economic and understated style had a strong influence on 20th-century fiction, while his life of adventure and his public image influenced later generations. Hemingway produced most of his work between the mid-1920s and the...
:
- Hemingway In Love And War: The Lost Diary of Agnes von Kurowsky, Her Letters, and Correspondence of Ernest Hemingway. This is the story of Hemingway’s romance with his nurse, Agnes von KurowskyAgnes von KurowskyAgnes von Kurowsky Stanfield , an American nurse, was reportedly the basis for the character of "Catherine Barkley" in Ernest Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms....
, who is said to be the inspiration for the nurse in A Farewell to ArmsA Farewell to ArmsA Farewell to Arms is a semi-autobiographical novel written by Ernest Hemingway concerning events during the Italian campaigns during the First World War. The book, which was first published in 1929, is a first-person account of American Frederic Henry, serving as a Lieutenant in the ambulance...
, ISBN 1-55553-057-5 H/B/ISBN 0-340-68898-X P/B.
Other works include:
- Looping the Loop: Posters of Flight
- The Great Road Races, 1894-1914
- Affairs at State: A career diplomat's candid appraisal of the U.S. Foreign Service
- Lincoln on the Eve of '61: A Journalist's Story
- Libya: The New Arab kingdom of North Africa
- Memoirs of Henry Villard, Journalist And Financier, 1835-1900
- The Past and Present of the Pike's Peak Gold Regions
- The Royal Victoria Hotel
External links
- Alexandravillard.com: Very short biography of Henry S. Villard’s daughter Alexandra Villard de Borchgrave