Arthur T. Tienken Explained

Arthur T. Tienken
Office:7th US Ambassador to Gabon
Predecessor:Andrew L. Steigman
Successor:Francis Terry McNamara
Term Start:February 3, 1978
Term End:July 19, 1981
President:Jimmy Carter
Office1:2nd US Ambassador to São Tomé and Príncipe
Predecessor1:Andrew L. Steigman
Successor1:Francis Terry McNamara
President1:Jimmy Carter
Termstart1:February 2, 1978
Termend1:July 19, 1981

Arthur Thomas Tienken (August 5, 1922 Yonkers, New York May 7, 2006, Arlington, Virginia) was an American career Foreign Service Officer who held concurrent ambassadorships to Gabon and São Tomé and Príncipe (19781981).[1] [2]

Tienken graduated from Princeton University, earning a bachelor's in 1946 (political science) and a master's in international relations at the Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs in 1950. Tienken entered with the Class of ‘44 but took time off from his studies, serving as a first lieutenant in the 3094th Quartermaster Company of the Western Pacific in the Philippines during World War II.[3]

Tienken joined the Foreign Service in 1950.[4] His first position was as a Kreis resident officer, or district governor, in Germany. He served in various the Belgian Congo, Mozambique, Zambia, Tuniasia and Ethiopia. He then spent four years at the embassy in Brussels. São Tomé and Príncipe achieved independence from Portugal on July 12, 1975, during Tienken's predecessor's time as ambassador. However, the ambassador of São Tomé and Príncipe served concurrently as the ambassador to Gabon until 2020.

Upon his return stateside, he attended the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island and was a diplomat-in-residence at Marquette University. He retired in 1987.

Tienken died of stomach cancer at his home.

Notes and References

  1. News: Arthur T. Tienken '44 *50 . 12 November 2019 . Princeton Alumni Weekly.
  2. Web site: Arthur Tienken . Office of the Historian . 12 November 2019.
  3. News: Obituaries . 12 November 2019 . The Washington Post . May 13, 2006.
  4. Web site: 12 June 1989 . The Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training Foreign Affairs Oral History Project AMBASSADOR ARTHUR T. TIENKEN . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20240713221605/https://adst.org/OH%20TOCs/Tienken,%20Arthur%20T.toc.pdf . 13 July 2024 . 5 August 2024 . Association for Diplomatic Studies and Training.