List of ambassadors of the United States to Austria explained

Post:Ambassador
Body:the United States to Austria
Native Name:Botschafter der Vereinigten Staaten in Österreich
Insignia:US Department of State official seal.svg
Insigniasize:120
Insigniacaption:Seal of the United States Department of State
Incumbent:Victoria Reggie Kennedy
Incumbentsince:January 12, 2022
Inaugural:Henry A. P. Muhlenberg
as Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary
Formation:February 8, 1838

This is a list of ambassadors of the United States to Austria.

The United States first established diplomatic relations with Austria in 1838 during the time of the Austrian Empire. Relations between the United States have been continuous since that time except for two interruptions during World War I and World War II.

The first ambassadors were accredited to the Austrian Empire. In 1867 the empire became Austria-Hungary and the ambassadors were so commissioned. After the resumption of diplomatic relations following World War I, the ambassadors were commissioned to Austria.

For ambassadors to Hungary after the dissolution of the empire, see United States Ambassador to Hungary.

The United States Embassy in Austria is located in Vienna.

Ambassadors

!Image!Name!Title!Appointed!Presented credentials!Terminated mission!Notes
Henry A. P. MuhlenbergEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryFebruary 8, 1838November 7, 1838Left post, September 18, 1840
Daniel JeniferEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryAugust 27, 1841March 30, 1842Presented recall, June 28–July 7, 1845From 1845 until 1854 there was no U.S. minister present. The U.S. was represented by a succession of chargés d’affaires.
William H. Stiles[1] Chargé d'affairesApril 19, 1845August 5, 1845Left post, August 1, 1849
James Watson Webb[2] Chargé d'affairesNovember 1, 1849February 6, 1850Left post, May 8, 1850
Charles J. McCurdyChargé d'affairesSeptember 27, 1850March 14, 1851October 12, 1852
Thomas M. Foote[3] Chargé d'affairesSeptember 16, 1852December 14, 1852Presented recall, June 25, 1853
Henry R. Jackson[4] [5] Chargé d'affairesMay 24, 1853September 16, 1853Promoted to Minister Resident
Minister ResidentJune 29, 1854September 28, 1854on or after June 1, 1858
J. Glancy JonesEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryDecember 15, 1858February 14, 1859Presented recall, November 14, 1861
J. Lothrop Motley[6] Envoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryAugust 10, 1861November 14, 1861June 14, 1867President Andrew Johnson nominated eight men to be ambassador to Austria, but the Senate rejected or declined to consider them, most likely because of the President's disputes with the Congress over other issues.
Henry M. WattsEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryJuly 25, 1868September 25, 1868Presented recall, June 1, 1869
John Jay IIEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary1869June 1, 1869Presented recall, March 31, 1875Ambassadors after 1869 were commissioned to Austria-Hungary.
Godlove S. OrthEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryMarch 9, 1875May 24, 1875Relinquished charge, March 10, 1876
Edward F. BealeEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryJune 1, 1876August 10, 1876Left post, April 20, 1877
John A. Kasson[7] Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary11, 1877August 30, 1877Presented recall, March 25, 1881
William Walter PhelpsEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryMay 5, 1881June 20, 1881Superseded June 30, 1882
Alphonso TaftEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryApril 26, 1882June 30, 1882Left post, August 25, 1884
John M. FrancisEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryJuly 4, 1884September 11, 1884Presented recall, August 3, 1885
Alexander R. Lawton[8] Envoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryApril 15, 1887August 25, 1887May 15, 1889
Frederick D. GrantEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryMarch 23, 1889May 15, 1889Presented recall, June 8, 1893
Bartlett TrippEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryApril 6, 1893June 8, 1893Presented recall, June 18, 1897
Charlemagne TowerEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryApril 1, 1897June 18, 1897Had farewell audience, February 9, 1899
Addison C. HarrisEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryJanuary 12, 1899April 13, 1899Presented recall, April 29, 1901
Robert S. McCormick[9] Envoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryMarch 7, 1901April 29, 1901Promoted to Ambassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryFrom 1902 to 1917 ambassadors to Austria bore the rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.
Ambassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryMay 27, 1902June 26, 1902Presented recall, December 29, 1902
Bellamy Storer[10] Ambassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiarySeptember 26, 1902January 3, 1903Left post, February 8, 1906
Charles Spencer FrancisAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryMarch 22, 1906May 29, 1906Presented recall, April 1, 1910
Richard C. KerensAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryDecember 21, 1909April 12, 1910Left post, June 28, 1913
Frederic Courtland Penfield – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryJuly 28, 1913September 26, 1913Left post, April 7, 1917The United States declared war on Germany April 6, 1917. Ambassador Penfield departed Austria the following day, April 7. Austria-Hungary severed diplomatic relations with the United States on April 9. Joseph C. Grew was serving as Chargé d'affaires ad interim when Austria-Hungary severed relations. Although a date is not recorded, the embassy would have been closed almost immediately and all diplomatic personnel would have departed or been expelled. Normal diplomatic relations were resumed in 1921.
Arthur Hugh Frazier – Career FSOChargé d'affaires pro tem[11] Not commissioned[12] November 25, 1921Left post, May 21, 1922After resumption of diplomatic relations, the embassy was downgraded to a legation and the title of the chief of mission was downgraded to Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary and remained as such until 1952.
Albert Henry Washburn – Political appointeeEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryFebruary 10, 1922June 19, 1922Died at post, April 29, 1930
Gilchrist Baker Stockton – Political appointeeEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryJanuary 22, 1930May 15, 1930Left post, September 21, 1933
George Howard Earle III[13] – Political appointeeEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryJuly 24, 1933September 27, 1933Left post, March 25, 1934
George S. Messersmith – Career FSOEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryApril 7, 1934May 23, 1934Left post, July 11, 1937
Grenville T. Emmet – Political appointeeEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryJuly 13, 1937September 14, 1937Died at post, September 26, 1937John C. Wiley was serving as Chargé d'affaires ad interim when Austria was annexed to Germany, March 13, 1938; he closed the legation in Vienna, April 30, 1938. Diplomatic relations with Austria were broken during World War II but resumed in 1946.
John G. Erhardt – Career FSOEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister PlenipotentiaryAugust 3, 1946September 7, 1946Left post, June 27, 1950
Walter J. Donnelly[14] [15] – Career FSOAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiarySeptember 20, 1950October 25, 1950Left post, July 19, 1952In 1951 the legation in Vienna was upgraded to an embassy and the chief of mission gained the rank of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary.
Llewellyn E. Thompson, Jr.[16] – Career FSOAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryJuly 17, 1952September 4, 1952July 9, 1957
H. Freeman Matthews – Career FSOAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryAugust 5, 1957September 4, 1957Left post, May 25, 1962
James Williams Riddleberger – Career FSOAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryOctober 23, 1962December 12, 1962Left post, May 10, 1967
Douglas MacArthur II – Career FSOAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryApril 5, 1967May 24, 1967Left post, September 16, 1969
John P. Humes – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiarySeptember 26, 1969October 29, 1969Left post, March 6, 1975
Wiley T. Buchanan, Jr. – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryMarch 25, 1975April 2, 1975Left post, March 31, 1977
Milton A. Wolf – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryJune 23, 1977September 5, 1977Left post, March 2, 1980
Philip M. Kaiser – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryFebruary 19, 1980March 25, 1980Left post, March 2, 1981
Theodore E. Cummings[17] – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryJune 20, 1981September 2, 1981Died March 30, 1982
Helene A. von Damm – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryMay 10, 1983June 22, 1983January 15, 1986
Ronald S. Lauder[18] – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryApril 16, 1986May 7, 1986October 27, 1987
Henry Anatole Grunwald – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryDecember 23, 1987January 20, 1988January 1, 1990
Roy M. Huffington – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryAugust 6, 1990September 11, 1990March 1, 1993
Swanee Grace Hunt – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryNovember 4, 1993December 16, 1993October 18, 1997
Kathryn Walt Hall – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryNovember 19, 1997December 11, 1997July 10, 2001
Lyons Brown, Jr. – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryNovember 5, 2001December 19, 2001October 5, 2005
Susan Rasinski McCaw – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryNovember 2, 2005January 9, 2006November 25, 2007
David F. Girard-diCarlo – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryJuly 1, 2008September 10, 2008January 20, 2009[19]
William Eacho – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryAugust 12, 2009[20] September 14, 2009August 3, 2013
Alexa L. Wesner – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiarySeptember 6, 2013October 22, 2013January 20, 2017
Eugene S. Young – Career FSO[21] Chargée d’affaires a.i.January 20, 2017May 24, 2018
Trevor Traina – Political appointeeAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryMarch 28, 2018May 24, 2018January 20, 2021
Robin Dunnigan – Career FSO[22] Chargé d’affaires a.i.January 20, 2021July 12, 2021
Mario Mesquita – Career FSO[23] Chargé d’affaires a.i.July 12, 2021January 12, 2022
Victoria Reggie KennedyAmbassador Extraordinary and PlenipotentiaryNovember 16, 2021January 12, 2022Incumbent

See also

References

External links

Notes and References

  1. Stiles was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on January 7, 1846.
  2. Webb was commissioned during a recess of the Senate but his nomination later rejected by the Senate.
  3. Foote was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on January 20, 1853.
  4. Jackson was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on February 8, 1854.
  5. President Franklin Pierce nominated Jackson February 25, 1856 to be Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary but his nomination was withdrawn before the Senate acted upon it. He was subsequently promoted to Minister Resident.
  6. Motley was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on January 22, 1862.
  7. Kasson was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on October 30, 1877.
  8. Lawton was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on December 15, 1887.
  9. McCormick was promoted during his term to Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, which required reconfirmation by the Senate.
  10. Storer was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on December 8, 1902.
  11. Frazier was recognized provisionally as Charge d’Affaires pro tempore and received as such on November 26, 1921.
  12. A Chargé d’Affaires does not necessarily require a commission.
  13. Earle was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on January 15, 1934.
  14. Donnelly was promoted to Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary during his term. This required a new commission.
  15. Donnelly was recommissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on February 21, 1952.
  16. Thompson was commissioned during a recess of the Senate and recommissioned after confirmation on June 4, 1953.
  17. Ambassador Cummings left Vienna on December 9, 1981, and was on vacation in Los Angeles when he died.
  18. Commissioned to the Republic of Austria.
  19. On December 10, 2008, the Ambassador announced his intention to resign from the post following the inauguration of Barack Obama on January 20, 2009. Source: United States Embassy in Vienna press release December 10, 2008
  20. Web site: Biography - William C. Eacho, III. https://web.archive.org/web/20091017044724/http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/biog/130425.htm. dead. 2009-10-17. US State Department.
  21. Web site: Deputy Chief of Mission Eugene Young Bio . 2021-11-07 . U.S. Embassy in Austria . en-US . https://web.archive.org/web/20171101052741if_/https://at.usembassy.gov/our-relationship/our-ambassador/ . 1 November 2017 . dead.
  22. Web site: 2021-04-28. Chargé d'Affaires a.i. Robin Dunnigan U.S. Embassy in Austria. https://web.archive.org/web/20210428191928if_/https://at.usembassy.gov/our-relationship/our-ambassador/. 2021-04-28. live. 2021-11-07.
  23. Web site: 2021-11-07 . Chargé d'affaires a.i. Mario Mesquita - U.S. Embassy in Austria . 2021-11-07 . https://web.archive.org/web/20211107064246if_/https://at.usembassy.gov/our-relationship/our-ambassador/ . 7 November 2021 . dead.