Louis G. Dreyfus Jr.
2nd United States Ambassador to Afghanistan
In office
August 16, 1949 – January 19, 1951
PresidentHarry S. Truman
Preceded byEly Palmer
Succeeded byGeorge Robert Merrell
United States Minister to Sweden
In office
January 3, 1947 – October 6, 1947
PresidentHarry S. Truman
Preceded byHerschel Johnson
Succeeded byH. Freeman Matthews
3rd United States Minister to Iceland
In office
June 14, 1944 – January 21, 1946
PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt
Harry S. Truman
Preceded byLeland B. Morris
Succeeded byRichard P. Butrick
2nd United States Minister to Afghanistan
In office
May 19, 1941 – July 2, 1942
PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt
Preceded byWilliam H. Hornibrook
Succeeded byCornelius Engert
10th United States Minister to Iran
In office
December 18, 1940 – December 12, 1943
PresidentFranklin D. Roosevelt
Preceded byWilliam H. Hornibrook (1936)
Succeeded byLeland B. Morris (as Ambassador)
Personal details
Born
Louis Goethe Dreyfus, Jr.

1889
Died(1973-05-19)May 19, 1973 (aged 83)
Santa Barbara, California
Spouse
Grace Hawes
​
(m. 1917⁠–⁠1973)​
EducationYale University
OccupationDiplomat

Louis Goethe Dreyfus Jr. (November 23, 1889 – May 19,[1] 1973) was an American diplomat.

As an experienced diplomat, he served twice as United States ambassador to Afghanistan, at differing times; his career at the Department of State ultimately lasted more than 40 years.[2]

Career

After his graduation from Yale University in 1910, he entered the Foreign Service in 1911.[3] His older brother Emanuel died in 1913 of sarcoma.[4]

After postings in Berlin, Paris, and South America, he was nominated as the American ambassador to Iran in 1939.[3]

Because of an incident involving the Iranian minister (who was caught speeding in Elkton, Maryland), and the Elkton police, along with the subsequent newspaper coverage, the Iranian government recalled their minister in early 1936.[5] The incident caused a diplomatic rupture: all consular matters were transacted through chargés d'affaires until 1939, at which time Dreyfus was nominated.[6]

While in Iran, Dreyfus reported on the Anglo-Soviet invasion of Iran to the State Department.[7]

Dreyfus also served as Minister to Iceland, both before and after it became a republic; and Minister to Sweden after World War II.[3]

He also served as the acting Chief of the Foreign Service Inspection Corps (what later became the Inspector General of the Department of State) from 1947 to 1948,[8] before finally returning to Afghanistan as the United States ambassador from 1949 to 1951, when he was succeeded by George R. Merrell.[3][9]

Later life

After he retired from the State Department in 1951, he lived in Santa Barbara, California, until his death on May 19, 1973.[10]

References

  1. ^ American Jewish Archives Concise Dictionary. American Jewish Archives. p. 109.
  2. ^ "Diplomat for 41 Years Preparing to Retire". The New York Times. 1951-04-05. Retrieved 2018-07-08.
  3. ^ a b c d "ENVOY TO AFGHANISTAN; Louis G. Dreyfus Jr. of Foreign Service Named Ambassador". The New York Times. 1949-04-09. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-04-10.
  4. ^ "OBITUARY RECORD OF YALE GRADUATES 1913-1914" (PDF). Bulletin of Yale University. 10th (8). June 1914. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 22, 2007.
  5. ^ DeNovo, John August (1963). American interests and policies in the Middle East, 1900-1939. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press. pp. 306–315. ISBN 9780816662111. OCLC 233034823.
  6. ^ "IRAN 'INCIDENT' ENDING; L.G. Dreyfus Jr. Named to Envoy Post Vacant Three Years". The New York Times. June 24, 1939. Retrieved July 8, 2018.
  7. ^ Mokhtari, Fariborz (2005). "No One Will Scratch My Back: Iranian Security Perceptions in Historical Context". Middle East Journal. 59 (2): 209–229. doi:10.3751/59.2.12. ISSN 0026-3141. JSTOR 4330125.
  8. ^ "Newsletter". Department of State Newsletter. June 1973. p. 36. Retrieved 2019-11-12.
  9. ^ "SENATE APPROVES ENVOYS; Nominations of 3 Ambassadors and Others Are Confirmed". The New York Times. 1951-04-19. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2019-11-12.
  10. ^ "Louis G. Dreyfus, Jr., dead at 83". The San Francisco Examiner. May 22, 1973. Retrieved 2019-05-30.

External links

Diplomatic posts Preceded byWilliam H. Hornibrookin 1936 United States Minister to Iran 1940-1943 Succeeded byLeland B. Morris(as Ambassador) Preceded byWilliam H. Hornibrook United States Minister to Afghanistan 1941-1942 Succeeded byCornelius Van Hemert Engert Preceded byLeland B. Morris United States Minister to Iceland 1944-1946 Succeeded byRichard P. Butrick Preceded byHerschel Johnson United States Minister to Sweden January 1947-October 1947 Succeeded byH. Freeman Matthews Preceded byEly Palmer United States Ambassador to Afghanistan 1949-1951 Succeeded byGeorge Robert Merrell
United States Ambassadors to Iran
United States Ambassadors to Afghanistan
United States Ambassadors to Sweden
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