The British Ambassador to the Netherlands is the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Northwestern Europe, off the coast of European mainland, the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

's foremost diplomatic representative in the

Netherlands , Terminology of the Low Countries, informally Holland, is a country in Northwestern Europe, with Caribbean Netherlands, overseas territories in the Caribbean. It is the largest of the four constituent countries of the Kingdom of the Nether ...

, and head of the UK's

diplomatic mission A diplomatic mission or foreign mission is a group of people from a state or organization present in another state to represent the sending state or organization officially in the receiving or host state. In practice, the phrase usually denotes ...

in the Netherlands. The official title is ''His Britannic Majesty's Ambassador to the Kingdom of the Netherlands''. Since the formation in 1997 of the

Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW; French: ''Organisation pour l'interdiction des armes chimiques'', OIAC) is an intergovernmental organisation and the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), ...

(OPCW), which is located in

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

, the British Ambassador to the Netherlands has also been the UK's Permanent Representative to the OPCW, assisted by a Chemical Weapons team at the Embassy. Besides the embassy in The Hague, the UK also maintains a

consulate general A consul is an official representative of a government who resides in a foreign country to assist and protect citizens of the consul's country, and to promote and facilitate commercial and diplomatic relations between the two countries. A consu ...

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

List of heads of mission

Envoys to the Prince of Orange

* 1575−1578: Daniel Rogers ''Agent'' and ''Special agent'' 1578–1579 ** 1575−1576: Robert Corbet ''Special Ambassador'' ** 1577:

Philip Sidney Sir Philip Sidney (30 November 1554 – 17 October 1586) was an English poet, courtier, scholar and soldier who is remembered as one of the most prominent figures of the Elizabethan era, Elizabethan age. His works include a sonnet sequence, ' ...

''Special Ambassador'' * 1577−1579: William Davison ''Resident agent''; ''Special Ambassador'' 1584–1585; ''English Councillor'' 1585−1586 * 1585−1586: Henry Killigrew and Dr Bartholomew Clerke ''English Councillors'' on the

Dutch Council of State The Council of State () is a constitutionally established advisory body in the Netherlands to the government and States General that officially consists of members of the royal family and Crown-appointed members generally having political, comm ...

* 1586−1587: Thomas Wilkes ''Special Ambassador'' then ''English Councillor'' on the Dutch Council of State; also 1578, 1582, and 1590 * 1587−1589: Henry Killigrew ''English Councillor'' on the Dutch Council of State * 1588−1593:

Thomas Bodley Sir Thomas Bodley (2 March 1545 – 28 January 1613) was an England, English diplomat and Scholarly method, scholar who founded the Bodleian Library in Oxford. Origins Thomas Bodley was born on 2 March 1545, in the second-to-last year of the re ...

''English Councillor'' on the Dutch Council of State; again 1594−1596 * 1593−1602: George Gilpin ''English Councillor'' on the Dutch Council of State

Ambassadors to the United Provinces

* 1603–1613:

Sir Ralph Winwood Sir Ralph Winwood (c. 1563 – 27 October 1617) was an English diplomat and statesman to the Jacobean court. Early life Ralph Winwood was born the son of Richard Winwood at Aynhoe in Northamptonshire. A 'hot puritan', according to a Jesuit r ...

''Agent'' 1603–1607; ''Commissioner'' (with Spencer) 1607–1609; then ''Resident ambassador''Gary M. Bell, ''A handlist of British diplomatic representatives 1509-1688'' (Royal Historical Society, Guides and handbooks, 16, 1990). * 1607–1609: Sir Richard Spencer ''Commissioner'' (with Winwood) * 1614–1615: Sir Henry Wotton * 1615–1625 and 1626–1628: Sir Dudley Carleton ** 1625:

George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham George Villiers, 1st Duke of Buckingham ( ; 20 August 1592 – 23 August 1628), was an English courtier, statesman, and patron of the arts. He was a favourite and self-described "lover" of King James VI and I. Buckingham remained at the heigh ...

''Ambassador Extraordinary'' * 1625–1632: Dudley Carleton, his nephew ''Chargé d'Affaires''; then ''Agent'' * 1632–1649: Sir William Boswell ''Agent'' until 1634; then ''Ambassador'' * 1642–1650: Walter Strickland ''Ambassador'' (appointed by Parliament) ** 1644: Henry Jermyn, 1st Baron Jermyn ''Ambassador'' * ''No representation due to the

First Anglo-Dutch War The First Anglo-Dutch War, or First Dutch War, was a naval conflict between the Commonwealth of England and the Dutch Republic. Largely caused by disputes over trade, it began with English attacks on Dutch merchant shipping, but expanded to vast ...

1652–1654'' * 1657–1665: Sir George Downing * ''No representation due to the

Second Anglo-Dutch War The Second Anglo-Dutch War, began on 4 March 1665, and concluded with the signing of the Treaty of Breda (1667), Treaty of Breda on 31 July 1667. It was one in a series of Anglo-Dutch Wars, naval wars between Kingdom of England, England and the D ...

1665–1667'' * 1668–1670: Sir William Temple, Bt * 1671–1672:

William Blathwayt William Blathwayt (or Blathwayte) (1649 – 16 August 1717) was an English diplomat, public official and Whig politician who sat in the English and British House of Commons between 1685 and 1710. He established the War Office as a department of ...

''Chargé d'Affaires'' ''No representation due to the

Third Anglo-Dutch War The Third Anglo-Dutch War, began on 27 March 1672, and concluded on 19 February 1674. A naval conflict between the Dutch Republic and England, in alliance with France, it is considered a related conflict of the wider 1672 to 1678 Franco-Dutch W ...

1672–1674'' * 1674–1679: Sir William Temple, Bt * 1678–1679: Roger Meredith ''Chargé d'Affaires'' * 1679–1681:

Henry Sidney Sir Henry Sidney (20 July 1529 – 5 May 1586) was an English soldier, politician and Lord Deputy of Ireland. Background He was the eldest son of Sir William Sidney of Penshurst (1482 – 11 February 1553) and Anne Pakenham (1511 – 22 Oc ...

Envoys Extraordinary and Ministers Plenipotentiary to the United Provinces

* 1681–1682: Thomas Plott ''Agent'' * 1681–1685: Thomas Chudleigh * 1685–1686:

Bevil Skelton Bevil Skelton (1641–1696) was a British foreign envoy and diplomat. Probably descended from the Skeltons of Armthwaite Castle, Cumberland, Bevil Skelton began his career as a colonel in the British Army, eventually rising to the position of l ...

''Ambassador'' * 1686–1688:

Ignatius White Ignatius White was an Irish advisor of Limerick origins to James II of England, who sent him to The Hague in 1687 as an envoy extraordinary. His father, Dominick White, was Mayor of Limerick in 1636. Both the father and son (and their descendant ...

Ambassadors to the United Provinces

* 1689: Thomas Herbert, Earl of PembrokeD. B. Horn, ''British Diplomatic Representatives 1689-1789'' (Camden 3rd Ser. 46, 1932) * 1689–1695: Charles Berkeley, Viscount Dursley ''Envoy Extraordinary'' ** 1690: William Harbord * 1695–1697: Edward Villiers, 1st Viscount Villiers * 1697–1699: Sir Joseph Williamson * 1700–1706:

Alexander Stanhope Alexander Stanhope (1638 – 20 September 1707) was an English envoy in Madrid between 1690 and 1699. Early life He was the youngest son of Philip Stanhope, 1st Earl of Chesterfield by his second wife Anne, daughter of John 'Lusty' Pakingt ...

''Envoy Extraordinary'' ** 1701 and 1702–1712:

John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough General (United Kingdom), General John Churchill, 1st Duke of Marlborough, 1st Prince of Mindelheim, 1st Count of Nellenburg, Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, (26 May 1650 – 16 June 1722 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S.) was a Briti ...

** 1706–1712: James Dayrolle ''Resident'' * 1706–1707: George Stepney ''Envoy Extraordinary'' (but rarely at The Hague) * 1707–1709: William Cadogan ''Envoy Extraordinary'' (but rarely at The Hague) * 1709–1711:

Charles Townshend, 2nd Viscount Townshend Charles Townshend, 2nd Viscount Townshend, (; 18 April 167421 June 1738) was a British Whig statesman. From 1714 to 1717, and again from 1721 to 1730, he served as Secretary of State for the Northern Department . He directed British foreign po ...

* 1711: Charles Boyle, Earl of Orrery ''Envoy Extraordinary'' * 1711–1714:

Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford Thomas Wentworth, 1st Earl of Strafford (13 April 1593 (New Style, N.S.)12 May 1641), was an English people, English statesman and a major figure in the period leading up to the English Civil War. He served in Parliament of England, Parliament ...

* 1714–1720 William Cadogan, 1st Earl Cadogan ''Envoy Extraordinary'' until 1716 then ''Ambassador'' ** Jan – Apr 1715 and Oct 1715–Oct 1716: Horatio Walpole ** 1717: William Leathes seconded as Resident from his post in Brussels ** 1717–1721: Charles Whitworth ''Envoy Extraordinary'' 1717; then ''Minister Plenipotentiary'' (seconded from his post in Berlin) ** 1717–1739: James Dayrolle ''Resident''

Envoys Extraordinary and Ministers Plenipotentiary to the United Provinces

* May-Jul 1722: Horatio Walpole ''Minister Plenipotentiary'' * 1724–1728: William Finch ''Envoy Extraordinary'' * 1728–1732:

Philip Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield Philip Dormer Stanhope, 4th Earl of Chesterfield (22 September 169424 March 1773) was a British statesman, diplomat, man of letters, and an acclaimed wit of his time. Early life He was born in London to Philip Stanhope, 3rd Earl of Chesterfie ...

''Ambassador'' * 1733–1734: William Finch ''Minister Plenipotentiary'' * 1734–1739: Horatio Walpole ''Minister'' 1734; then ''Envoy Extraordinary'' (absent 1736-Jun 1739) * 1736–1746: Robert Trevor (''Secretary'' 1736–1736; then ''Envoy Extraordinary'' until 1741, then also ''Minister Plenipotentiary'') ** 1742–1743:

John Dalrymple, 2nd Earl of Stair Field Marshal John Dalrymple, 2nd Earl of Stair, (20 July 16739 May 1747) was a British army officer and diplomat who served as the British ambassador to France from 1714 to 1720. He served in the Nine Years' War, War of the Spanish Succession ...

''Ambassador'' ** 1745: Philip Stanhope, Earl of Chesterfield * 1746–1749: John Montagu, Earl of Sandwich ''Minister Plenipotentiary'' ** 1747–1752: Solomon Dayrolles ''Resident'' * 1749–1751: Robert Darcy, 4th Earl of Holderness ''Minister Plenipotentiary'' * 1751–1780: Joseph Yorke ''Minister Plenipotentiary'' until 1761 then ''Ambassador'' ''No representation due to the

Fourth Anglo-Dutch War The Fourth Anglo-Dutch War (; 1780–1784) was a conflict between the Kingdom of Great Britain and the Dutch Republic. The war, contemporary with the American Revolutionary War (1775–1783), broke out over British and Dutch disagreements on t ...

1780–1784'' * 1784–1789: Sir James Harris ''Minister Plenipotentiary'' until 1788; then (as Lord Malmesbury) ''Ambassador''J. Haydn, ''Book of Dignities'', 79 * 1789–1790: Alleyne FitzHerbert ''Envoy Extraordinary''S. T. Bindoff, E. F. Malcolm Smith and C. K. Webster, ''British Diplomatic Representatives 1789-1852'' (Camden 3rd Series, 50, 1934). * 1790–1793:

William Eden, 1st Baron Auckland William Eden, 1st Baron Auckland, Privy Council of Ireland, PC (Ire), Royal Society, FRS (3 April 174528 May 1814) was a British diplomat and politician who sat in the British House of Commons, House of Commons from 1774 to 1793. Early life A m ...

(ambassador) ** 1790–1793: Lord Henry John Spencer ''Secretary'', but ''Minister ad interim'' 1791–1792 and 1793 * 1793–1794: Hon. William Eliot ''Minister ad interim'' * 1794–1795: Alleyne FitzHerbert ''Diplomatic relations suspended 1795–1802''

Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to the
Batavian Republic The Batavian Republic (; ) was the Succession of states, successor state to the Dutch Republic, Republic of the Seven United Netherlands. It was proclaimed on 19 January 1795 after the Batavian Revolution and ended on 5 June 1806, with the acce ...

* 1802–1803:

Robert Liston Robert Liston (28 October 1794 – 7 December 1847) was a British surgeon. Liston was noted for his speed and skill in an era prior to anaesthesia, anaesthetics, when speed made a difference in terms of pain and survival. He was the first Pro ...

''Diplomatic Relations suspended 1803–1813''

Ambassadors to the
United Kingdom of the Netherlands The United Kingdom of the Netherlands is the unofficial name given to the Kingdom of the Netherlands as it existed from 1815 to 1839. The United Netherlands was created in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars through the fusion of territories t ...

''Under the Treaty of Vienna in 1815, the northern and southern Netherlands were united into the

United Kingdom of the Netherlands The United Kingdom of the Netherlands is the unofficial name given to the Kingdom of the Netherlands as it existed from 1815 to 1839. The United Netherlands was created in the aftermath of the Napoleonic Wars through the fusion of territories t ...

.'' * 1813–1815:

Richard Trench, 2nd Earl of Clancarty Richard Le Poer Trench, 2nd Earl of Clancarty, 1st Marquess of Heusden (19 May 1767 – 24 November 1837), styled The Honourable from 1797 to 1803 and then Viscount Dunlo to 1805, was an Anglo-Irish peer, a nobleman in the Dutch nobility, and ...

* 1815: Sir Charles Stuart * 1815–1816: Mr John James ''Minister ad interim'' * 1816–1817: Mr George William Chad ''Minister ad interim'' * 1817–1824:

* 1818–1819, 1819, 1822 and 1824: Mr George William Chad ''Minister ad interim'' * 1824: Granville Leveson-Gower, 1st Viscount Granville * 1824: Sir Andrew Snape Douglas (''ad interim'') * 1824–1829: Sir Charles Bagot * 1829–1832: Sir Thomas Cartwright (''ad interim'') ''The United Kingdom of the Netherlands was dissolved by the secession of the Southern Netherlands in the

Belgian Revolution The Belgian Revolution (, ) was a conflict which led to the secession of the southern provinces (mainly the former Southern Netherlands) from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands and the establishment of an independent Kingdom of Belgium. The ...

Envoys Extraordinary and Ministers Plenipotentiary to the Netherlands

* 1832: Hon. John Duncan Bligh (''ad interim'') * 1833–1836: Hon. George Jerningham ''Chargé d'affaires'' * 1836–1851: Sir Edward Cromwell Disbrowe * 1851–1858: Sir Ralph Abercromby * 1858–1860: Francis Napier, 10th Lord Napier * 1860–1862: Sir Andrew Buchanan * 1862–1867: Sir John Ralph Milbanke, 8th Bt * 1867–1877: Hon. Edward Harris * 1877–1888: Hon. William Stuart * 1888–1896: Sir Horace Rumbold, 8th Bt * 1896–1908: Sir Henry Howard * 1908–1910: Sir George Buchanan * 1910–1917: Hon. Sir Alan Johnstone * 1917–1919: Sir Walter Townley * 1919–1921: Sir Ronald Graham * 1921–1926: Sir Charles Marling * 1926–1928:

Granville Leveson-Gower, 3rd Earl Granville Granville George Leveson-Gower, 3rd Earl Granville (4 March 1872 – 21 July 1939) was a British diplomat from the Leveson-Gower family who was an envoy to several countries. Career The elder son of the 2nd Earl Granville, Leveson-Gower wa ...

* 1928–1933: Hon. Sir Odo Russell * 1933–1938: Sir Hubert Montgomery * 1938–''1942'': Sir Nevile Bland

Ambassadors to the Netherlands

* ''1942''–1948: Sir Nevile Bland * 1948–1952: Sir Philip Nichols * 1952–1954: Sir Nevile Butler * 1954–1960: Sir Paul Mason * 1960–1964: Sir Andrew Noble * 1964–1970: Sir Peter Garran * 1970–1972: Sir Edward Tomkins * 1972–1977: Sir John Barnes * 1977–1979: Sir Richard Sykes * 1979–1981: Sir Jock Taylor * 1981–1984: Sir Philip Mansfield * 1984–1988: Sir John Margetson * 1988–1993: Sir Michael Jenkins * 1993–1996: Sir David Miers * 1996–2001: Dame Rosemary Spencer * 2001–2005: Sir Colin Budd * 2005–2009: Mr Lyn Parker * 2009–2013: Mr Paul Arkwright * 2013–2017: Sir Geoffrey Adams * 2017–2020: Hon. Peter Wilson * 2020–: Joanna Roper

References

External links

British Embassy The Hague
{{Lists of heads of UK diplomatic missions

List of heads of mission

Envoys to the Prince of Orange

Ambassadors to the United Provinces

Envoys Extraordinary and Ministers Plenipotentiary to the United Provinces

Ambassadors to the United Provinces

Envoys Extraordinary and Ministers Plenipotentiary to the United Provinces

Envoys Extraordinary and Ministers Plenipotentiary to the Netherlands

Ambassadors to the Netherlands

See also

References

External links