Henry Allen Holmes (born January 31, 1933) was the

United States Ambassador to Portugal Bilateral diplomatic relations between the United States and Portugal date from the earliest years of the United States. Following the American Revolutionary War, Revolutionary War, Portugal was the first neutral country to diplomatic recognitio ...

from 1982 to 1985 and a career diplomat.

Biography

Born in

Bucharest Bucharest ( , ; ) is the capital and largest city of Romania. The metropolis stands on the River Dâmbovița (river), Dâmbovița in south-eastern Romania. Its population is officially estimated at 1.76 million residents within a greater Buc ...

, Romania to American parents, Holmes received his high school education at St. Paul's School in

Concord, New Hampshire Concord () is the capital city of the U.S. state of New Hampshire and the county seat, seat of Merrimack County, New Hampshire, Merrimack County. As of the 2020 United States census the population was 43,976, making it the List of municipalities ...

, graduating in June 1950. He earned his A.B. in 1954 at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

, where he was a classmate of

Donald Rumsfeld Donald Henry Rumsfeld (July 9, 1932 – June 29, 2021) was an American politician, businessman, and naval officer who served as United States Secretary of Defense, secretary of defense from 1975 to 1977 under President Gerald Ford, and again ...

Scarborough, Rowan. ''Rumsfeld's War: The Untold Story of America's Anti-Terrorist Commander.'' Regnery Publishing, 2004. p. vi. and participated in the NROTC program. Holmes then joined the

US Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines or simply the Marines, is the Marines, maritime land force service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is responsible for conducting expedi ...

, leaving as an infantry captain in 1957 to study at

Sciences Po Sciences Po () or Sciences Po Paris, also known as the Paris Institute of Political Studies (), is a public research university located in Paris, France, that holds the status of ''grande école'' and the legal status of . The university's unde ...

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. He graduated with a certificate in 1958 and was hired as an intelligence research analyst for the

US Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or simply the State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs o ...

that same year. Holmes began his diplomatic career by joining the Foreign Service in 1959; his first posting was as a consular and political officer in

Yaoundé Yaoundé (; , ) is the Capital city, capital city of Cameroon. It has a population of more than 2.8 million which makes it the second-largest city in the country after the port city Douala. It lies in the Centre Region (Cameroon), Centre Region o ...

Cameroon Cameroon, officially the Republic of Cameroon, is a country in Central Africa. It shares boundaries with Nigeria to the west and north, Chad to the northeast, the Central African Republic to the east, and Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and the R ...

. He continued to advance through various State Department positions for the next two decades, including posts in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

and

, until his appointment as Ambassador to Portugal in 1982. From 1985 to 1989, he served as US Assistant Secretary of State for Politico-Military Affairs. In 1989, he was appointed Ambassador at Large for Burdensharing in which he ensured balanced security responsibility among NATO members,

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

, and other US allies. Following this he was nominated by President

Clinton Clinton is an English toponymic surname, indicating one's ancestors came from English places called Glympton or Glinton.Hanks, P. & Hodges, F. ''A Dictionary of Surnames''. Oxford University Press, 1988 Clinton has also been used as a given nam ...

to be

Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations and Low-Intensity Conflict The Assistant Secretary of Defense for Special Operations/Low-Intensity Conflict or ASD(SO/LIC), is the principal civilian advisor to the U.S. Secretary of Defense on special operations and low-intensity conflict matters. Located within the Offi ...

. During this time his office generated a plan for the

Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD, or DOD) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government charged with coordinating and supervising the six U.S. armed services: the Army, Navy, Marines, Air Force, Space Force, ...

to launch new national counterterrorism strategy to respond to "the gauntlet the international terrorists have thrown at our feet." But as mentioned in the ''

9/11 Commission Report ''The 9/11 Commission Report'', officially the ''Final Report of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States'', is the official report into the events leading up to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. It was prep ...

'', the paper never went beyond the Office of the Principal Deputy Under Secretary of Defense for Policy. He is currently an adjunct professor at

Georgetown University Georgetown University is a private university, private Jesuit research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789, it is the oldest Catholic higher education, Ca ...

School of Foreign Service The Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service (SFS) is the school of international relations at Georgetown University in Washington, D.C. It grants degrees at both undergraduate and graduate levels. Founded in 1919, SFS is the oldest continu ...

and a member of

Diplomats and Military Commanders for Change {{short description, Group supporting John Kerry in the 2004 presidential election Diplomats and Military Commanders for Change (DMCC) was an ''ad hoc'' organization of 27 retired and United States military officers and Foreign Service Officers wh ...

.Diplomats and Military Commanders for Change Official Statement

Family

H. Allen Holmes is married and has two children.

References

Allen died May 4, 2019. He was a distinguished Foreign Service officer. https://paw.princeton.edu/memorial/h-allen-holmes-54

External links

*Princeton University, Memorial H. Allen Holmes ’5
U.S. policy on arms control
1986 Address to Council on Foreign Relations
Civil Affairs: Reflections of the Future
1997 address to Worldwide Civil Affairs Conference

1997 address to Intelligence in Partnership Conference {{DEFAULTSORT:Holmes, H. Allen 1933 births Living people St. Paul's School (New Hampshire) alumni Princeton University alumni United States Marine Corps officers Sciences Po alumni United States Foreign Service personnel Ambassadors of the United States to Portugal United States assistant secretaries of state United States assistant secretaries of defense Walsh School of Foreign Service faculty

Biography

Family

See also

References

External links