John Nichol Irwin II (December 31, 1913 – February 28, 2000) was an American diplomat and attorney during the Cold War. During

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, he served in the Army in the Pacific as a member of General Douglas MacArthur's staff and reached the rank of lieutenant colonel.

Biography

He was born on December 31, 1913, in

Keokuk, Iowa Keokuk is a city in and a county seat of Lee County, Iowa, United States, along with Fort Madison. It is Iowa's southernmost city. The population was 9,900 at the time of the 2020 census. The city is named after the Sauk chief Keokuk, who is ...

. After graduating from the

Fordham University School of Law Fordham University School of Law is the law school of Fordham University. The school is located in Manhattan in New York City, and is one of eight ABA-approved law schools in that city. In 2013, 91% of the law school's first-time test t ...

, he became an attorney, eventually working as a lawyer at Patterson, Belknap & Webb. He was the last person to hold the position of

Under Secretary of State Under Secretary of State (U/S) is a title used by senior officials of the United States Department of State who rank above the Assistant Secretaries and below the Deputy Secretary. From 1919 to 1972, the Under Secretary was the second-ranking off ...

when that was the U.S. State Department's second-ranking office (1970-1972). In 1972, he became the first person to hold the office of

Deputy Secretary of State The deputy secretary of state of the United States is the principal deputy to the secretary of state. The current deputy secretary of state is Wendy Ruth Sherman, serving since April 2021 under secretary of state Antony Blinken. If the secretary ...

, which succeeded the office of Under Secretary; he held that office until February 1, 1973. In both capacities, his superior was Secretary

William P. Rogers William Pierce Rogers (June 23, 1913 – January 2, 2001) was an American diplomat and attorney. He served as United States Attorney General under President Dwight D. Eisenhower and United States Secretary of State under President Richard Nixo ...

. Irwin resigned from the position of Deputy Secretary to serve as U.S. Ambassador to

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

. He died on February 28, 2000, in

New Haven, Connecticut New Haven is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut. It is located on New Haven Harbor on the northern shore of Long Island Sound in New Haven County, Connecticut and is part of the New York City metropolitan area. With a population of 134 ...

, at the age of 86.

References

United States Under Secretaries of State United States Deputy Secretaries of State Ambassadors of the United States to France People from Keokuk, Iowa 1913 births 2000 deaths Iowa Republicans Connecticut Republicans Nixon administration personnel Lawrenceville School alumni Princeton University alumni Alumni of the University of Oxford Fordham University alumni {{US-diplomat-stub