Brandon Hambright Grove Jr. (April 8, 1929 – May 20, 2016) was the

United States Ambassador Ambassadors of the United States are persons nominated by the president to serve as the United States' diplomatic representatives to foreign nations, international organizations, and as ambassadors-at-large. Under Article II, Section 2 of th ...

to the

German Democratic Republic East Germany, officially known as the German Democratic Republic (GDR), was a country in Central Europe from Foundation of East Germany, its formation on 7 October 1949 until German reunification, its reunification with West Germany (FRG) on ...

(East Germany) and

Zaire Zaire, officially the Republic of Zaire, was the name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1971 to 18 May 1997. Located in Central Africa, it was, by area, the third-largest country in Africa after Sudan and Algeria, and the 11th-la ...

(1984–87) and served on the

board of directors A board of directors is a governing body that supervises the activities of a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government agency. The powers, duties, and responsibilities of a board of directors are determined by government regulatio ...

of the

American Academy of Diplomacy The American Academy of Diplomacy is a private, nonprofit, non-partisan, elected organization whose active membership is limited to men and women who have held positions of high responsibility in crafting and implementing American foreign policy. ...

. Grove received an undergraduate degree from

Bard College Bard College is a private college, private Liberal arts colleges in the United States, liberal arts college in Annandale-on-Hudson, New York. The campus overlooks the Hudson River and Catskill Mountains within the Hudson River Historic District ...

in 1950 and a master's degree in public administration from

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 ...

in 1952.(22 May 2010)
Bard College commencement today
, ''

Daily Freeman The Daily Freeman, published in Kingston, New York, serves as the primary morning newspaper for Ulster County, as well as Greene County, Columbia County and Dutchess County. Established in 1871 under the moniker "Rondout Daily Freeman," the ...

'', Retrieved December 1, 2010 Ambassador Brandon Grove's diplomatic career spanned thirty-five years in the U.S. Foreign Service under nine presidents and twelve secretaries of state. Born in Chicago (April 8, 1929), he held degrees from Bard College and the Woodrow Wilson School of Princeton University. As an amphibious boat group commander in the U.S. Navy, he served to the rank of Lieutenant. Before joining the U.S. Foreign Service in 1959, he worked on the staff of Congressman Chester Bowles, of Connecticut. His diplomatic assignments took him to posts in Africa, India, East and West Berlin, and Jerusalem, where he was consul general during Israel's war with Lebanon. In 1974, he became the first American diplomat accredited to East Germany, where he established the embassy in Berlin. During 1984-87, he served as President Reagan's ambassador to Zaire. Among assignments in Washington, he twice filled positions managing U.S. relations with Panama, Central America, and the Caribbean, first as director of the Office of Panamanian Affairs, and later as deputy assistant secretary of state for Inter-American Affairs. He served on the policy planning staffs of secretaries of state

Henry Kissinger Henry Alfred Kissinger (May 27, 1923 – November 29, 2023) was an American diplomat and political scientist who served as the 56th United States secretary of state from 1973 to 1977 and the 7th National Security Advisor (United States), natio ...

and

Warren Christopher Warren Minor Christopher (October 27, 1925March 18, 2011) was an American attorney, diplomat and statesman who served as the 63rd United States secretary of state from 1993 to 1997. Born in Scranton, North Dakota, Christopher clerked for Supre ...

. Ambassador Grove, during 1988-92, was director of the State Department's Foreign Service Institute responsible for foreign affairs training throughout the government. He coordinated the design and construction of its permanent facility at Arlington Hall, Virginia. At Hamilton College, Grove was the Sol M. Linowitz Professor of International Affairs, teaching a course on diplomacy in practice. In 2000, Bard College awarded him its John Dewey Medal for Distinguished Public Service, and in 2010 the honorary degree of Doctor of Humane Letters for his lifetime contributions to diplomacy. He has three times received the President's Meritorious Service Award. The University of Missouri Press published his autobiography, ''Behind Embassy Walls: The Life and Times of an American Diplomat'', in June 2005. Ambassador Grove was president emeritus of the American Academy of Diplomacy. Grove, Jr. died from complications of

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving Cell growth#Disorders, abnormal cell growth with the potential to Invasion (cancer), invade or Metastasis, spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Po ...

on May 20, 2016, in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

, aged 87.

Publications

Behind embassy walls: the life and times of an American diplomat
(2005) ()

References

, - {{DEFAULTSORT:Grove, Brandon Hambright, Jr. 1929 births 2016 deaths Bard College alumni Diplomats from Chicago Writers from Illinois Princeton School of Public and International Affairs alumni United States Foreign Service personnel United States inspectors general by name Ambassadors of the United States to East Germany Ambassadors of the United States to the Democratic Republic of the Congo