Sir Claud Frederick William Russell (8 December 18719 December 1959) was a British diplomat. He served as minister to Ethiopia and to Switzerland, and ambassador to Portugal.

Biography

Russell was the second son of

Lord Arthur Russell Lord Arthur John Edward Russell (13 June 1825 – 4 April 1892) was a British Liberal Party (UK), Liberal Party politician. Early life He was born in London on 13 June 1825. He was the second of three sons of Major-General Lord George William ...

. He was educated privately and at

Balliol College, Oxford Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and aro ...

. He joined the

Diplomatic Service Diplomatic service is the body of diplomats and foreign policy officers maintained by the government of a country to communicate with the governments of other countries. Diplomatic personnel obtain diplomatic immunity when they are accredited to o ...

in 1897, was promoted to Third Secretary, then to Second Secretary in September 1902. He served in British embassies or legations in

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

Paraguay Paraguay, officially the Republic of Paraguay, is a landlocked country in South America. It is bordered by Argentina to the Argentina–Paraguay border, south and southwest, Brazil to the Brazil–Paraguay border, east and northeast, and Boli ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

, and in the

Foreign Office Foreign may refer to: Government * Foreign policy, how a country interacts with other countries * Ministry of Foreign Affairs, in many countries ** Foreign Office, a department of the UK government ** Foreign office and foreign minister * United ...

. At the outbreak of the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he was released from the Foreign Office to serve in the

Bedfordshire Yeomanry The Bedfordshire Yeomanry was a Yeomanry regiment of the British Army. Serving intermittently between 1797 and 1827, it was re-raised in 1901 for the Second Boer War. It participated in the First World War before being converted to an artillery re ...

, rising to the rank of major. After the war, in 1919 he was appointed British delegate to, and president of, the international financial commission which had been established in

Athens Athens ( ) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Greece, largest city of Greece. A significant coastal urban area in the Mediterranean, Athens is also the capital of the Attica (region), Attica region and is the southe ...

following the

Greco-Turkish War (1897) The Greco-Turkish War of 1897 or the Ottoman-Greek War of 1897 ( or ), also called the Thirty Days' War and known in Greece as the Black '97 (, ''Mauro '97'') or the Unfortunate War (), was a war fought between the Kingdom of Greece and the O ...

to oversee the public finances of

, and also to the Inter-Allied Financial Commission that oversaw loans to help the Greek government recover from the war. Russell was then appointed Minister to Ethiopia 1920–25; Minister to Switzerland 1928–31; and Ambassador to Portugal 1931–35. Claud Russell was knighted KCMG in the

King's Birthday Honours The Birthday Honours, in some Commonwealth realms, mark the reigning monarch's official birthday in each realm by granting various individuals appointment into national or dynastic orders or the award of decorations and medals. The honours are ...

of 1930. The Portuguese government awarded him the Grand Cross of the Order of Christ. During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, at the age of 69, Sir Claud enlisted in the

Home Guard Home guard is a title given to various military organizations at various times, with the implication of an emergency or reserve force raised for local defense. The term "home guard" was first officially used in the American Civil War, starting ...

. He rented

Trematon Castle Trematon Castle () is situated near Saltash in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It was the '' caput'' of the feudal barony of Trematon. It is similar in style to the later Restormel Castle, with a 12th-century keep. Trematon Castle overlooks ...

1939–59 and died there on his 88th birthday. As Ambassador to Lisbon he was one of very few senior diplomats to write favourably on whether women should be admitted to the Diplomatic Service. In his contribution to the Shuster Committee review in 1934 he said, "I have an instinctive prejudice in favour of change, which I associate with improvement and reform ... I do not see why a woman should not cohabit at her post with her husband articularly if he werea man of letters or a craftsman of any sort ... We live in a changing world, and no-one can say how mankind will regard anything in 1959. Who would have foreseen in 1894 that in twenty-five years women would be made eligible for the House of Commons?"

Personal life

Russell married Athenais Atchley, daughter of Shirley Clifford Atchley in 1920.

References

RUSSELL, Sir Claud Frederick William
''Who Was Who'', A & C Black, 1920–2008; online edn, Oxford University Press, Dec 2007, accessed 25 May 2012 *Obituary: Sir Claud Russell, ''The Times'', London, 10 December 1959, page 17 {{DEFAULTSORT:Russell, Claud Frederick William 1871 births 1959 deaths

Claud Claud is a given name. Notable people with the name include: *Claud Allister (1888–1970), English actor *Claud Beelman (1883–1963), American architect *Claud Irvine Boswell (1742–1824), Scottish judge *Claud Thomas Bourchier (1831–1877), E ...

Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford British Army personnel of World War I Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Ethiopia Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Switzerland Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Portugal Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Grand Crosses of the Order of Christ (Portugal) Fellows of the Royal Geographical Society Fellows of the Zoological Society of London British Home Guard soldiers Bedfordshire Yeomanry officers Territorial Force officers