Henry Unwin Addington (24 March 1790 – 6 March 1870) was a British diplomat and civil servant.

Background

Born at Blounts Court, he was the second son of

John Hiley Addington John Hiley Addington (August 1759 – 11 June 1818) was a British Tory party politician. He served as a Member of Parliament for various constituencies between 1787 and 1818. Background and education Addington was the second son of Anthony Addi ...

, brother of

Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth Henry Addington, 1st Viscount Sidmouth (30 May 175715 February 1844) was a British Tory statesman who served as prime minister of the United Kingdom from 1801 to 1804 and as Speaker of the House of Commons from 1789 to 1801. Addington is b ...

, and his wife Mary, daughter of Henry Unwin. He was educated at

Winchester School Winchester College is an English public school (a long-established fee-charging boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) with some provision for day attendees, in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 as ...

and entered 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 ...

in 1807.

Career

Addington was attached to the diplomatic mission to

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

under

William Amherst, 1st Earl Amherst William Pitt Amherst, 1st Earl Amherst (14 January 177313 March 1857) was a British diplomat and colonial administrator who served as the Governor-General of the Presidency of Fort William from 1823 to 1828. Background and education Born at B ...

in 1809 and took part in the negotiations between Spain and his colonies in 1812. He was transferred to

Berlin Berlin ( ; ) is the Capital of Germany, capital and largest city of Germany, by both area and List of cities in Germany by population, population. With 3.7 million inhabitants, it has the List of cities in the European Union by population withi ...

in April 1813 and to

Stockholm Stockholm (; ) is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in Sweden by population, most populous city of Sweden, as well as the List of urban areas in the Nordic countries, largest urban area in the Nordic countries. Approximately ...

in September. In the next year he was appointed Secretary of Legation to

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

, an office he held until 1818. He executed this position again in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

in 1821, however became chargé d'affaires in

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

already a year later. Addington was promoted to plenipotentiary in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

for negotiations with the

United States of America The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguo ...

in 1826, and was moved to

Frankfurt am Main Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

as Minister Plenipotentiary to the German Confederation in 1828. In the following year he was appointed Envoy Extraordinary to Spain. In 1833, he returned to England and became

Permanent Under-Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs This is a list of Permanent Under-Secretary of State, Permanent Under-Secretaries in the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (and its predecessors) since 1790. Not to be confused with Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State f ...

in 1842. In 1854, he retired and was sworn of the

Privy Council of the United Kingdom The Privy Council, formally His Majesty's Most Honourable Privy Council, is a privy council, formal body of advisers to the sovereign of the United Kingdom. Its members, known as privy counsellors, are mainly senior politicians who are curre ...

Family

On 17 November 1836, he married Eleanor Anne Estcourt, eldest daughter of Thomas Grimston Bucknall Estcourt at

St George's, Hanover Square St George's, Hanover Square, is an Church of England, Anglican church, the parish church of Mayfair in the City of Westminster, central London, built in the early eighteenth century as part of a project to build fifty new churches around London ...

References

Literature

*Oliver Werner, Privater Eindruck und öffentliche Politik. Der britische Diplomat Henry Unwin Addington in Deutschland, 1813/14 und 1828/29. In: Uwe Ziegler/Horst Carl (ed.), "In unserer Liebe nicht glücklich." Kultureller Austausch zwischen Großbritannien und Deutschland 1770–1840, Goettingen (Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht) 2014, p. 143-158. {{DEFAULTSORT:Addington, Henry 1790 births 1870 deaths Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom People educated at Winchester College Permanent Under-Secretaries of State for Foreign Affairs Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Germany Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Spain Henry Unwin