Sir Howard William Kennard

GCMG The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George, Prince of Wales (the future King George IV), while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III ...

, CVO (23 March 1878 – 12 November 1955) was a British diplomat.

Early life

Kennard was born on 23 March 1878 in

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

, the son of Arthur Challis Kennard and Anne Homan Mulock, and educated at

Wixenford School Wixenford School, also known as Wixenford Preparatory School and Wixenford-Eversley, was a private preparatory school for boys near Wokingham, founded in 1869. A feeder school for Eton, after it closed in 1934 its former buildings were taken ...

and

Eton College Eton College ( ) is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school providing boarding school, boarding education for boys aged 13–18, in the small town of Eton, Berkshire, Eton, in Berkshire, in the United Kingdom. It has educated Prime Mini ...

.Bewley 1905, pp. 25-26

In Poland

He was a British Chargé d'affaires, and subsequently Ambassador to Poland until 1939. Despite being pro-Polish, he nevertheless urged Poland to negotiate moderation with Germany. During the Czechoslovak Crisis, he briefed

Viscount Halifax A viscount ( , for male) or viscountess (, for female) is a title used in certain European countries for a noble of varying status. The status and any domain held by a viscount is a viscounty. In the case of French viscounts, the title is so ...

on 10 September 1938 by pointing out that "the Poles, especially the ruling classes, do not feel the same horror of

Nazism Nazism (), formally named National Socialism (NS; , ), is the far-right totalitarian socio-political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in Germany. During Hitler's rise to power, it was fre ...

as is felt in democratic countries... among the peasants there is a dislike of

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

which counterbalances the disgust with which other countries regard the manifestations of German

anti-Semitism Antisemitism or Jew-hatred is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who harbours it is called an antisemite. Whether antisemitism is considered a form of racism depends on the school of thought. Antisemi ...

" and that there was a great dislike by Poland towards the Czechs. He made it clear to London, which was then in negotiations with the

Soviet Union The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

for a defensive alliance, that Russia was "violently disliked and distrusted in Poland" and that any kind of transit on land or by air to Czecho-Slovakia over Polish territory would be resisted by force of arms. In March the following year, he gave his support to the Anglo-Polish defensive guarantee, which ultimately drew England into the war. He became ambassador to the

Polish government-in-exile The Polish government-in-exile, officially known as the Government of the Republic of Poland in exile (), was the government in exile of Poland formed in the aftermath of the Invasion of Poland of September 1939, and the subsequent Occupation ...

until 1941. and was also ambassador 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 ...

and the

Kingdom of Yugoslavia The Kingdom of Yugoslavia was a country in Southeast Europe, Southeast and Central Europe that existed from 1918 until 1941. From 1918 to 1929, it was officially called the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes, but the term "Yugoslavia" () h ...

Somerset

In 1939, Kennard was listed as occupying Langham House, Rode Hill,

Somerset Somerset ( , ), Archaism, archaically Somersetshire ( , , ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel, Gloucestershire, and Bristol to the north, Wiltshire to the east ...

."Rode Hill Private Residents", in ''Kelly's Directory for Somerset 1939'' (1939), p. 372, col. 3

References

Bibliography

*''The Story of Mulock: The Pedigree of the Mulock Family of Ireland'' by Sir Edmund Thomas Bewley (Ponsonby & Gibbs, 1905) *''By Virtue & Faith: A History of the Mulock & Mullock Families'' by Robert Hughes-Mullock FRAS (2012) {{DEFAULTSORT:Kennard, Howard William 1878 births 1955 deaths Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Poland Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Switzerland Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Yugoslavia People educated at Eton College People educated at Wixenford School