Roger Mellor Makins, 1st Baron Sherfield, (3 February 1904 – 9 November 1996), was a British diplomat who served as British Ambassador to the United States from 1953 to 1956.

Background and early life

Makins was the son of Brigadier-General Sir

Ernest Makins Brigadier-General Sir Ernest Makins, (14 October 1869 – 18 May 1959) was a British military officer and Conservative Party politician. Military career Makins was the eldest son of Henry F. Makins. He was commissioned a second lieutenant i ...

(1869–1959) and Florence Mellor. He was educated at

Winchester Winchester (, ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city in Hampshire, England. The city lies at the heart of the wider City of Winchester, a local government Districts of England, district, at the western end of the South Downs N ...

and

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church (, the temple or house, ''wikt:aedes, ædes'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by Henry V ...

, and was called to the Bar, Inner Temple, in 1927.

Early diplomatic career

However, he never practised and instead joined the Diplomatic Service in 1928. In 1938 Makins minuted a Foreign Office memorandum dealing with the German refugee problem thus: "The pitiful condition to which German jews will be reduced will not make them desirable immigrants". He was later appointed to be Minister Plenipotentiary at the British Embassy in Washington in 1945, and served until 1947. He was Assistant Under-Secretary of State at 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 ...

from 1947 to 1948 and as Deputy Under-Secretary of State from 1948 to 1952.

Ambassador to the United States

In 1953 he was appointed to be the Ambassador to the United States, a post he held until 1956. On the eve of the

Suez Crisis The Suez Crisis, also known as the Second Arab–Israeli War, the Tripartite Aggression in the Arab world and the Sinai War in Israel, was a British–French–Israeli invasion of Egypt in 1956. Israel invaded on 29 October, having done so w ...

, he was present at the crucial meeting on 25 September 1956 where

Harold Macmillan Maurice Harold Macmillan, 1st Earl of Stockton (10 February 1894 – 29 December 1986), was a British statesman and Conservative Party (UK), Conservative politician who was Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1957 to 1963. Nickn ...

was apparently persuaded that US President

Dwight D. Eisenhower Dwight David "Ike" Eisenhower (born David Dwight Eisenhower; October 14, 1890 – March 28, 1969) was the 34th president of the United States, serving from 1953 to 1961. During World War II, he was Supreme Commander of the Allied Expeditionar ...

had offered the British Government tacit support; Makins, on the other hand, correctly concluded that Eisenhower would not support the intervention.

Later career in the civil service

After his return from

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 ...

he served as Joint Permanent Secretary to The Treasury from 1956 to 1960 and as Chairman of the

United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority The United Kingdom Atomic Energy Authority is a UK government research organisation responsible for the development of fusion energy. It is an executive non-departmental public body of the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero (DESNZ). T ...

from 1960 to 1964.

Chancellorship

Makins was appointed to the post of

Chancellor Chancellor () is a title of various official positions in the governments of many countries. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the (lattice work screens) of a basilica (court hall), which separa ...

of the

University of Reading The University of Reading is a public research university in Reading, Berkshire, England. It was founded in 1892 as the University Extension College, Reading, an extension college of Christchurch College, Oxford, and became University College, ...

in 1969, and retained this position until 1992.

Marriage and children

On 30 April 1934, in an Episcopal ceremony in

Tallahassee, Florida Tallahassee ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of and the only incorporated municipality in Leon County, Florida, Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Fl ...

, he married an American, Alice Brooks Davis (d. 1985), the daughter of Dwight F. Davis, founder of the

Davis Cup The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is organised by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) and contested annually between teams from over 150 competing countries, making it the world's largest annual ...

and former US

Secretary of War The secretary of war was a member of the U.S. president's Cabinet, beginning with George Washington's administration. A similar position, called either "Secretary at War" or "Secretary of War", had been appointed to serve the Congress of the ...

. The couple had six children: * Mary Makins (b. 1935, twin). Married firstly, as his second wife, Hugo John Laurence Philipps, later 3rd Baron Milford, with whom she had four children. Married secondly, as his second wife, John Julius Cooper, 2nd Viscount Norwich, without issue; * Cynthia Makins (b. 1935, twin). Married Oliver James Colman, with whom she had two children; * Virginia Makins (b. 1939). Married David Michael Shapiro, with whom she had three sons; * Christopher James Makins, 2nd Baron Sherfield (b. 1942 - d. 2006). Married Wendy Whitney Cortesi, daughter of John Sargent Whitney of

Evergreen, Colorado Evergreen is an Unincorporated area, unincorporated town, a post office, and a Census-designated place, census-designated place (CDP) located in and governed by Jefferson County, Colorado, Jefferson County, Colorado, U.S. The CDP is a part of th ...

, with whom he had a daughter; * Patricia Makins (b. 1946). Married, firstly, Michael Ordway Miller, without issue, married, secondly, Loring Sagan, with whom she had two children; * Dwight William Makins, 3rd Baron Sherfield (b. 1951). Married firstly Penelope Jane Collier, daughter of Donald R. L. Massy Collier. Married secondly Jenny Rolls.

Honours

Makins was appointed to the

Order of St Michael and St George 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 ...

as a Companion (CMG) in the

1944 New Year Honours The 1944 New Year Honours were appointments by many of the Commonwealth realms of King George VI to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced on 31 December 1943. The recip ...

and was promoted in the same Order as a Knight Commander (KCMG) in the 1949 Birthday Honours. He was appointed to the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by King George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. Recipients of the Order are usually senior British Armed Forces, military officers or senior Civil Service ...

as a Knight Commander (KCB) in the 1953 New Year Honours. He was promoted in the

as a Knight Grand Cross (GCMG) in the 1955 New Year Honours and was promoted within the

as a Knight Grand Cross (GCB) in the

1960 New Year Honours The New Year Honours 1960 were appointments in many of the Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. They were announced in supplements to the ''Lon ...

. In the 1964 Birthday Honours, Makins was raised to the peerage as Baron Sherfield, ''of Sherfield-on-Loddon in the County of Southampton''. He was elected to be a Fellow of the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

(FRS) under Statute 12 (for those "who have rendered conspicuous service to the cause of science, or are such that election would be of signal benefit to the Society") in 1986.

Arms

The Makins Collection

Makins was a notable collector of Victorian art. The Makins Collection contained important works by

John Everett Millais Sir John Everett Millais, 1st Baronet ( , ; 8 June 1829 – 13 August 1896) was an English painter and illustrator who was one of the founders of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood. He was a child prodigy who, aged eleven, became the youngest s ...

References

External links

Interview about the Korean War
for the

WGBH-TV WGBH-TV (channel 2), branded GBH or GBH 2 since 2020, is the primary PBS List of PBS member stations, member television station in Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Affiliated stations and facilities WGBH-TV is the Flagship (broadcasting), ...

series, War and Peace in the Nuclear Age
Artworks in the Makins Collection
at the Bridgeman Art Library *Martin Gilbert, ''Exile and Return: The Emergence of Jewish Statehood,'' Weidenfeld & Nicolson , London 1978 p.192. {{DEFAULTSORT:Sherfield, Roger Mellor Makins, 1st Baron 1904 births 1996 deaths Members of HM Diplomatic Service Chancellors of the University of Reading Deputy lieutenants of Hampshire Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Cross of the Order of St Michael and St George Makins, Roger Mellor Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford People educated at West Downs School Diplomatic peers People educated at Winchester College Makins, Roger Makins, Roger 1 Hereditary barons created by Elizabeth II

Roger Roger is a masculine given name, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic languages">Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") ...

People from Sherfield on Loddon 20th-century British diplomats