Lord Lyons: A Diplomat in an Age of Nationalism and War

by Brian A. Jenkins

The British ambassador in Washington during the US Civil War and ambassador in Paris before and after the Franco-Prussian war, Lord Lyons (1817-1887) was one of the most important diplomats of the Victorian period. Although frequently featured in histories of the United States and Europe in the second half of the nineteenth century, and in discussions and analyses of British foreign policy, he has remained an ill-defined figure. In Lord A Diplomat in an Age of Nationalism and War, Brian Jenkins explains the man and examines his career. Based on a staggering study of primary sources, he presents a convincing portrait of a subject who rarely revealed himself personally. Though he avoided publicity, Lyons came to be regarded as his nation's premier diplomat as his career took him to the heart of the great international issues and crises of his generation. As minister to the United States he played a vital role in preserving Anglo-American peace and was a powerful voice opposing Anglo-French intervention in the Civil War. While ambassador to the Ottoman Empire, he helped to prevent French control of the Suez Canal then under construction. In France, he maintained an amiable and constructive relationship with a bitter nation struggling to reorganize itself and its constitution after the Franco-Prussian War. For many historians Lord Lyons has been difficult to ignore but hard to admire. In rescuing him as a truly important historical figure, Jenkins details for the first time the personal and public strategies Lyons employed through decades of exemplary diplomatic service on both sides of the Atlantic.

564 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2014

About the author

Brian Jenkins is emeritus professor of history, Bishop's University in Sherbrooke, Canada, where he taught from 1976 until his retirement in 2001.

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

As a career diplomat during the Victorian era, Richard Lyons served as one of the figures who defined and represented British power in the 19th century. The son of a Royal Navy admiral, Lyons entered the diplomatic service after an indifferent educational performance. He quickly proved a good fit for his new profession, serving first in Greece and then in Rome before gaining appointment as minister to the United States in 1858. In this post, Lyons soon found himself at the center of the turmoil surrounding secession and civil war, and he played a prominent role in representing British interests while steering Britain clear of greater involvement in the conflict. Such was the growing regard for Lyons that after his resignation he was appointed to run the embassies, first in Constantinople, then in Paris, where he spent the two decades as ambassador during a critical period in French history.

In an era when diplomats exercised considerable autonomy, Lyons played a prominent role in shaping British foreign policy throughout his career. For this reason alone Brian Jenkins is to be commended for giving Lyons the attention he deserves, yet this is only one reason why Jenkins deserves praise for this book. He has written an exemplary biography of his subject, one that draws upon the full range of primary and secondary sources available to him. He strikes an ideal balance between context and personal detail, situating Lyons within the constantly changing context of the political and diplomatic environments in which he served. Nor does he neglect Lyons as a person, showing him as a man devoted to his career yet one who was an individual with his own quirks and problems. The result makes it clear why Lyons was lauded upon his death as "the idea of a pattern and ideal diplomatist," one who established the standard by which modern diplomats are judged. In that respect Jenkins's book is an unqualified success, one that should be read by everyone interested in diplomatic history and the history of British foreign policy.