Undiplomatic Diaries: 1937-1971

Charles Ritchie Diaries Chronologic #1-4

by Charles Ritchie

With an Introduction by Allan Gotlieb. 

One of Canada’s most distinguished diplomats, Charles Ritchie was also a born diarist. Now, for the first time, Ritchie’s diplomatic diaries are collected in one complete volume, covering his entire career in the Canadian Foreign Service. Ritchie creates a startlingly vivid and perceptive portrait of daily life at the centre of major historical events, including one of the finest accounts of the London Blitz ever written — the people in the parks, the shabby streets, the heightened love affairs. Ritchie’s life was a whirl of high-society engagements, and he turns his dry wit and irreverence to the social scene. Evocative and compelling, these diaries beautifully portray a forgotten era.

Genres: Nonfiction

608 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2008

Reviews

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

These extracts from Canadian diplomat Charles Ritchie’s personal diary give an interesting inside look at foreign affairs during the mid-twentieth century. This volume collects three selections originally published separately: The Siren Years (1937-1945), Diplomatic Passport (1946-1962), and Storm Signals (1962-1971).

The diary starts off in Washington, D.C., including scenes at the Canadian embassy and Dumbarton Oaks, a stay with the Vanderbilts at The Breakers in Newport, R.I., and a visit to Nova Scotia before switching to London for his years there. Mr Ritchie reports on his personal life and literary London, including his close friendship with novelist Elizabeth Bowen, historic moments (Normandy right after D-day) and diplomacy during and after WWII. The author went on to represent Canada at the UN, including a year as President of the Security Council, and as the Canadian ambassador to the U.S. during the Kennedy Administration among other postings. As a Canadian, he has a unique view of Britain and the U.S.

While this book offers an “inside look”, these excerpts disclose only part of the author’s life. For example, a careful reader may deduce just how close Mr Ritchie and Ms Bowen were, but it is unstated in the text. Somehow, a sense of things unsaid or omitted comes through to the reader; perhaps a career diplomat’s habits of tact, strategy and controlled disclosure limit the degree to which he can be undiplomatic, even in his own diaries.

"A routine day, worthy but not inspiring. This is the way my "Better Self" would like me to behave all the time. 15 January 1941"

“Reading Shakespeare's "Romeo and Juliet”--one could get caught in Shakespeare and spend one's whole life (and it would not be long enough) in that world of clues and whispers, glorious vistas, sweet songs and perfumes, breath-taking glooms-- in that world so monstrously larger than life.""

"I sat next to Greta Garbo, but all she said to me was "Pass the salt." But she said it in those husky, mysterious, palpitating tones that have echoed around the globe! 15 September 1947"

[Em · Rating 2 out of 5]

You can tell a lot about a man's character from how he treats his wife. It seemed odd the way he chose to include, or rather very rarely include his wife Sylvia in these diaries. His Wikipedia entry mentions her once in passing. He seems very distant and detached from the Mrs. Possible discretion on his part. He even writes that he doesn't consider her his partner.

Wikipedia (needs to be confirmed elsewhere) is slightly more forthcoming about his love affair with Elizabeth Bowen (writer) who Ritchie talks about more frequently and more affectionately. The affair began before his marriage and carried on during his marriage until Bowen's death.

I chose to read the book for the perspective on 20thC Canadian history, from the diplomats point of view. There were a few interesting insights.

[Robert Docking · Rating 4 out of 5]

Charles Ritchie was born into a very good Tory family in Nova Scotia in 1906, was well educated in Oxford and other high-toned institutions, and had a distinguished career in the Canadian Foreign Service, a service that earned its reputation for diplomatic excellence. His diaries give ample evidence of the prejudices (or let's say perspectives) of those particular circumstances. But they also give more than ample evidence of an observant eye, a keen and restless intelligence and a fresh and vibrant style that could (Could! ) have made him a considerable novelist. His evocations of London during the blitz are moving as literature and valuable as contributions to the historical record.

He was friends with the glitterati of their day (Diana Cooper and Nancy Mitford among many others), and he won the love and close friendship of the distinguished novelist Elizabeth Bowen. His judgments could, in retrospect, be wide of the mark (a salubrious lesson when one considers the judgments of those in the midst of today's crises), and there is evidence of some, mostly admitted, weaknesses of character; but the diaries are a substantial record of Ritchie's experience of his times. And they are, it's most important to note, a delight to read, from beginning to end. The true rating of this volume is just a hair short of a 5.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like letters and memoirs because they let the reader feel so close to the real person. In this unique collection the reader is plunged into the heart of the many historic events that Charles Ritchie was involved in. (e.g. London during the Blitz, Paris after WW2, Washington during Kennedy's years and assassination.) His writing style is intimate, gossipy, and thoroughly engaging. The pages are filled with the famous people he worked with, met or became friends with: the Canadian prime ministers, American presidents Kennedy and Johnson, even members of the Royal Family. I loved his account of the Blitz, then read in the blurb on the back that it is considered one of the best accounts ever. Elizabeth Bowen was a close friend, and his chats with Nancy Mitford encouraged me to include the Mitford Sisters biography on my to-read list.