Diplomacy, Roger Makins and the Anglo-American Relationship by Wevill Richard;

Author:Wevill, Richard;
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: Taylor and Francis
Published: 2014-04-05T04:00:00+00:00

Chapter 5

The Ambassador and the Foreign Office

In June 1952 Anthony Eden, then Foreign Secretary, wrote a paper entitled British Overseas Obligations. In it he set out Britain’s worldwide obligations and concluded that ‘on a longer view, it must be assumed that the maintenance of the present scale of overseas commitments will permanently overstrain our economy’.1 One of the major obligations, ‘second only to Western Europe’, was in Egypt and the Middle East. Eden concluded that the only practical way to remove the strain on the economy was to share the burden with the United States, the only Western country capable of assuming it. He wrote ‘our aim should be to persuade the United States to assume the real burdens … while retaining for ourselves as much political control – and hence prestige and influence – as we can’. He ended: ‘the more gradually and inconspicuously we can transfer the real burdens from our own to American shoulders, the less damage we shall do to our position and influence in the world.’2 Eden wanted it both ways – control of policy without financial commitment.

The Americans did not prove to be as malleable as Eden had hoped. While they shared similar objectives for the Middle East, their approach was different. This led to considerable tension between the two countries. Eden often felt frustrated by the American stance, and it fell to the British officials at the Embassy in Washington to try to diffuse the tension. But Eden and certain Foreign Office officials lost patience, not only with the Americans but also with the officials who were explaining the American position. This loss of confidence in his ambassador was to have disastrous consequences for Britain.

On Sunday 20 July 1952 Makins drove himself to Chartwell, Winston Churchill’s country house near Westerham in Kent. He had been asked to lunch with the Prime Minister, ostensibly to do some drafting work. Afterwards he was to go on to see Anthony Eden at his house in West Sussex. When Makins arrived the Prime Minister was slumped in a chair, and did not react at all to his arrival. However, a bottle of champagne was produced and after a couple of glasses Churchill perked up. After lunch Churchill took Makins off to his study to discuss a Middle Eastern problem and to draft some telegrams. He then walked Makins around the gardens. On their way back to the house Churchill asked Makins if he would like to see some of his things. They ended up in Churchill’s studio where the walls were covered from floor to ceiling with his drawings and paintings. Makins, who collected art himself, preferred the landscapes to Churchill’s other paintings, and honestly said how much he liked them. After he left, Churchill telephoned Eden who, on Makins’ arrival, offered him the Washington Embassy on the spot.3

There had been some tension between Eden and Churchill over who should replace Oliver Franks, the retiring British Ambassador to Washington. Churchill, who once said that Anglo-American relations were

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