British diplomacy and the descent into chaos : the career of Jack Garnett, 1902-19 / John Fisher.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Fisher, John, 1968-

Series:

Britain and the world

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Garnett, William James, 1878-1965.

Garnett, William James.

Diplomats--Great Britain--Biography.

Diplomats.

Diplomatic and consular service, British.

History.

Great Britain.

Diplomatic and consular service, British--History--20th century.

Genre:

Biographies.

Physical Description:

xvii, 280 pages, 15 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations, map ; 23 cm.

Place of Publication:

Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire ; New York : Palgrave Macmillan, 2012.

Summary:

In his diplomatic career, from 1902 to 1919, Jack Garnett served widely overseas during a period of dramatic change in international politics and in Britain's role on the world stage. In this book, John Fisher reveals Garnett as a fascinating individual: headstrong, indiscreet, and accident-prone. Garnett's early career was promising, but he left the Diplomatic Service under a cloud. Tired of the 'old diplomacy', he desired a holistic approach to the management of Britain's overseas interests. Then, attracted by notions of constructive imperialism after the First World War, he undertook social work, before returning to the family seat in Lancashire. His correspondence provides the local, overseas, perspective on British foreign policy and is full of insights into life lived in embassies and legations. Fisher uses Garnett's story to illuminate key issues in British overseas interests, including consular representation and the promotion of British commerce, as well as previously neglected subjects such as diplomats' wives, travel, and expatriate communities. Book jacket.

Contents:

Constantinople: "a very wonderful place"

Like a plant uprooted: life in Peking

"People who squeeze and people who may be squeezed": across Mongolia, 1908

Bucharest and St Petersburg

Teheran 1911-14 : "into the vortex"

London, Sophia and Athens, and the "episode of the floating bag"

Tangier : "a confusion of the East and the West"

A "hardly used genus": First Secretary in Buenos Aires

A climacteric.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9780230348974

0230348971

OCLC:

748328681