| Ambassador of the United States to Switzerland and Liechtenstein | |
|---|---|
 Seal of the United States Department of State | |
 Flag of a United States ambassador | |
| Nominator | Thepresident of the United States |
| Appointer | Thepresident withSenateadvice and consent |
| Inaugural holder | Theodore Sedgwick Fay as Minister Resident |
| Formation | March 16, 1853 |
| Website | U.S. Embassy - Bern |
This is a list ofUnited Statesambassadors to theSwiss Confederation and thePrincipality of Liechtenstein.[2]
Since 1997, the U.S. ambassador to Switzerland has also beenaccredited to the Principality of Liechtenstein. Appointed on February 10, 1997, AmbassadorMadeleine M. Kunin served as the first United States Ambassador to Liechtenstein.[3] She presented her credentials to Liechtenstein on March 14, 1997, which marked the beginning of the United States' diplomatic relations with the country.[4]
Although the United States executed its first treaty with Liechtenstein in 1926, at the time, and until 1997, Liechtenstein was represented diplomatically by Switzerland.[5]
Before 1997 it was understood that the rights of a U.S.–Swiss agreement also extended to citizens of Liechtenstein because it had yielded control of its foreign affairs to Switzerland. At the end of the 20th century, however, it "began pursuing independent membership in international organizations".[5]
U.S. ambassadors are nominated by thePresident and confirmed by theU.S. Senate.[6] The position of ambassador to Switzerland is generally held by apolitical appointee rather than a careerForeign Service Officer (FSO). According to theAmerican Foreign Service Association, only two career FSOs since 1960 have been appointed to the Swiss and Liechtenstein ambassadorship (both times were in the 1970s), whereas the remaining twenty ambassadors were political appointees, typically those known as "campaign bundlers" who raise large sums of money for presidential campaigns.[7]
| Name | Background | Title | Appointment | Presentation of credentials | Termination of mission |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Theodore Sedgwick Fay | Foreign Service officer | Minister Resident | March 16, 1853 | June 29, 1853 | Presented recall, July 1, 1861 |
| George G. Fogg | Non-career appointee | March 28, 1861 | July 1, 1861 | Presented recall, October 16, 1865 | |
| George Harrington | July 7, 1865 | October 16, 1865 | Presented recall, July 20, 1869 | ||
| Horace Rublee | April 20, 1869 | July 20, 1869 | Presented recall, September 7, 1876 | ||
| Horace Rublee | Chargé d'affaires | August 15, 1876 | September 7, 1876 | Left post October 1, 1876 | |
| George Schneider | May 1, 1877 | ||||
| Nicholas Fish II | Foreign Service officer | Jun 20, 1877 | August 7, 1877 | Presented recall, August 24, 1881 | |
| Michael J. Cramer | Non-career appointee | May 11, 1881 | Aug 25, 1881 | Promoted to Minister Resident/Consul General | |
| Michael J. Cramer | Minister Resident/Consul General | Jul 13, 1882 | Aug 14, 1882 | Presented recall, Jul 9, 1885 | |
| Boyd Winchester | May 7, 1885 | Jul 9, 1885 | Presented recall, May 24, 1889 | ||
| John D. Washburn | Mar 12, 1889 | May 24, 1889 | Promoted toEnvoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary | ||
| John D. Washburn | Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary | Jul 30, 1890 | Dec 13, 1890 | Left post Aug 10, 1892 | |
| Person Colby Cheney | Dec 13, 1892 | Jan 26, 1893 | Presented recall, Jan 29, 1893 | ||
| James Broadhead | Apr 7, 1893 | Jul 5, 1893 | Appointment terminated, Nov 1, 1895 | ||
| John L. Peak | Nov 18, 1895 | Feb 15, 1896 | Presented recall, Aug 9, 1897 | ||
| John George Alexander Leishman | Jun 9, 1897 | Aug 9, 1897 | Presented recall, Feb 20, 1901 | ||
| Arthur Sherburne Hardy | Dec 20, 1900 | Apr 3, 1901 | Presented recall, Jan 29, 1903 | ||
| Charles Page Bryan | Foreign Service officer | Sep 26, 1902 | |||
| Charles Page Bryan | Dec 8, 1902 | ||||
| David Jayne Hill | Jan 7, 1903 | Feb 24, 1903 | Presented recall, Jul 1, 1905 | ||
| Brutus J. Clay II | Mar 8, 1905 | Jul 1, 1905 | Superseded, Mar 1, 1910 | ||
| Laurits S. Swenson | Dec 21, 1909 | Mar 1, 1910 | Presented recall, May 15, 1911 | ||
| Henry Sherman Boutell | Non-career appointee | Apr 24, 1911 | May 23, 1911 | Presented recall, Jul 31, 1913 | |
| Pleasant A. Stovall | Jun 21, 1913 | Aug 23, 1913 | Left post Dec 14, 1919 | ||
| Hampson Gary | Apr 7, 1920 | Jun 3, 1920 | Left post about Mar 4, 1921 | ||
| Joseph Grew | Foreign Service Officer | Sep 24, 1921 | Nov 1, 1921 | Left post Mar 22, 1924 | |
| Hugh S. Gibson | Mar 18, 1924 | May 19, 1924 | Presented recall, Apr 29, 1927 | ||
| Hugh R. Wilson | Feb 26, 1927 | Jun 11, 1927 | Left post Jul 8, 1937 | ||
| Leland B. Harrison | Jul 13, 1937 | Sep 10, 1937 | Left post Oct 14, 1947 | ||
| John Carter Vincent | Jul 24, 1947 | Oct 21, 1947 | Left post Jun 9, 1951 | ||
| Richard Cunningham Patterson Jr. | Non-career appointee | Mar 22, 1951 | Jun 27, 1951 | Left post Apr 14, 1953 | |
| Frances E. Willis | Foreign Service officer | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | Jul 20, 1953 | Oct 9, 1953 | Left post May 5, 1957 |
| Henry J. Taylor | Non-career appointee | May 9, 1957 | May 31, 1957 | Left post Feb 28, 1961 | |
| Robert M. McKinney | Non-career appointee | Jun 22, 1961 | Jul 25, 1961 | Left post Sep 8, 1963 | |
| W. True Davis Jr. | Oct 2, 1963 | Nov 29, 1963 | Left post Sep 3, 1965 | ||
| John S. Hayes | Sep 19, 1966 | Nov 18, 1966 | Left post May 20, 1969 | ||
| Shelby Cullom Davis | May 13, 1969 | Jul 17, 1969 | Left post Apr 10, 1975 | ||
| Peter H. Dominick | Feb 20, 1975 | Apr 25, 1975 | Left post Jul 10, 1975 | ||
| Nathaniel Davis | Foreign Service officer | Nov 20, 1975 | Jan 9, 1976 | Left post Jul 31, 1977 | |
| Marvin L. Warner | Non-career appointee | Jul 11, 1977 | Sep 13, 1977 | Left post Jul 10, 1979 | |
| Richard David Vine | Foreign Service officer | Sep 20, 1979 | Oct 19, 1979 | Left post Sep 1, 1981 | |
| Faith Whittlesey | Non-career appointee | Sep 28, 1981 | Oct 23, 1981 | Left post Feb 28, 1983 | |
| John Davis Lodge | Mar 18, 1983 | May 19, 1983 | Left post Apr 30, 1985 | ||
| Faith Whittlesey | Apr 4, 1985 | May 31, 1985 | Left post Jun 14, 1988 | ||
| Philip D. Winn | Jul 11, 1988 | Aug 19, 1988 | Left post Aug 5, 1989 | ||
| Joseph Bernard Gildenhorn | Aug 3, 1989 | Aug 23, 1989 | Left post Mar 1, 1993 | ||
| The following officers served as Chargés d'affairesad interim(1993–94):John E. Hall (Mar–Aug 1993),Brian M. Flora (Aug–Dec 1993),Michael C. Polt (Dec 1993–Mar 1994), andJeffrey R. Cellars (July 22, 2013 - June 2, 2014) | |||||
| M. Larry Lawrence | Non-career appointee | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | Feb 9, 1994 | Mar 21, 1994 | Died at post Jan 9, 1996 |
| Madeleine M. Kunin | Aug 8, 1996 | Aug 19, 1996 | Left post Aug 16, 1999 | ||
| J. Richard Fredericks | Oct 29, 1999 | Dec 2, 1999 | Left post Jul 6, 2001 | ||
| Mercer Reynolds | Aug 3, 2001 | Sep 11, 2001 | Left post Mar 29, 2003 | ||
| Pamela Willeford | Oct 7, 2003 | Nov 25, 2003 | Left post May 6, 2006 | ||
| Peter R. Coneway | Sept 6, 2006 | Oct 19, 2006 | Dec 7, 2008 | ||
| Donald S. Beyer Jr. | August 5, 2009 | August 15, 2009 | May 29, 2013 | ||
| Suzan G. LeVine | June 2, 2014 | July 1, 2014 | January 20, 2017[8] | ||
| Ed McMullen | November 2, 2017 | November 21, 2017 | January 17, 2021 | ||
| Scott Miller | December 18, 2021 | January 11, 2022 | January 20, 2025 | ||
| Bradford Bell | Foreign Service officer | Chargé d'affaires | January 20, 2025 | October 20, 2025 | |
| Callista Gingrich | Non-career appointee | Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | September 18, 2025 | October 23, 2025 | Incumbent |
The following were commissioned during aSenate recess and thus were recommissioned after their post-recess confirmations.
Theodore Sedgwick Fay was nominated to be Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary on February 25, 1856, but his nomination was withdrawn before the Senate acted on it.George Schneider was commissioned during aSenate recess and he took the oath of office but did not proceed to post.
This article incorporatespublic domain material fromU.S. Bilateral Relations Fact Sheets.United States Department of State.| Minister Resident | | |
|---|---|---|
| Chargé d'Affaires | ||
| Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary | ||
| Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary | ||
