Whitelaw Reid | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Portrait by Brady-Handy,c. 1870–1880 | |
| United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom | |
| In office June 5, 1905 – December 15, 1912 | |
| President | Theodore Roosevelt William Howard Taft |
| Preceded by | Joseph Choate |
| Succeeded by | Walter Hines Page |
| 28thUnited States Minister to France | |
| In office May 21, 1889 – March 25, 1892 | |
| President | Benjamin Harrison |
| Preceded by | Robert McLane |
| Succeeded by | T. Jefferson Coolidge |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1837-10-27)October 27, 1837 Cedarville, Ohio, U.S. |
| Died | December 15, 1912(1912-12-15) (aged 75) London, England |
| Resting place | Sleepy Hollow Cemetery |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | |
| Children | Ogden Mills Reid Jean Templeton Ward |
| Education | Miami University (BA) |
| Signature |  |
Whitelaw Reid (October 27, 1837 – December 15, 1912) was an American politician, diplomat and newspaper editor, as well as the author ofOhio in the War, a popular work of history.[1]
After assistingHorace Greeley as editor of theNew-York Tribune, Reid purchased the paper after Greeley's death in late 1872 and controlled it until his own death. The circulation grew to about 60,000 a day, but the weekly edition became less important. He invested heavily in new technology, such as the Hoerotary printing press and thelinotype machine, but bitterly fought against the unionized workers for control of his shop.
As a famous voice of the Republican Party, he was honored with appointments as ambassador to France and Great Britain, as well as numerous other honorific positions. Reid was the party's nominee forVice President of the United States in the1892 election. In 1898, President William McKinley appointed him to the American commission that negotiated peace with Spain after the Spanish–American War.[2]
Reid was born on a farm nearXenia, Ohio, to Robert Charlton Reid (1795–1865) and Marion Whitelaw Ronalds (1804–1895), of theClan Ronald of Scotland,[3] who had married in 1820. His forefathers are believed to come fromOld Kilpatrick in Dunbartonshire, Scotland.[4] As a child growing up, his family was poor.[5]
Reid attendedXenia Academy in his hometown, and went on to graduate fromMiami University with honors in 1856.[6][7] At Miami, he was a member ofDelta Kappa Epsilon (Kappa chapter), and lobbied for the expulsion of the six members who ultimately foundedSigma Chi.[8]
During theAmerican Civil War, Reid wrote under the by-line "Agate",[9] acting as a correspondent at several battlefields, including the Battles ofShiloh andGettysburg. His account of the Battle of Shiloh contains tales of confusion, courage, and disaster narrowly averted, and was described as classic war reporting.[10]
In 1868, he joined the staff ofHorace Greeley'sNew-York Tribune. The following year, he was named managing editor. In 1872, Reid was part of the Liberal Republicans, a movement that opposed a second term for President Grant and that ultimately supported the ill-fated Greeley for the presidency. Greeley died just days after the election, and a short time later, Reid became the new editor of theTribune.[11][12]
Reid continued the role of theTribune as one of the foremost Republican newspapers in the country. He emphasized the importance of partisan newspapers in a speech in 1879:
During theHayes andGarfield administrations, he was offered diplomatic posts in Germany, both of which he refused. However, upon the election of PresidentBenjamin Harrison, he was offered the role ofUnited States Ambassador to France,[14] which he accepted and served as from 1889 to 1892.[10] As ambassador, he rented the palace of theDuke of Gramont, in theAvenue Hoche in the8th arrondissement of Paris, where he entertained extensively during his three years in office.[15]
During that period of post-Civil War America, Reid's views were similar to many of his contemporaries in that he did not see a need for the United States to exert its influence beyond North and South America. Instead, he favored a small navy and opposed the acquisition of Hawaii.[10] Reid resigned his post in the Spring of 1892 and returned to America.[7]
In1892, Reid became the Republicanvice presidential nominee when President Harrison chose to drop the sitting vice president,Levi P. Morton, from the ticket.[16] As Harrison's wife was dying, Reid was a more active candidate than the president. Despite his best efforts, Harrison and Reid lost to the Democratic ticket ofGrover Cleveland andAdlai Stevenson, as Cleveland became the first former president to recapture the office.
In 1897, he was appointed a special envoy representing the United States atQueen Victoria'sDiamond Jubilee.[15]
In 1898, Reid was given a spot on thepeace commission, along with former Secretary of StateWilliam R. Day, and SenatorsWilliam P. Frye,Cushman Kellogg Davis, andGeorge Gray, following theSpanish–American War.[7]
In June 1902, he was again appointed a special envoy representing the United States at theCoronation of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra,[17] along withJ. Pierpont Morgan Jr.,Edmund Lincoln Baylies, andWilliam Wetmore, and brought his wife and daughter to London.[18] The coronation was postponed, however, as the King fell ill, and the rescheduled ceremony in August took place after Reid (and most of the other international representatives) had returned home.[19]
While in London, he received the degreeLL.D.honoris causa from theUniversity of Cambridge in June 1902.[20] In 1904, he was made Chancellor of theUniversity of the State of New York. He also received honorary degrees fromDartmouth,Princeton,Yale,Oxford,St. Andrews,Victoria, andManchester.[7]
Reid's role as one of the leading Americans in London in 1898 allowed him to promote American interests in a way that ran parallel to the efforts of America's ambassadorJohn Hay, with whom Reid had been lifelong friends (Reid had even served as best man at Hay's wedding.)[21] In April 1898 the United States and Spain went to war. While some public figures from continental Europe such asÉdouard Drumont,Gaston Méry,Max Régis,Auguste Mercier andBernhard von Bülow had been making high-profile public statements condemning the United States and praising Spain, Reid was part of an effort to counter this. Reid organized public speaking events where British politicians who he knew were of a pro-American perspective on the war, such asJoseph Chamberlain would make the American case for war to the British public. He was aided in this effort by British publisherW. T. Stead. When a widely printed article co-written and co-signed byÉdouard Drumont,Gaston Méry, andMax Régis that was translated into many languages was making the rounds in various European newspapers in the summer of 1898, Reid got many British celebrities includingArthur Henry Neumann,Percy Powell-Cotton,Harald George Carlos Swayne andArthur Jephson to write a counter-letter advocating support for the American point of view. The counter-letter was published inW. T. Stead'sThe Pall Mall Gazette and other papers that had wide British distribution.Harry Johnston wrote from Tunis agreeing with the position, and Reid, using his Stead connections, got that letter published as well. Adding to this, Reid arranged so thatArthur Henry Neumann,Percy Powell-Cotton, andArthur Jephson would all give brief speeches repeating their written arguments at theRoyal Geographical Society and then again later at a handful of high-profile dinners hosted by Reid. One of the dinners was attended byWilliam Archer. Privately, bothGarnet Wolseley, 1st Viscount Wolseley, andEvelyn Wood confided in Reid that they supported the American position in the war, but they also believed that their status as high-ranking officers in the British military made it impossible to publicly issue policy statements in the way that Reid wanted.[22]
In 1905, he was appointed theU.S. Ambassador to the Court of St. James's byTheodore Roosevelt, succeedingJoseph Hodges Choate (1832–1917) in that role.[23][24] Choate's predecessor,John Hay, who became theUnited States Secretary of State, was Reid's friend of forty years with Reid serving as the best man at Hay's wedding.[21] He served in this role, including during theWilliam Howard Taft administration, until his death in 1912.[25]
On April 26, 1881, he married Elisabeth Mills (1857–1931),[26] the daughter ofDarius Ogden Mills (1825–1910) and the sister ofOgden Mills (1856–1929).[27] The Reids were social people and threw lavish parties, including a musicale at their residence in Manhattan, at Madison Avenue and 50th Street, for 400 people, in 1901.[28] Shortly before his death, Reid hosted theDuke andDuchess of Connaught at his New York home.[15] Elisabeth Mills Reid was the founder of theAmerican Girls' Club in Paris.[29][30] Together, they were the parents of:
In New York, Reid was a member of theUniversity Club,Century Club,Metropolitan Club,Union League Club, and Republican Club of New York. He was president of theLotos Club for 14 years, and belonged to theOhio Society,New England Society,St. Andrew's Society, and theAmerican Geographical Society.[15]
From 1902 until his death in 1912, he was a member ofStanford University's board of trustees.[37]Manhattanville University inPurchase, New York, is located on his formerWestchester County estate, which was leased to theKing andQueen of Siam,Prajadhipok andRambhai Barni, in 1931.[38]
He was the grandfather of prominent journalist andNew York Herald Tribune editorWhitelaw Reid (1913–2009) andOgden Rogers Reid (1925–2019), a former member of theUnited States House of Representatives.[39]
Reid died in London while serving as the ambassador toBritain on December 15, 1912. Upon his death, letters of condolences were sent to the family by King George V, Queen Mary, Queen Alexandra, and Princess Victoria.[40] His remains are buried inSleepy Hollow Cemetery inSleepy Hollow, New York.
Marion whitelaw ronalds Reid.
| Diplomatic posts | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to France 1889–1892 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom 1905–1912 | Succeeded by |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by | Republicannominee forVice President of the United States 1892 | Succeeded by |
| Envoys to France (1776–1779) |  | |
|---|---|---|
| Ministers Plenipotentiary to France (1778–1815) | ||
| Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to France (1816–1893) | ||
| Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary to France (1893–present) | ||
