John N. Irwin II
John Nichol Irwin II (born December 31, 1913 in Keokuk , Iowa , † February 28, 2000 in New Haven , Connecticut ) was an American politician and diplomat , who served from July 13, 1972 to February 1, 1973 as the first deputy secretary of state of the United States ( Deputy Secretary of State ).
John Irwin first attended the Lawrenceville School , a high school in Lawrence Township in New Jersey , and then the neighboring Princeton University , from which he received a Bachelor of Arts degree in 1937 . This was followed by a law degree at the Law School of Fordham University , which he finished in 1941 with a Bachelor of Laws . He then went to England and received his Masters from Oxford University in 1944 . In the meantime, he served with the rank of colonel in the US Army during World War II .
On his return to the United States, he joined the New York law firm Patterson, Belknap, Webb & Tyler in 1950 , where he worked until 1977. In 1958, Irwin entered government services and became Deputy Assistant Secretary for international security in the Ministry of Defense , which he remained until 1961. Between 1965 and 1968 he took part in negotiations on issues relating to the Panama Canal as federal commissioner ; In 1969 he was sent to Peru as the Foreign Ministry's special envoy . From 1970 to 1972 he held the office of United States Under Secretary of State , which at that time represented the second highest position in the State Department . He retained this rank even after the establishment of the Deputy Secretary of State in 1972. He served as Deputy Secretary of State William P. Rogers until February 1, 1973 , before Kenneth Rush replaced him. For his services, President Richard Nixon awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom ; later also received the French Légion d'honneur .
From 1973 to 1974 John Irwin held the office of US ambassador to France ; then he retired from civil service. He was subsequently a member of the board of directors of IBM , was a member of the board of trustees of the Metropolitan Museum of Art until 1987, and served on the executive committee of the American Museum of Natural History from 1989 . In the run-up to the 2000 presidential election , he was on the advisory board of Steve Forbes ; later he supported the candidacy of George W. Bush . Before the election he died at the age of 86 in a hospital in New Haven; he had last lived in New Canaan with his second wife ; with his first wife, who died in 1970, he had a daughter and a son.
Web links
- John N. Irwin II in the nndb (English)
- Obituary in the New York Times
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Irwin, John N. |
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES | Irwin, John Nichol II |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | American diplomat and politician |
| DATE OF BIRTH | December 31, 1913 |
| PLACE OF BIRTH | Keokuk , Iowa |
| DATE OF DEATH | February 28, 2000 |
| Place of death | New Haven , Connecticut |