Colonel William A. Phillips

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For other people with the same name, see William Fitzgerald.

William Henry Gerald FitzGerald (December 23, 1909 – January 5, 2006) was an American investor and philanthropist, who served as United States Ambassador to Ireland from 1992 to 1993.[1]

Biography

FitzGerald was born in Boston in 1909, and grew up in nearby Wakefield, Massachusetts.[2] After attending the Severn School in Maryland, he entered the United States Naval Academy in 1927 and graduated in 1931.[2] He attended submarine school, and was later assigned to Pearl Harbor; he left the Navy in 1934 to attend Harvard Law School.[2] After some successful investing, FitzGerald decided to leave law school to learn corporate finance; he worked for the Borden Milk Company until being recalled by the Navy in April 1941.[2]

FitzGerald conducted submarine research during World War II, and left the Navy in 1946.[2] Until 1957, he worked in the field of metallurgy, including founding and selling a company. Former governor of Massachusetts Christian Herter then had him appointed to a position within the International Cooperation Administration.[2] In 1960, FitzGerald left the ICA to support the presidential campaign of Richard Nixon.[2] After Nixon lost the 1960 presidential election, FitzGerald returned to private business, and became chairman of a hydrofoil company; during these years he also invested in the stock market.[2] FitzGerald later held positions within the International Center of Investment Disputes (1975–1982), the President's Advisory Board on International Investments (1976–1978), and the Atlantic Council starting in 1976.[2]

After the 1988 election of George H. W. Bush, FitzGerald was appointed vice chairman of the African Development Fund.[2] In 1992, he was appointed ambassador to Ireland by President Bush.[2] His nomination caused some controversy, due to his age (FitzGerald was 80 at the time) and some misstatements he made during his confirmation hearing.[3][4] His nomination was confirmed by the Senate, and he presented his credentials to President of Ireland Mary Robinson on June 26, 1992.[5][6] He had the official title of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary, and served until June 5, 1993.[5]

FitzGerald died at George Washington University Hospital on January 5, 2006, of an aortic aneurysm.[7] The William H.G. FitzGerald Tennis Center in Washington is named in his honor.

See also

References

  1. ^ "Chiefs of Mission for Ireland". history.state.gov. Retrieved April 14, 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Interview with William H.G. FitzGerald" (PDF). Library of Congress. December 14, 1994. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
  3. ^ Clarity, James F. (June 25, 1992). "Irish Ridicule New U.S. Envoy Over Gaffes". The New York Times. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
  4. ^ "US envoy in early 1990s whose nomination caused controversy". The Irish Times. January 14, 2006. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
  5. ^ a b "William Henry Gerald FitzGerald (1909–2006)". history.state.gov. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
  6. ^ "New U.S. envoy takes post, heat in Ireland". upi.com. UPI. June 26, 1992. Retrieved April 23, 2017.
  7. ^ "Philanthropist William H.G. FitzGerald". The Washington Post. January 9, 2006. Retrieved April 23, 2017.

External links

Diplomatic posts
Preceded by United States Ambassador to Ireland
1992–1993 		Succeeded by
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_H._G._FitzGerald