Embassy of the United States, London
Embassy of the United States, London | |
---|---|
Location | 33 Nine Elms Lane, London, SW11 7US |
Coordinates | 51°28′57″N 0°07′54″W / 51.4826°N 0.1317°W |
Opened | 1960 Nine Elms 2018 |
Ambassador | Jane Hartley (since 2022) |
Website | uk |
The Embassy of the United States of America in London is the diplomatic mission of the United States in the United Kingdom.[1] It is located in Nine Elms and is the largest American embassy in Western Europe[2] and the focal point for events relating to the United States held in the United Kingdom.
There has been an American legation in London since John Adams was appointed the first minister in 1785. The embassy building in Nine Elms overlooks the River Thames and has been opened to the public since 13 December 2017, and was formally opened in January 2018.[3][4] For much of the 20th century and into the 21st, the chancery was in Grosvenor Square, Westminster, London.
Since 1955, Winfield House in Regents Park has served as the ambassador's official residence.
History
The American legation in London was first situated in Great Cumberland Place, later moving to Piccadilly, 98 Portland Place (1863–1866),[5] and 123 Victoria Street in Westminster (1883–1893). The legation was upgraded to an embassy in 1893 and remained at Victoria Street until 1912, when it moved to 4 Grosvenor Gardens.[6]
In 1938, the embassy was moved to
The next chancery, also on Grosvenor Square, was designed by
Demonstrations
In March 1968, a crowd of some 10,000 demonstrated at
Thousands of protesters marched on the embassy as part of a worldwide anti-racism demonstration following the murder of George Floyd in 2020.[16][17][18]
Security concerns
Security at the Grosvenor Square embassy was tightened in the 1980s and 1990s following successive
The security threat against the embassy prompted the U.S. government to consider moving the embassy. Several British media outlets reported that the U.S. government had wished to use
New building
On 8 October 2008, the embassy announced a conditional agreement with the real estate developer Ballymore Group to purchase property for a new embassy site on the South Bank of the River Thames in the Nine Elms area of the London Borough of Wandsworth.[23] The site lies within the Vauxhall/Nine Elms/Battersea Opportunity Area as set out in the London Plan. The proposed plan would only go forward if approved by the United States Congress and by the local planning authority.[24] The Northern line extension to Battersea includes new stations at Battersea and Nine Elms, combined with major local development. The United States Department of State announced in January 2009 that it was choosing among nine architectural firms, all "modern" and "upmarket", to replace the ageing embassy headquarters.[25] In March 2009, the U.S. Department of State's Bureau of Overseas Buildings Operations announced that four architectural firms had been selected for the final phase of the design competition.[25] By law, the architect for a U.S. embassy must be an American firm with "numerous security clearances".[25]
In November 2009, the U.S. government conditionally agreed to sell the lease of the Grosvenor Square Chancery Building to
On 23 February 2010, the U.S. government announced that a team led by the firm of KieranTimberlake had won the competition to design the new embassy building and surrounding green spaces.[31] The winning design resembles a crystalline cube, with a semi-circular pond on one side (called a "moat" by The Times)[32] and surrounded by extensive public green spaces[33] and the Embassy Gardens housing development.
Ground was broken on 13 November 2013, and the building opened to the public on 13 December 2017.[34][35] US President Donald Trump had been expected to visit in February 2018 to undertake the official opening of the new embassy but, in January 2018, announced he would not make the trip. Trump publicly criticized the cost of the new embassy and its location, as well as the apparent price received for the sale of the lease of the building in Grosvenor Square, blaming the administration of his predecessor, Barack Obama, for making what he referred to as a "bad deal".[36] However, the decision to move the embassy was made before the Obama administration.[37]
Mission leaders
Ambassador
Other diplomatic staff
- Deputy Chief of Mission, Matthew Palmer
- Consul GeneralBelfast, Paul Narain
- Consul GeneralEdinburgh, Jack Hillmeyer
Embassy sections
- Consular Section
- American Citizen Services
- Visa Services
- United States Commercial Service
- Liaison Office to European Bank for Reconstruction and Development
- Liaison Office to
- Defense Attaché
- Foreign Agricultural Service
- U.S. Customs and Border Protection
- Public Affairs
- Office of Defense Cooperation
- Department of Homeland Security(Immigration)
There are also American
Previous embassy chancery locations
- Great Cumberland Place
- Piccadilly
- 98 Portland Place (1863–1866)
- 123 Victoria Street in Westminster (1883–1893) (1893–1912)
- 4 Grosvenor Gardens (1912–1938)
- 1 Grosvenor Square (1938–1960)
- London Chancery Building in Grosvenor Square (1960–2018)
See also
- United Kingdom–United States relations
- United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom
- Winfield House – the official residence of the United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom
References
- ^ "The London Diplomatic List" (PDF). 14 December 2013. Archived from the original (PDF) on 11 December 2013.
- ^ "US embassy moving to south London". BBC News. 2 October 2008. Retrieved 27 December 2013.
- ^ McKenzie, Sheila (16 January 2018). "Billion dollar US embassy opens in London". CNN. Retrieved 18 January 2018.
- ^ [1]U.S. Embassy London
- ISBN 0747809402), p. 53.
- ISBN 1137295570), p. 2.
- ^ a b Thomas, Daniel (12 January 2018). "Bad deal! Trump's nose for property piques London". Financial Times. Retrieved 6 July 2018.
- ^ "The American Embassy London Chancery Building". US Embassy and Consulates in the United Kingdom. 30 January 2015. Retrieved 21 January 2017.
- ^ "US embassy moving to south London". BBC News. 2 October 2008. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
- ^ Historic England. "United States of America Embassy (Grade II) (1393496)". National Heritage List for England. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
- ^ Sherwin, Adam (23 October 2009). "US sale plan spoilt as its London embassy is listed". The Times. London. Retrieved 4 November 2009.(subscription required)
- ^ T.A. (26 September 2017). "The American embassy building in London is a modernist classic". The Economist.
- ^ "The Chancery Rosewood | Rosewood Hotels & Resorts".
- ^ "On This Day – 17 March – 1968: Anti-Vietnam demo turns violent". BBC News. 2008. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
- ^ "On This Day – 17 March – 1968: Police clash with anti-war protesters". BBC News. 2008. Retrieved 2 January 2015.
- ^ "George Floyd death: Thousands gather outside US embassy in anti-racism protest". Sky News.
- ^ Topping, Alexandra; Sabbagh, Dan; Carrell, Severin (7 June 2020). "Mass anti-racism protests take place in cities across the UK". The Guardian.
- ^ "Thousands turn out for UK anti-racism protests". BBC News. 7 June 2020.
- ^ Whitaker, Raymond; Hetland, Jarle; Carrell, Severin (1 September 2002). "Hijack suspect had flight training in US". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on 1 October 2007. Retrieved 27 December 2006.
- ^ "Sweden drops hijack inquiry". BBC News. 30 October 2002. Retrieved 27 December 2006.
- ^ "US 'eyed royal palace'". BBC News. 17 August 2003. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
- ^ "US Embassy bids for Chelsea Barracks". The Times. 21 February 2007. Retrieved 27 May 2011.
- ]
- ^ "U.S. Takes First Steps Toward Embassy Relocation" (Press release). Embassy of the United States in London. 2 October 2008. Archived from the original on 27 January 2010. Retrieved 4 November 2009.
- ^ a b c "Department of State Selects Final Architectural Firms To Prepare Designs for the New London Embassy" (Press release). Embassy of the United States in London. 10 March 2009. Archived from the original on 3 August 2009. Retrieved 15 December 2009.
- ^ O'Connor, Rebecca (3 November 2009). "Qataris buy US Embassy building in London". The Times. London. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
- ^ Bourke, Chris (3 November 2009). "U.S. Embassy Building in London Sold to Qatari Diar". Bloomberg. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
- ^ "National Heritage List". English Heritage. Archived from the original on 4 January 2015. Retrieved 22 July 2011.
- ^ "US embassy sold to Qatari group". BBC News. 3 November 2009. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
- ^ Farrell, Sean (16 November 2016). "Qatar wins approval to turn US embassy in London into hotel". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 November 2016.
- ^ Kennicott, Philip (24 February 2010). "KieranTimberlake chosen to build 'modern, open' U.S. Embassy in London". The Washington Post. Retrieved 1 May 2010.
- ^ Philp, Catherine (24 February 2010). "US diplomats add a moat to their expenses at $1bn London embassy". Times Online. Retrieved 28 September 2014.
- ^ "New U.S. Embassy in London". KieranTimberlake ISO. 23 February 2010. Archived from the original on 18 November 2010. Retrieved 9 November 2010.
- ^ "U.S. Mission Breaks Ground for New Embassy in London". U.S. Department of State. Archived from the original on 1 September 2014.
- ^ Gray, Melissa (3 November 2009). "Qatari firm buys U.S. Embassy building in London". CNN. Retrieved 3 November 2009.
- ^ "Donald Trump cancels February visit to UK". BBC News. 12 January 2018. Retrieved 12 January 2018.
- ^ "Skeptics rebuttal of Trump claims". skeptics.stackexchange.com. 12 January 2018. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
- ^ "Ambassador". U.S. Embassy & Consulates in the United Kingdom. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
External links
- Embassy of the United States – London
- Building the new Embassy of the United States in Nine Elms Archived 2 February 2018 at the Wayback Machine
- US Commercial Service at the US Embassy, London
- BBC News – "1968: Anti-Vietnam demo turns violent"
- Former Embassy of the United States building at 30 Grosvenor Square