High Commissioner to the Philippines
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| High Commissioner of the Philippines | |
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| Alto Comisionado de Filipinas Kataas-taasang Komisyonado sa Pilipinas | |
U.S Ambassador to the Philippines | |
The high commissioner to the Philippines was the personal representative of the president of the United States to the Commonwealth of the Philippines during the period 1935–1946. The office was created by the Tydings–McDuffie Act of 1934, which provided for a period of transition from direct American rule to the complete independence of the islands on July 4, 1946. It replaced the office of governor-general of the Philippines, who had direct executive authority. Under the commonwealth, executive power was held by an elected Filipino president. The executive power of the high commissioner was largely ceremonial, and its office is similar to that of an ambassador.
The office of high commissioner was held by:
- Frank Murphy, November 15, 1935 – December 31, 1936
- Weldon Jones, December 31, 1936 – April 26, 1937 (Acting)[1]
- Paul V. McNutt, April 26, 1937 – July 12, 1939
- Weldon Jones, July 12, 1939 – October 28, 1939 (Acting)
- Francis Bowes Sayre Sr., October 28, 1939 – October 12, 1942[2]
- Harold L. Ickes, October 12, 1942 – September 14, 1945 (Secretary of the Interior, assuming functions during Japanese occupation)
- Paul V. McNutt, September 14, 1945 – July 4, 1946
Murphy had previously served as governor-general. Sayre's tenure was interrupted by the
High Commissioner's Residence
With the inauguration of the Philippine Commonwealth, Malacañang Palace was turned over to the president of the Philippines, necessitating a new home for the highest American government official in the Philippines. A new location was found along now-Roxas Boulevard and a High Commissioner's Residence was built. According to the book titled Manila Americans by Lewis Gleeck. "On April 1, 1937, McNutt arrived (in Manila) with Mrs. McNutt and a sixteen-year-old daughter. Since the relinquishment of Malacañang, there had been no official residence for the High Commissioner, so (Paul) McNutt moved into El Nido, the sumptuous Dewey Boulevard residence of Attorney E.A. Perkins...".[3]
On January 2, 1942, as Japanese forces entered the city of
The high commissioner's headquarters today houses the American
The American Residence
The
See also
Notes
- ^ United States Bureau of Insular Affairs (1922). Report of the Chief of the Bureau of Insular Affairs, War Department 1922 (Report). Washington: Government Printing Office.
- ^ "Sayre Arrives, October 28, 1939". The Philippines Free Press Online. October 28, 1939.
- ^ The residence is shown in 1938 in a short film by Andre de la Varre titled Manila, Queen City of the Pacific. A video of the film was uploaded to YouTube on May 6, 2008, by travelfilmarchive.
- ^ Cimatu, Frank (September 2, 2023). "US Ambassador Residence in Baguio opens doors to history buffs on Victory Day". Rappler. Retrieved June 20, 2024.
- ^ Gasingan, Debbie (September 1, 2023). "US Ambassador's Residence in Baguio City to open doors to visitors". Presidential Communications Group. Retrieved June 20, 2024.