BIOGRAPHY |
Childhood and Education
George Frost Kennan was born on February 16, 1904, in Milwaukee. His mother died only two months after his birth from a ruptured appendix, which self-admittedly affected him for the rest of his life.[1] George Kennan’s father, Kossuth Kennan, was a serious man whose Calvinist beliefs and upbringing in Milwaukee made him wary of the arts. This later explains George Kennan’s appreciation for Russia through its arts during his time as a diplomat there.[2] Kennan’s first encounters with Russia came from the work of his father’s cousin whom he was named after and who traveled through Siberia and whose writings taught Americans about the exile system there. This was one factor that negatively affected Soviet-US relations.[3] After attending St. John’s Military Academy, Kennan attended Princeton starting in 1921, earning a degree in history with a focus on international relations and European diplomacy.[4]
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Princeton University. Image Courtesy of Princetoniana Museum.
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Early Diplomatic Life
William C. Bullitt, first ambassador to the USSR. Image Courtesy of Wikipedia.
Moscow in 1928. Image Courtesy of the Guardian.
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Following his graduation, George Kennan decided to join the Foreign Service. This path might have been unavailable to him previously because of his poorer finances. However, the Rogers Act passed in 1924 opened the field to a wider array of candidates which allowed Kennan to enter.[5] At this time, Kennan had a sense of Wilsonian liberalism and had supported the idea of the League of Nations. These views prompted his entrance into diplomacy but were not lasting priorities in his foreign affairs approach.[6] Kennan attended the school for the Foreign Service where he improved his German and began to learn Russian.[7] Kennan was assigned to his first post in Geneva in 1927. This was soon followed by a longer position in Hamburg, Germany as vice consul.[8] While in Germany, he craved further education and nearly left the Foreign Service upon his return to the United States but was stopped by a teacher from his previous schooling who instead recommended he go to graduate school in Europe.[9] He studied Russian in Berlin. While studying, he was also sent to Tallin and Riga because of their proximity to Russia which allowed Kennan and his fellow students to observe the Soviet Union more directly.[10] Also during this time, he married his wife, Annelise Sorenson, who was from Norway but whom he had met in Berlin.[11]
In 1933, President Roosevelt sought to improve the relations between the Soviet Union and the United States. William C. Bullitt was selected to be the first ambassador to the USSR. Kennan was introduced to him while temporarily in Washington DC and was invited to come with Bullitt to work at the American embassy in Moscow.[12] Kennan worked in this position for four years, during which time he traveled extensively throughout the USSR, furthering his knowledge.[13] During this time, Kennan and other Americans working at the US embassy noted the changes brought about by Stalin. This solidified to Kennan the challenges that would be imminent with relations between the US and the USSR.[14] Following this position abroad, Kennan worked for a short time in Washington DC again before being assigned to work in Prague.[15] |
Prague and Berlin
Signing of Munich Agreement. Image Courtesy of Wikipedia.
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George Kennan was sent to Prague in September 1938, just days before the Munich Agreement was passed.[16] This was a tumultuous time to be working in Prague as Germany controlled much of Czechoslovakia. Kennan originally supported the Munich Agreement, but his time in Czechoslovakia changed his mind as he realized Hitler’s determination for domination of the region.[17] When the Nazis finally took over Prague in March 1939, Kennan continued his position and shared information with the United States about the happenings in the city.[18] Kennan was moved to Berlin in 1941 with the start of World War II. He was given this position because of his aptitude for German and a likely early appreciation for his writing skills in the State Department.[19] While he opposed Hitler and his regime, Kennan had a deeper concern for the continuance of the German people and country than other Americans at this time.[20] When conflict broke out between the USSR and Germany in 1941, Kennan wrote to the State Department emphasizing the importance of not treating the Soviet Union as an ally, despite their common enemy. This opinion was afterwards proven poor because it would have allowed Germany to expand well beyond where it did.[21] Kennan was first to receive word of Pearl Harbor on December 7, and, after a few days of uncertainty, all Americans were moved to a hotel in Germany outside of Berlin.[22]
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Lisbon and London
George Kennan. Image Courtesy of Wikipedia.
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He was next assigned to Lisbon, where he headed the legation after the previous minister’s death.[23] While serving in Lisbon, Kennan grew increasingly aware of certain lacks in the State Department and the increase in military importance within the government.[24] He wrote multiple documents to the State Department during this time outlining his concerns but there was no discernable impact that came from his writing.[25] It was during this assignment that Kennan began to fully understand the importance of the United States in setting a global example to establish the new world order.[26] This position was followed by a brief career in London working on the European Advisory Commission.[27] His work there further emphasized his concerns about the US government’s abilities to handle post-war challenges.[28]
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Back in Moscow
The ambassador to Moscow at this time was Averell Harriman, and, after meeting Kennan, Harriman offered him a job as minister-counselor which Kennan started in 1944.[29] Kennan was the ideal candidate for the position because of his specialty in Russian affairs.[30] Harriman differed from Kennan in that he, like many in the US, believed in the possibility of Soviet-US relations being sustained after the end of World War II. This changed the longer the two men worked together.[31] He was in the USSR during the problems over Polish control in 1944.[32] Kennan spent his time in Moscow learning more about Soviet strategy, and it was from this position as chargé d’affaires, where he created the Long Telegram which is often seen as his most prominent contribution.
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Averell Harriman in 1965. Image Courtesy of Wikipedia.
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Footnotes:
[1] John Lewis Gaddis, George F. Kennan: An American Life (New York: Penguin, 2012), 5
[2]David Mayers, George Kennan and the Dilemmas of US Foreign Policy (New York: Oxford University Press, 1988), 18.
[3] Mayers, 19
[4] Mayers, 20-22
[5] Mayers, 23
[6] John Lukacs, George Kennan: A Study of Character (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2007), 22
[7] Lukacs, 24
[8] Lukacs, 24
[9] Lukacs, 25-26
[10] Mayers, 24
[11] Lukacs, 29
[12] Mayers, 26
[13] Lukacs, 35
[14] Lukacs, 37
[15] Lukacs, 40
[16] Gaddis, 121
[17] Gaddis, 125
[18] Gaddis, 127
[19] Lukacs, 45
[20] Lukacs, 45-46
[21] Lukacs, 49
[22] Gaddis, 147-148
[23] Gaddis, 163
[24] Lukacs, 53
[25] Lukacs, 54
[26] Gaddis, 163
[27] Gaddis, 166
[28] Gaddis, 169
[29] Lukacs, 55
[30] Gaddis, 172
[31] Lukacs, 56
[32] Lukacs, 59
[1] John Lewis Gaddis, George F. Kennan: An American Life (New York: Penguin, 2012), 5
[2]David Mayers, George Kennan and the Dilemmas of US Foreign Policy (New York: Oxford University Press, 1988), 18.
[3] Mayers, 19
[4] Mayers, 20-22
[5] Mayers, 23
[6] John Lukacs, George Kennan: A Study of Character (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2007), 22
[7] Lukacs, 24
[8] Lukacs, 24
[9] Lukacs, 25-26
[10] Mayers, 24
[11] Lukacs, 29
[12] Mayers, 26
[13] Lukacs, 35
[14] Lukacs, 37
[15] Lukacs, 40
[16] Gaddis, 121
[17] Gaddis, 125
[18] Gaddis, 127
[19] Lukacs, 45
[20] Lukacs, 45-46
[21] Lukacs, 49
[22] Gaddis, 147-148
[23] Gaddis, 163
[24] Lukacs, 53
[25] Lukacs, 54
[26] Gaddis, 163
[27] Gaddis, 166
[28] Gaddis, 169
[29] Lukacs, 55
[30] Gaddis, 172
[31] Lukacs, 56
[32] Lukacs, 59