June 2014

house — light and bright,” said Lady Westmacott, reflecting on her favorite aspects of the residence. “It is incredibly well designed to catch as much light on both sides of the house as possible, so even on a dark day here it’s never dismal.” The ambassador said he also enjoys the way the residence captures the natural splendor outside. When hosting an intimate breakfast or lunch, “I love putting a table on the terrace and just looking out the garden at spring or fall,” he said. That same terrace, incidentally, is where King George VI talked with American banker J.P. Morgan over a spot of tea in 1939. Inside, the ambassador’s favorite room is the clubby library, “which has got wonderful wood-paneled walls and a tremendous sense of proportion…. It’s just a rather inspiring place to sit and work,” he said, citing a portrait of Prime Minister Winston Churchill, who reportedly relished visiting the home, that hangs over the fireplace (on a nearby coffee table sits a toy Rolls Royce that belongs to Westmacott). Of course, the British Residence isn’t the only storied mission in Washington that boasts priceless art and artifacts — and Seldon’s book isn’t the only game in town. As the Washington Post recently noted, embassy coffee-table books seem to be all the rage. Italy, Turkey and France have all had books written on their historic missions, while the 2003 “Embassy Residences of Washington, D.C.” provides a stunning overview of more than 40 missions (co-author Jane C. Loeffler also wrote “The Architecture of Diplomacy: Building America’s Embassies” in 1998). But the United States and United Kingdom are bound by a shared history unlike any other, reminders of which are peppered throughout the residence located a stone’s throw from the U.S. vice president’s home. In the library, for instance, there’s a painting by U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower of Viscount Montgomery of Alamein, who was Eisenhower’s deputy during the 1944 invasion of Normandy. “Given that Gen. Eisenhower and Gen. Montgomery didn’t get on,” Westmacott pointed out, “it’s rather extraordinary to have a painting done by the president while he was president

The British Residence’s drawing room features carved giltwood console tables and sumptuous gold-and-red sash window draping.

Margaret Thatcher and Ronald Reagan in the 1980s. And like today, even the finest embassies cannot escape fiscal realities. “Some things never change,” the ambassador observed, recalling the various hiccups during the building’s construction. “The accountants looked at the bill and said,‘Oh my God, it’s going to be over-budget,’ so the instruction arrived to lop 10 percent off the cost of it.” As a result, cheaper materials were brought in to Photo: © Eric Sander replace the pricey marble intended for the columns … which hangs on my wall as a reminder of the special rela- and floor tiles. Knock on those “fake” marble columns in the sweeping ballroom and you’ll still hear a distinct echo. tionship from the Second World War.” “So that’s really a rather wonderful reminder that public The visual emphasis on that special relationship isn’t surprising considering that the residence was designed to sym- finances have always been difficult,”Westmacott said. Builders may have cut a few corners, but the result was still bolize Britain’s evolving ties with the United States. “The British government decided that it needed to make a hailed as “the finest embassy in the world” by the Washington bold statement about the importance of Washington and its Post, and it continues to exude a rarified luster that transcends relationship with America, recruiting probably the best-known its workman-like purpose. Yet there’s also plenty of quirky charm hidden among these British architect at the time,” the ambassador said. “We had grand embassies in Paris and Germany and so on hallowed halls. Amanda Downes, the British Embassy’s longtime social but this was something that was a coming of age in the relationship and an indication of just how much we had in com- secretary, took reporters on a tour of the hidden gems in the mon, which has been carried through to the present day,” house, including a door that leads to nowhere, opening onto a Westmacott added, noting that America is far and away blank wall lined with hooks. “It’s the most useless cupboard,” Downes said, praising Lutyens’ subtle penchant for humor. Britain’s most important commercial partner. Nearby is an alcove punctuated by a dramatic circular stairOver the years, though, that special relationship has endured its share of ups and downs, a past that is inextricably case and Nigel Hall’s sculpture “Intension Extension.” Downes linked to the residence. When its doors opened in 1930, for said most visitors head directly toward the ballroom and zip example, the embassy may have been fêted as a sign of U.S.- by this little treasure tucked away off the main corridor. Asked to name her favorite space, Downes diplomatically U.K. friendship, but behind the scenes, the State Department was busy drawing up plans for a hypothetical war with Great demurred.“I just love the house,” she said.“It’s got a great feeling. It’s a very friendly house.” Britain and its Empire. From that low point came a long period of close ties that peaked in the early 1960s and were resurrected under Anna Gawel is managing editor of The Washington Diplomat.

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