Difference between revisions of "United States Secretary of State"
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− | + | The '''United States Secretary of State''' is the head of the U.S. [[Department of State]]. The Secretary of State is the highest-ranking member of the [[United States Cabinet|President's Cabinet]] in both line of succession and order of precedence. The first Secretary of State was John Jay, under President [[George Washington]]. The current Secretary of State is [[Mike Pompeo]]. | |
− | + | ||
− | The '''United States Secretary of State''' is the head of the U.S. [[Department of State]]. The Secretary of State is the highest ranking member of the [[United States Cabinet|President's Cabinet]] in both line of succession and order of precedence. The first Secretary of State was John Jay, under President [[George Washington]]. The current Secretary of State is [[ | + | |
==History== | ==History== | ||
− | The [[Second Continental Congress]] created the office of Secretary of Foreign Affairs to head the [[Department of State|Department of Foreign Affairs]] on January 13, 1781. Later that year, on July 27, President George Washington signed a law authorizing the executive department. On September | + | The [[Second Continental Congress]] created the office of Secretary of Foreign Affairs to head the [[Department of State|Department of Foreign Affairs]] on January 13, 1781. Later that year, on July 27, President George Washington signed a law authorizing the executive department. On September 15 of the same year, the Department and Secretary of Foreign Affairs were renamed the Department and Secretary of State. |
The title Secretary of State is of British origin. This title was given to senior members of the King's cabinet. | The title Secretary of State is of British origin. This title was given to senior members of the King's cabinet. | ||
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Secretary of State is one of the highest offices a non-national can obtain in the United States government. To date, two non-nationals have served in the position. [[Henry Kissinger]] (1973 - 1977) was born in [[Germany]], while [[Madeleine Albright]] (1997 - 2001) was born in [[Czechoslovakia]]. While in office both of them would have been excluded from the [[Presidential Line of Succession]]. | Secretary of State is one of the highest offices a non-national can obtain in the United States government. To date, two non-nationals have served in the position. [[Henry Kissinger]] (1973 - 1977) was born in [[Germany]], while [[Madeleine Albright]] (1997 - 2001) was born in [[Czechoslovakia]]. While in office both of them would have been excluded from the [[Presidential Line of Succession]]. | ||
− | In recent decades the post has seen a lot of historical "firsts". Albright was the first female Secretary of State. Her successor, [[Colin Powell]], was the first [[African-American]] Secretary, while his successor [[Condoleezza Rice]] was the first African-American woman to hold the post. In 2009 another woman, [[Hillary Rodham Clinton]] took the post. | + | In recent decades the post has seen a lot of historical "firsts". Albright was the first female Secretary of State. Her successor, [[Colin Powell]], was the first [[African-American]] Secretary, while his successor [[Condoleezza Rice]] was the first African-American woman to hold the post. In 2009 another woman, the leftist [[Hillary Rodham Clinton]] took the post. In 2017, former CEO of [[ExxonMobil]], [[Rex Tillerson]] was confirmed to the position. |
==Original Domestic Duties== | ==Original Domestic Duties== | ||
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*Formally accepting notice of the president's resignation - this has only happened once, when President [[Richard Nixon]] resigned in August 1974. | *Formally accepting notice of the president's resignation - this has only happened once, when President [[Richard Nixon]] resigned in August 1974. | ||
*Replies to inquiries | *Replies to inquiries | ||
+ | *Next in line of presidential succession after the [[President pro tempore of the Senate]] | ||
==List of Former Secretaries of State== | ==List of Former Secretaries of State== | ||
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|- | |- | ||
| [[Thomas Jefferson]] | | [[Thomas Jefferson]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1789–1793 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Edmund Randolph]] | | [[Edmund Randolph]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1794–1795 |
|- | |- | ||
| Timothy Pickering | | Timothy Pickering | ||
− | | | + | | 1795–1800 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[John Marshall]] | | [[John Marshall]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1800–1801 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[James Madison]] | | [[James Madison]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1801–1809 |
|- | |- | ||
| Robert Smith | | Robert Smith | ||
− | | | + | | 1809–1811 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[James Monroe]] | | [[James Monroe]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1811–1817 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[John Quincy Adams]] | | [[John Quincy Adams]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1817–1825 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Henry Clay]] | | [[Henry Clay]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1825–1829 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Martin Van Buren]] | | [[Martin Van Buren]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1829–1831 |
|- | |- | ||
| Edward Livingston | | Edward Livingston | ||
− | | | + | | 1831–1833 |
|- | |- | ||
| Louis McLane | | Louis McLane | ||
− | | | + | | 1833–1834 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[John Forsyth]] | | [[John Forsyth]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1834–1841 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Daniel Webster]] | | [[Daniel Webster]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1841–1843, 1850–1852 |
|- | |- | ||
| Abel Parker Upshur | | Abel Parker Upshur | ||
− | | | + | | 1843–1844 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[John C. Calhoun]] | | [[John C. Calhoun]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1844–1845 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[James Buchanan]] | | [[James Buchanan]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1845–1849 |
|- | |- | ||
| John Middleton Clayton | | John Middleton Clayton | ||
− | | | + | | 1849–1850 |
|- | |- | ||
| Edward Everett | | Edward Everett | ||
− | | | + | | 1852–1853 |
|- | |- | ||
| William Learned Marcy | | William Learned Marcy | ||
− | | | + | | 1853–1857 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Lewis Cass]] | | [[Lewis Cass]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1857–1860 |
|- | |- | ||
| Jeremiah Sullivan Black | | Jeremiah Sullivan Black | ||
− | | | + | | 1860–1861 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[William Seward]] | | [[William Seward]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1861–1869 |
|- | |- | ||
| Elihu Benjamin Washburne | | Elihu Benjamin Washburne | ||
Line 104: | Line 103: | ||
|- | |- | ||
| Hamilton Fish | | Hamilton Fish | ||
− | | | + | | 1869–1877 |
|- | |- | ||
| William Maxwell Evarts | | William Maxwell Evarts | ||
− | | | + | | 1877–1881 |
|- | |- | ||
| James Gillespie Blaine | | James Gillespie Blaine | ||
− | | 1881, | + | | 1881, 1889–1892 |
|- | |- | ||
| Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen | | Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen | ||
− | | | + | | 1881–1885 |
|- | |- | ||
| Thomas Francis Bayard | | Thomas Francis Bayard | ||
− | | | + | | 1885–1889 |
|- | |- | ||
| John Watson Foster | | John Watson Foster | ||
− | | | + | | 1892–1893 |
|- | |- | ||
| Walter Quintin Gresham | | Walter Quintin Gresham | ||
− | | | + | | 1893–1895 |
|- | |- | ||
| Richard Olney | | Richard Olney | ||
− | | | + | | 1895–1897 |
|- | |- | ||
| John Sherman | | John Sherman | ||
− | | | + | | 1897–1898 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[William R. Day|William Rufus Day]] | | [[William R. Day|William Rufus Day]] | ||
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|- | |- | ||
| John Hay | | John Hay | ||
− | | | + | | 1898–1905 |
|- | |- | ||
| Elihu Root | | Elihu Root | ||
− | | | + | | 1905–1909 |
|- | |- | ||
| Robert Bacon | | Robert Bacon | ||
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|- | |- | ||
| Philander Chase Knox | | Philander Chase Knox | ||
− | | | + | | 1909–1913 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[William Jennings Bryan]] | | [[William Jennings Bryan]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1913–1915 |
|- | |- | ||
| Robert Lansing | | Robert Lansing | ||
− | | | + | | 1915–1920 |
|- | |- | ||
| Bainbridge Colby | | Bainbridge Colby | ||
− | | | + | | 1920–1921 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Charles Evans Hughes]] | | [[Charles Evans Hughes]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1921–1925 |
|- | |- | ||
| Frank Billings Kellogg | | Frank Billings Kellogg | ||
− | | | + | | 1925–1929 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Henry Stimson|Henry Lewis Stimson]] | | [[Henry Stimson|Henry Lewis Stimson]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1929–1933 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Cordell Hull]] | | [[Cordell Hull]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1933–1944 |
|- | |- | ||
| Edward Rielly Stettinius, Jr. | | Edward Rielly Stettinius, Jr. | ||
− | | | + | | 1944–1945 |
|- | |- | ||
− | | James Francis Byrnes | + | | [[James F. Byrnes|James Francis Byrnes]] |
− | | | + | | 1945–1947 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[George C. Marshall|George Catlett Marshall]] | | [[George C. Marshall|George Catlett Marshall]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1947–1949 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Dean Acheson]] | | [[Dean Acheson]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1949–1953 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[John Foster Dulles]] | | [[John Foster Dulles]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1953–1959 |
|- | |- | ||
| Christian Herter | | Christian Herter | ||
− | | | + | | 1959–1961 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Dean Rusk]] | | [[Dean Rusk]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1961–1969 |
|- | |- | ||
| William Pierce Rogers | | William Pierce Rogers | ||
− | | | + | | 1969–1973 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Henry Kissinger]] | | [[Henry Kissinger]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1973–1977 |
|- | |- | ||
| Cyrus Vance | | Cyrus Vance | ||
− | | | + | | 1977–1980 |
|- | |- | ||
| Edmund Muskie | | Edmund Muskie | ||
− | | | + | | 1980–1981 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Alexander Haig]] | | [[Alexander Haig]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1981–1982 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[George Shultz]] | | [[George Shultz]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1982–1989 |
|- | |- | ||
− | | [[James A. Baker|James Addison Baker III]] | + | | [[James A. Baker III (Secretary of State)|James Addison Baker III]] |
− | | | + | | 1989–1992 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Lawrence Eagleburger]] | | [[Lawrence Eagleburger]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1992–1993 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Warren Christopher]] | | [[Warren Christopher]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1993–1997 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Madeleine Albright]] | | [[Madeleine Albright]] | ||
− | | | + | | 1997–2001 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Colin Powell]] | | [[Colin Powell]] | ||
− | | | + | | 2001–2005 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Condoleezza Rice]] | | [[Condoleezza Rice]] | ||
− | | | + | | 2005–2009 |
|- | |- | ||
| [[Hillary Rodham Clinton]] | | [[Hillary Rodham Clinton]] | ||
− | | | + | | 2009–2013 |
+ | |- | ||
+ | | [[John Kerry]] | ||
+ | | 2013–2017 | ||
+ | |- | ||
+ | | [[Rex Tillerson]] | ||
+ | | 2017–2018 | ||
|} | |} | ||
==References== | ==References== | ||
<references/> | <references/> | ||
− | [[ | + | [[Category:United States Secretaries of State]] |
− | [[ | + | [[Category:Diplomacy]] |
− | [[ | + | [[Category:United States History]] |
Revision as of 06:19, April 17, 2018
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the U.S. Department of State. The Secretary of State is the highest-ranking member of the President's Cabinet in both line of succession and order of precedence. The first Secretary of State was John Jay, under President George Washington. The current Secretary of State is Mike Pompeo.
Contents
History
The Second Continental Congress created the office of Secretary of Foreign Affairs to head the Department of Foreign Affairs on January 13, 1781. Later that year, on July 27, President George Washington signed a law authorizing the executive department. On September 15 of the same year, the Department and Secretary of Foreign Affairs were renamed the Department and Secretary of State.
The title Secretary of State is of British origin. This title was given to senior members of the King's cabinet.
Secretary of State is one of the highest offices a non-national can obtain in the United States government. To date, two non-nationals have served in the position. Henry Kissinger (1973 - 1977) was born in Germany, while Madeleine Albright (1997 - 2001) was born in Czechoslovakia. While in office both of them would have been excluded from the Presidential Line of Succession.
In recent decades the post has seen a lot of historical "firsts". Albright was the first female Secretary of State. Her successor, Colin Powell, was the first African-American Secretary, while his successor Condoleezza Rice was the first African-American woman to hold the post. In 2009 another woman, the leftist Hillary Rodham Clinton took the post. In 2017, former CEO of ExxonMobil, Rex Tillerson was confirmed to the position.
Original Domestic Duties
- Receipt, publication, distribution and preservation of laws of the U.S.
- Custody of the Great Seal of the United States
- Authentication of copies and preparation of commossions of executive branch appointments
- Final custody of the books, papers, and records of the Continental Congress including the Constitution itself and the Declaration of Independence
Current Duties
- Storage and use of the Great Seal of the United States
- Performance of protocol functions for the White House
- Drafting of certain proclamations
- Formally accepting notice of the president's resignation - this has only happened once, when President Richard Nixon resigned in August 1974.
- Replies to inquiries
- Next in line of presidential succession after the President pro tempore of the Senate
List of Former Secretaries of State
Name | Years |
---|---|
Thomas Jefferson | 1789–1793 |
Edmund Randolph | 1794–1795 |
Timothy Pickering | 1795–1800 |
John Marshall | 1800–1801 |
James Madison | 1801–1809 |
Robert Smith | 1809–1811 |
James Monroe | 1811–1817 |
John Quincy Adams | 1817–1825 |
Henry Clay | 1825–1829 |
Martin Van Buren | 1829–1831 |
Edward Livingston | 1831–1833 |
Louis McLane | 1833–1834 |
John Forsyth | 1834–1841 |
Daniel Webster | 1841–1843, 1850–1852 |
Abel Parker Upshur | 1843–1844 |
John C. Calhoun | 1844–1845 |
James Buchanan | 1845–1849 |
John Middleton Clayton | 1849–1850 |
Edward Everett | 1852–1853 |
William Learned Marcy | 1853–1857 |
Lewis Cass | 1857–1860 |
Jeremiah Sullivan Black | 1860–1861 |
William Seward | 1861–1869 |
Elihu Benjamin Washburne | 1869 |
Hamilton Fish | 1869–1877 |
William Maxwell Evarts | 1877–1881 |
James Gillespie Blaine | 1881, 1889–1892 |
Frederick Theodore Frelinghuysen | 1881–1885 |
Thomas Francis Bayard | 1885–1889 |
John Watson Foster | 1892–1893 |
Walter Quintin Gresham | 1893–1895 |
Richard Olney | 1895–1897 |
John Sherman | 1897–1898 |
William Rufus Day | 1898 |
John Hay | 1898–1905 |
Elihu Root | 1905–1909 |
Robert Bacon | 1909 |
Philander Chase Knox | 1909–1913 |
William Jennings Bryan | 1913–1915 |
Robert Lansing | 1915–1920 |
Bainbridge Colby | 1920–1921 |
Charles Evans Hughes | 1921–1925 |
Frank Billings Kellogg | 1925–1929 |
Henry Lewis Stimson | 1929–1933 |
Cordell Hull | 1933–1944 |
Edward Rielly Stettinius, Jr. | 1944–1945 |
James Francis Byrnes | 1945–1947 |
George Catlett Marshall | 1947–1949 |
Dean Acheson | 1949–1953 |
John Foster Dulles | 1953–1959 |
Christian Herter | 1959–1961 |
Dean Rusk | 1961–1969 |
William Pierce Rogers | 1969–1973 |
Henry Kissinger | 1973–1977 |
Cyrus Vance | 1977–1980 |
Edmund Muskie | 1980–1981 |
Alexander Haig | 1981–1982 |
George Shultz | 1982–1989 |
James Addison Baker III | 1989–1992 |
Lawrence Eagleburger | 1992–1993 |
Warren Christopher | 1993–1997 |
Madeleine Albright | 1997–2001 |
Colin Powell | 2001–2005 |
Condoleezza Rice | 2005–2009 |
Hillary Rodham Clinton | 2009–2013 |
John Kerry | 2013–2017 |
Rex Tillerson | 2017–2018 |