Franklin's Legacy: Ambassadors and Others of International Diplomatic Rank
Alumni, Faculty, and Trustees of the University of Pennsylvania Who Have Served as Representatives to Foreign Nations and Modern International Organizations

researched, compiled and presented by Scott W. Hawley (B.A., 1992; B.S. in Econ., 1992) in partnership with the University Archives and Records Center published May 2002; updated August 2002

Among Benjamin Franklin's many public services, his role as ambassador and diplomat may have been foremost. As early as 1754, he represented the Province of Pennsylvania at the Albany Congress, where his "Plan of Union" was adopted as the best option for uniting the English colonies in the War against the French and their Indian allies. In 1757, the Provincial Assembly of Pennsylvania appointed Franklin as its representative to the British government and he left Philadelphia for London, where he remained until 1762. The Provincial Assembly soon sent him back to England and this time he remained for thirteen years, returning to America just as the Revolution broke out at Lexington and Concord. He was immediately elected to the Continental Congress and a year later, signed the Declaration of Independence. In September 1776, he became the first official diplomat of the United States of America when Congress appointed him as the U.S. representative to France. He arrived in France in December 1776 and later presented his credentials to the French government. Franklin remained in Paris until 1785, returning to Philadelphia only after successfully negotiating the Treaty of Paris. Franklin therefore served a total of twenty seven years as a diplomat of international rank, a tenure probably unsurpassed by any University of Pennsylvania alumnus, faculty, or Trustee in all the years since that time.

No fewer than thirty six of Franklin's successors at Penn have represented the United States and other sovereign states in diplomatic postings as close as Washington D.C. and as far away as Singapore. Their names, connections with Penn, and respective ambassadorial services follow below.

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