Francis Bowes Sayre Sr.

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Francis Bowes Sayre Sr.
Francis B Sayre.jpg
Sayre circa 1913
High Commissioner to the Philippines
In office
October 28, 1939 – October 12, 1942
PresidentFranklin Roosevelt
Preceded byWeldon Jones (Acting)
Succeeded byHarold L. Ickes
Personal details
Born(1885-04-30)April 30, 1885
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, U.S.
DiedMarch 29, 1972(1972-03-29) (aged 86)
Washington, DC, U.S.
Resting placeWashington National Cathedral
Spouse(s)
​
​
(m. 1913; died 1933)​
Elizabeth Evans Graves
​
​
(m. 1937)​
Children3, including:
Francis Bowes Sayre Jr.
Alma materWilliams College
Harvard Law School
OccupationLawyer, diplomat, educator

Francis Bowes Sayre Sr. (April 30, 1885 – March 29, 1972) was a professor at Harvard Law School, High Commissioner of the Philippines, and a son-in-law of President Woodrow Wilson.[1]

Biography[]

Study plan for early independence of Philippines. Washington, D.C., April 19, 1937, showing Assistant Secretary of State Francis B. Sayre, (2nd from left) and Philippine President Manuel L. Quezon (3rd from left)

He was born on April 30, 1885. He graduated from Williams College in 1909 and Harvard Law School in 1912. At the start of his career, Sayre worked for Wilfred Grenfell's medical mission in Newfoundland, and as an assistant prosecutor in the office of the New York County District Attorney .

On November 25, 1913, Sayre married Jessie Woodrow Wilson (1887–1933), the daughter of President Woodrow Wilson, in a ceremony at the White House.[1] In 1914 he began work as an assistant to the president of Williams College. He served on the faculty at Harvard Law School from 1917 to 1933, and he received his J.D.S. degree from Harvard in 1918.

He later served as foreign affairs advisor to the government of King Vajiravudh of Siam as successor to American Foreign Affairs Adviser Edward Henry Strobel, Jens Westengard and ;[2] Assistant Secretary of State, High Commissioner of the Philippines, and U.S. representative to the United Nations Trusteeship Council. While Sayre was Siam's foreign affairs advisor, he was appointed by King Prajadhipok as Siam's representative on the Permanent Court of Arbitration at The Hague. He was awarded the Grand Cross of the Crown of Siam, and was the second American advisor to be awarded the title Phya Kalyanamaitri or "the beautiful in friendship." The first American Adviser in Foreign Affairs, also a Harvard law professor, was Edward Henry Strobel.[2]

Sayre's immediate subordinate in his capacity of Assistant Secretary of State was Alger Hiss.[1]

He died on March 29, 1972,[1] and was buried at Washington National Cathedral.

Legacy[]

Sayre and Jessie Wilson Sayre with their son, 1915

Sayre's son, Francis B. Sayre Jr., (1915–2008) was the dean of the National Cathedral in Washington from 1951 until his retirement in 1978.[citation needed] His daughter Eleanor (1916–2001) was an expert on the Spanish painter Goya and served from 1945 to 1984 as a curator at the Boston Museum of Fine Arts.[3]

The Sayre Highway stretching from Cagayan de Oro City to Kabacan, Cotabato in the Philippines was named after him, formerly named Route 3, since he was the one who spearheaded its construction.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c d "Francis B. Sayre Dies at 86. Ex-Commissioner to Philippines". The New York Times. March 30, 1972. Retrieved October 7, 2012. Mr. Sayre's first wife died in 1933. In 1937, he married Mrs. Elizabeth Evans Graves. widow of Ralph Graves of the National Geographic Society. ...
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b Oblas, Peter (1972). "Treaty Revision and the Role of the American Foreign Affairs Adviser 1909-1925" (free). Journal of the Siam Society. Siam Heritage Trust. JSS Vol. 60.1 (digital): images 2–4, 7–9. Retrieved March 17, 2013.
  3. ^ Sorensen, Lee (2010). "Sayre, Eleanor". Art Historians. Durham, North Carolina: Department of Art, Art History, and Visual Studies of Duke University. Archived from the original on June 19, 2018. Retrieved June 26, 2018.

External links[]

Preceded by
Paul V. McNutt 		High Commissioner of the Philippines
1939-1942 		Succeeded by
Paul V. McNutt
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