White, Henry, 1850-1927

John Hay sends President Roosevelt a copy of a letter from Henry White.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1904-05-02

Creator(s)

Hay, John, 1838-1905

William N. Tilchin organizes, explains, and defends the diplomacy of President Theodore Roosevelt. Tilchin lays out the three guiding principles of Roosevelt’s foreign policy: that the United States needs to engage with the global community; that power must be behind the nation’s diplomacy; and the United States should cultivate a close relationship with Great Britain. Tilchin also examines Roosevelt’s style of diplomacy with an emphasis on his personal direction and informality, and he describes the precepts of “big stick diplomacy.” Tilchin also divides Roosevelt’s foreign policy into three periods during his presidency, and he cites specific examples of Roosevelt’s management of various crises and events from the acquisition of the Panama Canal to the voyage of the Great White Fleet. Tilchin highlights Roosevelt’s careful and continual cultivation of a relationship with Great Britain, and he examines Roosevelt’s legacy by looking at the foreign policy undertaken by succeeding administrations in the twentieth century. 

Photographs of Roosevelt as assistant secretary of the navy, army officer, and president appear in the text as does a photograph of Secretary of State George P. Schultz.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

In an excerpt from his book The Roosevelt Family of Sagamore Hill, Hermann Hagedorn examines Theodore Roosevelt’s exercise of personal diplomacy with the representatives of Russia and Japan in his effort to mediate an end to the Russo-Japanese War. Hagedorn details the delicate diplomacy undertaken by Roosevelt at Sagamore Hill and onboard the presidential yacht Mayflower in August 1905 which helped to secure a final peace treaty in Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Hagedorn also describes Roosevelt’s descent in the U.S. Navy’s submarine, the Plunger.

A photograph, a political cartoon, and an illustration depict Roosevelt’s interaction with the envoys from Russia and Japan.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1954

Lyle A. McGeoch examines the state of relations between the United States and Great Britain when Lord Lansdowne served as Britain’s foreign secretary from November 1900 to December 1905. He highlights the negotiations concerning the Hay-Pauncefote treaty, the settlement of a boundary dispute between Canada and the United States, and a crisis stemming from Venezuela’s debt to Great Britain and Germany. McGeogh also looks at how Lansdowne struggled with the appointment of an ambassador to the United States, his difficulty at times in dealing with the personal style of diplomacy employed by President Theodore Roosevelt, and Lansdowne’s recognition of growing American power in the first decade of the twentieth century.

Collection

Theodore Roosevelt Association Journal

Creation Date

1979

Creator(s)

McGeoch, Lyle Archibald

President Roosevelt thanks Margaret Stuyvesant Rutherford White for her Christmas greetings and a book, and hopes to see her and Ambassador Henry White, her husband, the following year.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1909-01-08

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Ambassador to Austria Storer informs President Roosevelt that Francis Augustus MacNutt has denied being dismissed from the American diplomatic and consular service. Although MacNutt was dismissed from the Vatican due to his misdemeanors, he wants to be reinstated there. Storer asks Roosevelt to look into the papers concerning MacNutt’s dismissal and wonders if Secretary of State Elihu Root has known about MacNutt.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905

Creator(s)

Storer, B. (Bellamy), 1847-1922

Maria Longworth Storer tells President Roosevelt that Francis Augustus MacNutt denies that he was dismissed from diplomatic service at the Vatican and has simply gone back to the United States to “rehabilitate himself.” Ambassador to Italy Henry White is friendly with MacNutt, though Storer hopes that Secretary of State Elihu Root can find proof of his dismissal. She also asks if she and her husband can be special envoys to Spain in the event of the wedding of King Alfonso XIII.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-11-24

Creator(s)

Storer, Maria Longworth, 1849-1932

George Otto Trevelyan discusses the books that President Roosevelt sent, and assures him that “trash” is published in England, alongside good old books that are reprinted. He has discovered a newfound love of Cicero. Trevelyan describes his apartment in Rome, and talks about his pleasant experiences with Americans there. He is particularly glad to be near his old friends Ambassador Henry White and his wife.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1905-12-01

Creator(s)

Trevelyan, George Otto, 1838-1928

President Roosevelt writes to Ambassador Reid about ongoing negotiations between France and Germany about Morocco. Beginning with background information about the situation, with Germany wishing to call a conference to reform the government of Morocco—in opposition to France—Roosevelt then includes the text of numerous letters and telegrams in English and French from various parties related to this issue. Roosevelt says he will send copies of this letter to Henry White and George von Lengerke Meyer, and will show it to Secretary of State Elihu Root, as well, but no one else, as it is to be strictly confidential. He closes with some personal remarks to Reid, responding to a previous letter from him, and thanking him for presenting Milla Shonts and her daughters. The envelope appended at the end suggests that this is the copy of the letter which was sent to Meyer.

Collection

Massachusetts Historical Society

Creation Date

1906-04-28

Creator(s)

Roosevelt, Theodore, 1858-1919

Secretary of State Hay sends President Roosevelt a typed extract from a letter written by First Secretary of the London Embassy, Henry White. Hay also sends comments made by Joseph Hodges Choate regarding negotiations to reconcile the Alaskan border dispute between Canada, the United States, and Russia. Choate and White praise work done by United States Commissioners Henry Cabot Lodge, George Turner, and Elihu Root, and the conduct of Lord Alverstone.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1903-10-29

Creator(s)

Hay, John, 1838-1905

Margaret White has been thinking of President Roosevelt often and watching his actions with the deepest interest. She expresses sadness and sympathy at the passing of William McKinley and the tragedy that brought Roosevelt to the presidency. Nevertheless, she thanks God that Roosevelt was able to accept the position at a time when the nation desperately needed good leadership. White believes that he will be a “splendid” president. She also fondly recalls the times their families used to spend together and how their children used to be playmates.

Collection

Library of Congress Manuscript Division

Creation Date

1901-10-22

Creator(s)

White, Margaret Stuyvesant Rutherford, 1857-1916