Pierson Dixon

Sir Pierson John Dixon GCMG CB (13 November 1904 – 22 April 1965) was a British diplomat and writer. He was known to be a firm believer in the value of diplomacy to solve international issues.[1]

Sir Pierson Dixon GCMG CB
Born	Pierson John Dixon 13 November 1904
Died	22 April 1965 (aged 60)
Nationality	British
Alma mater	Pembroke College, Cambridge
Occupation	Diplomat and writer
Spouse(s)	Alexandra Ismene Atchley ​ ​ (m. 1928)​
Children	Piers Dixon (b. 1928) Jennifer Dixon Corinna Dixon

Career

Dixon was the Principal Private Secretary to the Foreign Secretary between 1943 and 1948. He held the post of Ambassador to Czechoslovakia (1948–1950) and he was invested as Knight Commander of the Order of St. Michael and St. George in 1950. He later held the offices of Deputy Under-Secretary of State, Foreign Office (1950–1954) and Permanent Representative of the United Kingdom to the United Nations (1954–1960). He was involved during the Suez Crisis and Hungarian Uprising in 1956. He was invested as a Knight Grand Cross, Order of St. Michael and St. George in 1957 and served as the Ambassador to France between 1960 and 1964.

Personal life

Dixon was educated at Bedford School and Pembroke College, Cambridge. He married Alexandra Ismene Atchley in 1928 in Chelsea;[2] they had a son and two daughters. Their son, Piers, was a Conservative politician who represented Truro between 1970 and 1974 and wrote Double Diploma: The Life of Sir Pierson Dixon (1968).

Jennifer Nina Flora Mary Dixon married Peter Blaker, Baron Blaker,[3] and Ann Anastasia Corinna Helena Dixon married James Hamilton, 4th Baron Hamilton of Dalzell.[4]

Novels

He was an author of historical novels, notably writing about Justinian and Pauline Bonaparte.

• Farewell, Catullus (1953)
• The Glittering Horn: Secret Memoirs of the Court of Justinian (1958)
• Pauline: Napoleon's Favourite Sister (1964)

References

1. Johnson, Edward (25 Jun 2008). "The Diplomats' Diplomat: Sir Pierson Dixon, Ambassador to the United Nations". Contemporary British History. 13 (2): 178–198. doi:10.1080/13619469908581536.
2. "Alexandra Ismene ATCHLEY". wc.rootsweb.com. Pam Mercier. Retrieved 16 August 2018.
3. "Lord Blaker (obituary)". The Telegraph. 7 July 2009. Retrieved 13 August 2018.
4. "James Leslie [Hamilton], 4th Baron Hamilton of Dalzell". cracroftspeerage.co.uk. Cracroft's Peerage. Retrieved 13 August 2018.

Further reading

• N. Piers Ludlow, ‘Dixon, Sir Pierson John (1904–1965)’, Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, Sept 2004; online ed., Jan 2008