Embassy of the United Kingdom, Mexico City

Coordinates:19°25′33″N99°10′03″W/ 19.4258°N 99.1675°W/19.4258; -99.1675
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Embassy of the United Kingdom, Mexico City
Map
LocationMexicoMexico City,Mexico
AddressRio Lerma 71

Col. Cuauhtémoc,
Mexico City,Mexico
Coordinates19°25′33″N99°10′03″W/ 19.4258°N 99.1675°W/19.4258; -99.1675
AmbassadorJon Benjamin
WebsiteBritish Embassy, Mexico City

TheEmbassy of the United KingdominMexico Cityis the chiefdiplomatic missionof theUnited KingdominMexico.The Embassy is located on Rio Lerma 71, in theColonia Cuauhtémocneighbourhood. The current British Ambassador to Mexico is Jon Benjamin.

History[edit]

By 1907, very few countries maintained embassies in a few capitals around the world. The usual form of diplomatic mission was aLegation,headed by aMinisterExtraordinary and Plenipotentiary.At that time the British minister in Mexico was SirReginald Tower.[1]

Since the establishment of diplomaticrelationsbetween Mexico and the United Kingdom, in 1825, Sir Reginald Tower's predecessors had tried unsuccessfully to find a suitable rented premises for the"House of the Legation",as it was then called. In addition, it had to serve as both a house for the minister and offices.[1]

After a series of negotiations, in May 1910 the land inRio Lermato build the Embassy was acquired from John Benjamin Body (representative in Mexico of MessrsS. Pearson and Son).[1]

Shortly thereafter, Charles Grove Johnson, an English architect living in Mexico, submitted his designs to theOffice of WorksinLondon.Construction of the building began in September 1910. The original work included the use ofonyxandmarble,as well as the construction of a ballroom. After surviving theearthquakeof June 7, 1911, the building was visited by the guests of then MinisterThomas Hohler,who were attending a reception for thecoronationofKing George VandQueen Mary.Hohler reported to London: "His Excellency,PresidentPorfirio Díaz,expressed his great satisfaction at entering the first Legation owned and built by a foreign government in Mexico. "[1]

The first of the British ministers to occupy the Legation was SirFrancis Stronge(1911-1913). Even though the furniture had not arrived from London and two rooms were infested withpests,Stronge was very pleased with the house.[1]Not much is known about the history of the Embassy during the period of theMexican Revolution(1910-1920), when the diplomatic relations between the two countries were broken between 1914 and 1925.

The building remained the home of the Minister and offices of the Legation until 1938 when diplomatic relations were broken again as a result of theexpropriationof British interests in theoil industryby PresidentLázaro Cárdenas.After the relations were resumed in 1941, the building was used mainly as offices. In the 1970s and 1980s, expansions were made that allowed more than 100 people to work in the building.[1]

Theearthquakeof September 19, 2017 caused structural damage to the building.[1]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^abcdefg"Adiós, Río Lerma 71".excelsior.mx(in Spanish). 2021.Retrieved22 January2022.

External links[edit]

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