Lord Renwick of Clifton (1937-2024)
It is with great sadness that the College notes the death of Honorary Fellow Lord Renwick of Clifton.
Robin Renwick matriculated at ÌÀÍ·ÌõÔ´´ in 1958, where he completed his undergraduate degree in History with first class honours before entering the Foreign Service in 1963. Over the course of a long and distinguished diplomatic career, he was posted to countries including Senegal, India, France, Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), South Africa, and the United States. He was elected to an Honorary Fellowship at Jesus in 1992.
Lord Renwick served as Britain’s Ambassador to South Africa from 1987 to 1991, playing a notable role in the negotiations to end apartheid. His final diplomatic posting was to Washington, D.C. as Britain’s Ambassador to the United States from 1991 to 1995. He wrote and published several books about his professional experiences, including The End of Apartheid: Diary of a Revolution (2015) based on his diaries from his posting to South Africa and A True Statesman: George H W Bush and the ‘Indispensable Nation’, published last year.
After retiring from diplomatic service, Lord Renwick advised Prime Minister Tony Blair on foreign policy. He was appointed a Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG in 1980 and was promoted to Knight Commander in 1989. In 1997, he received a life peerage as Baron Renwick of Clifton.
