The Last American Aristocrat (Hardcover)

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Elegantly written and solidly researched, this first biography by Lankford, editor of the Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, vividly evokes one of the last members of the affluent transnational elite who dominated postwar American foreign policy. Born into Old South privilege and married (at first) to the pampered daughter of billionaire Andrew Mellon, Bruce might have settled in as a bon vivant. A taste of pre-Versailles European intrigue as an Army courier, however, proved as heady as the fine wines he imbibed. When a new war loomed, he signed up for clandestine work with the new OSS, after which he was seldom far from the corridors of power. His connections in both political parties led to posts too tempting to turn down. With his multilingual second wife, Evangeline, he moved from assignment to assignment. He presided over the beginnings of the Marshall Plan and the EEC and served at the embassies in Paris, London and Bonn. At 70, Bruce was pressed into the Paris peace talks with North Vietnam. Then he opened the first?but informal?embassy in Beijing, and at 76 went to Brussels as NATO representative. Although much indebted to Bruce's diaries, portions of which Lankford published in 1991, the biography fleshes out the life with a felicity the old patrician would have admired. Photos not seen by PW.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

Lankford, editor of the Virginia Magazine of History and Biography, has written a lively and colorful biography of a Virginia aristocrat who, though born to privilege and married to wealth, became one of an influential group of internationalists who managed American foreign policy during the Cold War. Bruce's early life was self-indulgent in the extreme?his marriage to a Mellon permitted him to refine his taste for the costly and exquisite?but extensive travel set the stage for his diplomatic career. The Office of Strategic Services in World War II gave him a direction to follow until his death; with the exception of a few years as U.S. envoy to China, he was preoccupied with U.S. relations with Europe. As head of the Marshall Plan in France and ambassador to France, West Germany, Great Britain, and NATO, he was a tireless promoter of U.S. engagement in Europe. Lankford's sympathetic portrait, written with verve and style, convincingly portrays Bruce as a man who, though a sybarite, lived a useful life. For general readers.?David B. Mattern, Univ. of Virginia, Charlottesville
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 516 pages
• Publisher: Little, Brown; 1st edition (August 19, 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0316515019
• ISBN-13: 978-0316515016
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,685,069 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The most famous person I had never heard of., October 11, 2002

By A Customer

This biography of David K.E. Bruce provides an interesting look into all the world of the Political heavy weights of the middle 50 years of the 20th century. Bruce managed to cross paths with an amazing number of famous people, from his days as a World War One Messenger to being Head of the US OSS Office in London during WW2, to his being US Ambasador to France, West Germany, the UK, and then US Representative to the People's Republic of China. I found this a great book.

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The passing of the old diplomatic corps, personified, February 7, 2009

By	chefdevergue (Spokane, WA United States) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)

Ignore the review which dismisses this biography as boring & badly-written. The subject matter might not be everyone's cup of tea, but a bad writer Nelson Lankford is not. He writes with style & flair, and makes this book quite an easy read. It is quite a good biography.

As for the subject himself: clearly David Bruce, over 30 years after his death, is no longer on everybody's radar. I wanted to read this book mostly because of my interest in the Mellon family, but what one comes away with is an amazing life's story of a man who seemed to be at the center of nearly everything of note in post-World War II Europe & Asia. Bruce served in a diplomatic capacity under six presidents and occupied 3 of the most important post-war ambassadorial positions. As Lankford describes it, Bruce was "a shining example of the transnational elite that dominated American foreign policy" in the post-war era. He represented a period in American diplomacy which was nearly extinct by the time of JFK, and is virtually unrecognizable today. One can only imagine what he would make of the United States' current diplomatic position in the world.

Lankford does not pull his punches; while he generally has respect for Bruce's qualities as a diplomat, he is quick to point out some of Bruce's more unflattering qualities. In particular I would point to his relations with his children, which could be charitably called indifferent. Career and social standing always took precedence over family for Bruce, which remains beyond my comprehension.

All in all, this was a very informative book. Through Bruce, one can witness the evolution of the diplomatic corps. Bruce came of age just as the United States was beginning to take a more active role on the global stage. The old 19th century diplomats, drawn from the same class and families from which Bruce came, were nonetheless lacking the "transnational" outlook that came with the new generation. The upper class elite continued to be at the forefront of American diplomacy for another generation, but by the time Bruce was winding down his career, the old-school elite were being replaced by a new breed of professional foreign service officer. Bruce finished his career as a relic, albeit a distinguished and influential relic. He bridged three eras as few 20th century diplomats have.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Save Yourself The Time, April 16, 2002

By	John G. Hilliard (Toronto Canada) - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The book should have been called sleep inducing. Blah, basically what we have here is a 350 page boring article about who this guy met in his life - the bigger the name the more pages. I came away after reading half of the book wondering how this thing ever got the green light. You will not learn much here. Save your time and money.