The Most Famous
DIPLOMATS from Switzerland
This page contains a list of the greatest Swiss Diplomats. The pantheon dataset contains 90 Diplomats, 3 of which were born in Switzerland. This makes Switzerland the birth place of the 11th most number of Diplomats behind Egypt, and Türkiye.
Top 3
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Swiss Diplomats of all time. This list of famous Swiss Diplomats is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity.
1. Carl Jacob Burckhardt (1891 - 1974)
With an HPI of 61.88, Carl Jacob Burckhardt is the most famous Swiss Diplomat. His biography has been translated into 18 different languages on wikipedia.
Carl Jacob Burckhardt (September 10, 1891 – March 3, 1974) was a Swiss diplomat and historian. His career alternated between periods of academic historical research and diplomatic postings; the most prominent of the latter were League of Nations High Commissioner for the Free City of Danzig (1937–39) and President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (1945–48). While serving as High Commissioner for Danzig, Burckhardt sought to avoid escalation of tensions between Nazi Germany and Poland into open military conflict. Unlike his predecessor, who had been removed as High Commissioner at Germany's insistence because he sought to protect Danzig's Jewish community, Burckhardt tried to cultivate relations with the "moderate" Nazi leaders of Danzig while blaming the Polish government for taking too uncompromising a stand against German demands that Danzig be returned to Germany. Those efforts, which had reflected the attitudes of the League, the United Kingdom and France, failed with Germany's invasion of Poland and seizure of Danzig on 1 September 1939. Burckhardt fled Danzig after being told by the Nazi Gauleiter for Danzig that he would be executed if he did not. Burckhardt was a Germanophile with a visceral hatred of Bolshevism. Under his leadership following World War II the ICRC provided documents that helped many high-level Nazis, including Adolf Eichmann and Josef Mengele, escape Europe and evade justice for their war crimes.
2. Prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein (b. 1947)
With an HPI of 59.12, Prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein is the 2nd most famous Swiss Diplomat. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.
Prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein (Nikolaus Ferdinand Maria Josef Raphael; born 24 October 1947) is a Liechtensteiner lawyer, diplomat and prince. He is a younger brother of the reigning prince of Liechtenstein, Hans-Adam II. He was also the non-resident Ambassador of Liechtenstein to the Holy See.
3. Peter Maurer (b. 1956)
With an HPI of 51.21, Peter Maurer is the 3rd most famous Swiss Diplomat. His biography has been translated into 16 different languages.
Peter Maurer (born 1956) is a Swiss diplomat who was the President of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) from 1 July 2012 until October 2022 and is currently President of the Basel Institute on Governance.
People
Pantheon has 3 people classified as Swiss diplomats born between 1891 and 1956. Of these 3, 2 (66.67%) of them are still alive today. The most famous living Swiss diplomats include Prince Nikolaus of Liechtenstein, and Peter Maurer. The most famous deceased Swiss diplomats include Carl Jacob Burckhardt.
