Between Dinner Table and Formal Diplomacy: Ernst van der Beugel as an Unofficial Diplomat for an Atlantic Community

Abstract

This article focuses on the Dutch Atlanticist Ernst van der Beugel (1918–2004) as an ‘unofficial diplomat’ by demonstrating how he remained a prominent actor in Cold War transatlantic relations after he had left the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1959. More specifically this article concentrates on the continuation of Ernst van der Beugel’s ‘diplomatic role’ after 1959 by showing how he was able to continue many activities that were diplomatic in nature in a private capacity, what these activities entailed, why he chose to pursue them and how his unofficial endeavors related to formal transatlantic diplomacy. In addition, it touches upon the question who or what Ernst van der Beugel represented as an ‘unofficial diplomat’.