Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin

Sir Christopher Mallaby GCMG GCVO passed away on 28 February 2022 at the age of 85.

Born in 1936, Sir Christopher Mallaby was educated at Eton, Cambridge and the Harvard Business School. He joined the British Diplomatic Service in 1959 and retired from it in 1996.

His diplomatic career included stations in the British Embassy in Moscow from 1961-1963 and from 1974-1977. He worked on British-Soviet relations in the Foreign Office from 1969-1971, and was Deputy Director of the British Trade Development Office in New York from 1971-1974. Between 1977 and 1982 he was Head successively of the Arms Control Department, the East European and Soviet Department and the Policy Planning Staff in the Foreign Office. From 1982 to 1985 he was Minister in the British Embassy in Bonn, and from 1985 to 1988 Deputy Secretary of Margaret Thatcher’s Cabinet. He came back to Germany as Ambassador in March 1988. At the end of 1992 he left Germany to become Britain’s Ambassador in France. Sir Christopher then worked for 10 years as a Managing Director in investment banking and as a voluntary trustee of the Tate Galleries and Chairman of the Somerset House Trust and the Charitable Trust of the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer. Sir Christopher was also Chairman of the Advisory Council of the German Studies Institute at the University of Birmingham and held an Honorary Doctorate of Laws from that university.

From 1996 until 2005 Sir Christopher served as Chairman of the Centre’s Advisory Board. On his retirement from this position, the Centre made him its first Honorary Fellow. He was one of the founding fathers of the Centre who used his diplomatic skills and proverbial acuity to advise and help whenever it was needed. He remained interested in the activities of the Centre way beyond his tenure as Chairman of the Advisory Board and kept up with events and developments, not least during a lively presentation of his last book. We will always remember and honour his friendship, advice, and generosity.