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John Foster Dulles Facts

John Foster Dulles Facts
John Foster Dulles was American diplomat and politician who was an important figure in the early years of the Cold War. Dulles served as Secretary of State for President Dwight Eisenhower from 1953 to 1959, playing an influential role in the formulation of the Eisenhower Doctrine and the Domino Theory. Dulles was a staunch anti-communist and also a firm believer of using the American military, intelligence, and diplomacy to further the government's interest around the world. Dulles was born on February 25, 1888 in Washington, D.C. to Allen Macy and Edith Dulles. He grew up in New York state, attended Princeton University for his undergraduate studies, and George Washington University Law School for his law degree. Dulles married his wife Janet in 1912 and the couple would three children. After graduating from law school, Dulles practiced law for a time with a private law firm, but entered military service during World War I and worked with and for the government from that point on in his life.
Interesting John Foster Dulles Facts:
Many of Dulles' family members were highly connected in the United States government: his maternal grandfather, John W. Foster, was Secretary of State under President Benjamin Harrison, his uncle Robert Lansing was Secretary of State under President Woodrow Wilson, and his brother Allen was director of the CIA under President Eisenhower.
During World War I Dulles traveled throughout Central America under the guise of work for his law firm, but he was really working with Robert Lansing to support anti-German sentiment in the region.
Although a Republican, Dulles served under Democrat President Woodrow Wilson as legal consul for the United States' delegation at the Versailles Peace Conference.
He was said to have been among the faction at the Versailles Conference that advocated for a less harsh peace for Germany and helped write the Dawes Plan, which alleviated Germany's reparations.
Dulles was raised a Presbyterian was a deeply religious person throughout his life.
He served as the foreign policy advisor on Governor Thomas Dewey's failed 1944 and 1948 presidential campaigns.
Dulles was a strong advocate for the creation of the Jewish state of Israel
In his 1950 book War or Peace, Dulles laid out his Cold War strategy of "containment."
Although Dulles opposed communist regimes and movements throughout the world, he advocated for the French withdrawal from Indochina/Vietnam during the 1950s.
During his stint as Secretary of State, Dulles organized may international anti-communist alliance, including the Southeast Asian Treaty Organization (SEATO).
Dulles and his brother were behind the 1954 military coup in Guatemala. Dulles and his brother had extensive business contacts the small Central American country and feared the democratically elected president was becoming too close to communist regimes.
Dulles died on May 24, 1959 from colon cancer in the District of Columbia at the age of seventy-one. He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery in Virginia.
Dulles International Airport in Virginia is named after him.


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