Clutterbuck's role in the early days of NATO

In a column written a few years ago, a Canadian journalist noted the diplomatic role of a Clutterbuck in the discussions leading up to the formation of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.

It was a letter delivered by the delightfully named Sir Alexander Clutterbuck, the British high commissioner to Canada, that set things rolling. In that letter, British Prime Minister Clement Atlee formally proposed to [Canada's Prime Minister, William Lyon Mackenzie] King a meeting with the United States on a North Atlantic alliance.

Talks got under way in earnest in Washington in the spring of 1948, and, from that point on, Canada, having done its usual matchmaking gig, moved obediently to the sidelines.

You can read more about Sir Alexander Clutterbuck here, too.