Elihu Root American lawyer, statesman and public figure, Nobel Peace Prize laureate (1912) for his contribution to the development of the institution of international mediation. Date of Birth: 15.02.1845 Country: USA

1. Biography of Elihu Root
2. Minister of Defense and Secretary of State
3. Sentator and International Mediator

Biography of Elihu Root

Elihu Root was an American lawyer, statesman, and public figure. He was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1912 for his contribution to the development of the institution of international mediation. Root graduated with distinction from Hamilton College in 1864 and from the New York University School of Law in 1867. After a year of practice, he founded his own law firm and by the age of 30, he had become a renowned lawyer specializing in corporate law. His professional qualities, analytical mindset, ability to find unconventional solutions, and oratorical skills made him a recognized leader in the American legal community.

Minister of Defense and Secretary of State

In 1899, American President McKinley invited Root to assume the position of Secretary of Defense. This appointment caused a lot of controversy as the expectation was to appoint a military figure rather than a lawyer after the end of the Spanish-American War. Root accepted the offer from the American president, stating that he represented "the most significant of our clients... the United States government." During his tenure from 1899 to 1904, Root implemented a series of structural reforms, including the creation of the General Staff, the establishment of the War College, the expansion of the Military Academy at West Point, and the strengthening of control over the National Guard.

Later, Root prepared a plan for granting formal independence to Cuba, developed a charter project for the Philippines to expand the powers of local administration, and insisted on lifting tariffs on Puerto Rican goods imported into the United States. In 1904, Root returned to legal practice, but in 1905, he received an offer from the new president, Theodore Roosevelt, to assume the position of Secretary of State.

As the head of the U.S. Department of State, Root reformed the consular service by directly subordinating it to the State Department. He was the theorist and practitioner of American "open door" policy in the Far East, concluded a "gentlemen's agreement" with Japan to regulate Japanese immigration to the United States, and strengthened Washington's relations with South American countries. In 1907, he participated in the organization of the Central American Peace Conference in Washington and the creation of the Central American Arbitration Court. As a mediator, Root signed over 40 international treaties, including those related to disputed issues in American-Canadian relations.

Sentator and International Mediator

From 1909 to 1915, Root served as a senator. In this position, he advocated for ideas of international mediation and opposed preferences for American ships passing through the Panama Canal. In 1915, he declined an offer to run for president as the Republican candidate and left the Senate. In 1917, at the request of Woodrow Wilson, Root visited Russia with a special diplomatic mission. He participated in the Versailles Peace Conference and the establishment of the League of Nations. At the Versailles Conference, Root took an intermediate position on the German question, between President Wilson and the "irreconcilables" (such as Clemenceau and partly Lloyd George).

Later, from 1921 to 1922, Root represented the United States at the Washington Naval Conference and became one of the main authors of the "Five-Power Treaty" aimed at limiting the naval fleet of the great powers. Root dedicated a significant part of his life to international mediation. In 1921, at the request of the League of Nations, he developed the statutes of the Permanent Court of International Justice (PCIJ) and then tried to smooth out the tensions between the United States and other countries arising from the U.S. Senate's refusal to ratify the Protocol on U.S. participation in the PCIJ.

Root was the first president of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and participated in the opening of its European branch. He was an idealist and sincerely believed that peace could be achieved through the signing of fair international treaties and the establishment of the institution of international mediation.

His major works include "Addresses on American Government and Citizenship" (1916), "Addresses on International Subjects" (1916), "Latin America and the United States" (1917), "The United States and the War, the Mission to Russia, Political Addresses" (1918), and "Men and Policies" (1925).