BOOKS FROM THE LIBRARY OF WILLIAM C. BULLITT AND HIS FAMILY ...

BOOKS FROM THE LIBRARY OF WILLIAM C. BULLITT AND HIS FAMILY William Christian Bullitt (1891-1967) came from a wealthy and prominent Philadelphia family. Working for President Wilson at the 1919 Paris Peace Conference, he was sent on a special mission to Soviet Russia to negotiate diplomatic relations between the US and the Bolshevik regime. The Soviets offered a peace summit to end the Russian Civil War, and when the Allied leaders rejected their proposal Bullitt resigned from Wilson's staff. He later resigned also from the peace commission, denouncing the Treaty of Versailles as ''a tragic mockery of the principle of self-determination''. In 1933 President Roosevelt, a close friend, appointed him the first US ambassador to the Soviet Union. Arriving with high hopes for Soviet-American relations, he was soon disillusioned by his experience of the Soviet leadership. He was recalled in 1936 and was appointed ambassador to France. Fluent in French and an ardent Francophile, Bullitt became a prominent member of French society, while maintaining daily contact with Roosevelt. When in 1940 Germany invaded France and Paris was threatened, the government and diplomatic staff moved to Bordeaux, but Bullitt insisted on remaining in Paris. This angered Roosevelt, who dismissed him, and Bullitt's diplomatic career came to an abrupt end. Originally a liberal and sympathetic towards radical views, Bullitt became a virulent anti-communist, and spent much time in the post-war years writing about its dangers. Bullitt was twice married. His second wife was the feminist, political activist and journalist Louise Bryant (1885-1936), widow of the journalist and communist activist John (Jack) Silas Reed (1887-1920). Bryant and Reed had worked together on various radical social issues, and in 1917 had been in Petrograd in time to cover the Bolshevik revolution. Both had written books about their experiences: Bryant's Six Red Months in Russia and Reed's Ten Days that shook the World. The award-winning 1981 film Reds was based on their tempestuous relationship. Bullitt divorced Louisa Bryant in 1930 on the grounds that she was having a lesbian affair with the artist Gwen Le Gallienne. They had one child, the socialite, philanthropist and horse-breeder Anne Moen Bullitt (1924-2007), who was brought up by her father and accompanied him to Moscow and Paris. In 1956 Bullitt bought for her the 700-acres estate of Palmerstown House Stud in Co. Kildare, where for almost thirty years she ran a highly successful business, training and breeding racehorses. From 1967 to 1969 she was married to Daniel Brewster (1923-2007), representative for Maryland in the House of Representatives from 1959 to 1963 and in the Senate from 1963 to 1969 (Nancy Pelosi served as an intern on his staff); during this time, he was a strong supporter of the Civil Rights Acts of 1960, 1964 and 1968, and spoke on a variety of issues varying from Cuba to the postal service. Limited to 1000 Copies Only. A Rare Edition Wilde (Oscar) The Happy Prince, sm 8vo Riverside, Conn. (The Hillacre Bookhouse) 1912. First Edn., Limited to 1000 Copies, hf. title & title printed in red & black, 34pp., uncut, unopened, orig. grey boards with printed label. A fine copy. A Rare Edition. (1) * Ex Libris, William C. Bullitt, American Ambassador to Russia, and France, with his bookplate.