BRITISH REGRET.

Auckland Star, Volume LXII, Issue 153, 1 July 1931, Page 7

BRITISH REGRET.

Death of German Envoy to St. James , . DR. STHAMER PASSES. (Received 11.30 a.m.) LONDON, June 30. News of the death at Hamburg of Dr. Sthamer, former German Ambassador to Britain, from heart failure at the age of 75, was received with great regret in London, where he wa.s the first representative of the German Republic after the war. On his retirement last year many tributes' were paid to him. Dr. Friedrich Sthamer was a member of an old Hamburg Patrician family. He studied law at Heidelberg and Leipzig, and then took up practice in Hamburg. During the war, in which he lost three sons, he was appointed Civil Governor of Antwerp. In January, 1920, he accepted the post of charge d'affaires in London, and in August was appointed ambassador. „He had a difficult task. The bitterness between the two countries had to be lived down. In this his impassive character and his avoidance of publicity'helped him. He was a dignified figure jn face of great initial ill-will. He and 'his able lieutenants, which included Count Bernstorff, transformed a negative into a positive success. The Locarno Pacts and the conclusion of a new Anglo-German commercial treaty were notable results of the ambassador's work. Such was hie Government's confidence in Dr. Sthamer that he was kept in office eight years after the normal retiring age. He wished to retire early in 1930, but at the personal request of King George he agreed to remain at his post until the end of the London season in August.