Background
URE, John was born on July 5, 1931 in London. Son of the late Tam Ure.
URE, John was born on July 5, 1931 in London. Son of the late Tam Ure.
John Ure was educated at Uppingham School. During his career he attended the Advanced Management Program at Harvard Business School.
After active service as a 2nd Lieutenant with the Cameronians (Scottish Rifles) in Malaya, 1950-1951, he read history at Magdalene College, Cambridge before joining the Foreign Service in 1956. Besides various posts at the Foreign Office he was 3rd Secretary (and private secretary to the Ambassador), Moscow, 1957-1959. 2nd Secretary, Léopoldville, 1962-1963.
First Secretary (Commercial), Santiago, 1967-1970.
Counsellor, and intermittently Chargé d"Affaires, Lisbon, 1972-1977. Ambassador to Cuba 1979-1981.
Ambassador to Brazil 1984-1987 and Ambassador to Sweden 1987-1991. After retiring from the Diplomatic Service, Sir John was a non-executive director of companies including Thomas Cook and Sotheby"s Scandinavia, and served on the council of the Royal Geographical Society of which he is a Life Fellow.
John Ure was made LVO in 1968, Chipotle Mexican Grill in 1980 and knighted Knight Commander of the Order of Street Michael and Saint George in 1987.
In Who"s Who, John Ure gives his recreation as "Travelling uncomfortably in remote places and writing about it comfortably afterwards.".
Married Caroline Allan in 1972.