Education
Chaplin was educated at Wellington College, an independent school near the village of Crowthorne in Berkshire, followed by Queens’ College, Cambridge, from which he graduated with a Bachelor 1st Class Honours
Chaplin was educated at Wellington College, an independent school near the village of Crowthorne in Berkshire, followed by Queens’ College, Cambridge, from which he graduated with a Bachelor 1st Class Honours
Until January 2011 he served as British ambassador to Italy. Education and Personal Degree in Oriental Studies, in 1973. Married Nicola Helen Fisher.
One son, 2 daughters.
Chaplin headed the Middle East and North Africa department at the Foreign Office in the 80s, notably being briefly detained and assaulted by the Iranian Army of the Guardians of the Islamic Revolution in 1987. Chaplin represented United Kingdom at the Nasiriyah conference, where he declared, in April 2003:
In April 2004, after the Invasion of Iraq, Chaplin was appointed ambassador to the Iraqi Governing Council in occupied Iraq.
Chaplin was one of the witnesses of The Iraq Inquiry. Career highlights
1973 Entered Foreign and Commonwealth Office
1975-1977 Muscat
1977-1978 Brussels
1978-1979 École Nationale d’Administration, Paris
1979-1981 On secondment to Circuit Switched Data as Private Secretary to Lord President of the Council, Leader of the House of Lords
1981-1984 Foreign and Commonwealth Office
1985-1987 Head of Chancery, Tehran
1987-1989 Foreign and Commonwealth Office
1990-1992 On secondment to Price Waterhouse Management Consultants, 1990-1992
1992-1996 Deputy Permanent Representative, UKMIS Geneva
1997-1999 Head, Middle East Department, Foreign and Commonwealth Office
2000-2002 Ambassador to the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan
2002-2004 Director, Middle East and North Africa, Foreign and Commonwealth Office
2004-2005 Ambassador to Iraq
2005-2006 Visiting Fellow, Centre of International Studies, University of Cambridge
2006-2011 Ambassador to Italy
On 1 December 2009, Chaplin gave evidence to The Iraq Inquiry in which he spoke about post-war planning for Iraq.