The Transnational Networks of Diplomats’ Wives

Madame Wellington Koo and V. K. Wellington Koo, Ascot 1921.

At the end of the nineteenth century and at the beginning of the twentieth century, China could be seen to enter the international arena with the establishment of diplomatic relations with foreign powers and the development of a professional diplomatic corps. The most prominent and celebrated diplomat in the Republican era of China was V. K. Wellington Koo, whose accomplishments were recognised both nationally and internationally. His wife, Madame Wellington Koo, would prove to possess great skills in her role as a diplomat’s wife. She was able to establish transnational networks of unofficial character through the diplomatic corps and her engagements with elite social circles. Yet, neither she, nor Wellington Koo were solely responsible for China’s ability to successfully compete on the world arena. Rather, such achievements were fostered through connections and exchanges born out of engagement with the world.

The Celestial Kingdom of China had remained more or less isolated from the rest of the world until the middle of the nineteenth century. As a result, this ancient civilisation was far behind the foreign powers in terms of modernity and globalisation. Its people had not entered international politics, nor was there any formal diplomatic establishments between China and other nations. In 1894, this changed due to China’s defeat in the First Sino-Japanese War. The defeat became the evidence of the Chinese inability to defend itself against foreign aggression. Consequently, various countries shifted their focus to China with the intent to carve a piece for themselves. To save China, diplomacy became the most important weapon to regain its sovereignty, as well as improve the kingdom’s status on the global arena.

On the day of their marriage at the Legation in Brussels, V. K. Wellington Koo informed Madame Wellington Koo that they needed to take the night train to Geneva. As head of the Chinese delegation, Wellington Koo was to be present at the official opening of the League of Nations the following day. Thus, she was immediately thrust into the diplomatic world. At the beginning, she expressed that she had little knowledge of international politics and diplomacy, or the League of Nations for that matter.

In the excitement of her new life, Madame Wellington Koo was beginning to realise the heavy responsibility she had taken on at such a young age. As the wife of the Head of the Chinese delegation, she was required to entertain and be entertained by some of the most important personages in Europe. Her responsibilities, which had appeared easy in a previous naive state, would soon prove to be rather tricky to master. Her early success, Madame Wellington Koo admitted, was largely due to the assistance of Wellington Koo’s secretary, Mr. Yang. When it was her time to entertain, he would make suggestions on which guests to invite, as well as explain the importance of seating and how it could change the outcome of such gatherings.

The entertainment of informal social events, such as luncheons, dinners and receptions, became a means of establishing friendly relationships with influential people. The more casual atmosphere of such gatherings, as well as the addition of alcoholic beverages and food, made these perfect opportunities for networking. The guest list made out the basis of which relations were to be established, and therefore, the hostess’ decision of who was to attend, was based on various motives. Though Madame Wellington Koo was not aware in the beginning, half of the diplomatic life and work took place at these social gatherings.

Her entrance into London’s high society was one of the opening parties of London’s social season. She had difficulties in separating the various personalities attending, and how to keep a cordial conversation without being overly friendly. But most importantly, she had to be cautious and exercise proper manners towards the members of the corps, for precedence was determined by seniority. She risked offending the high-ranking diplomats, as well as their wives, without the correct conduct.

In 1921, the King and Queen of England announced a court ball at Buckingham Palace, which was to be the first since the end of the First World War. The news caused a sensation in the high society of London, to which Madame Wellington Koo ordered a lavish gown. However, it proved rather difficult for her husband to find a suitable attire. This was to be his first court ball, and due to the lack of experience, he was clueless of what would be befitting for the occasion. Had Madame Wellington Koo also been more experienced, she would have been aware that the issue could easily be solved by the British Department of Protocol. Instead, she took to consulting both her husband’s tailor as well as an American ambassador and his wife to avoid embarrassment.

V. K. Wellington Koo as ambassador of the Republic of China to France, 1936.

The diplomatic corps formed a society of their own and within their profession, where a sense of camaraderie emerged between the members of said corps. Although their relations and intimacy were influenced depending on how well their respective nations got along, they were nonetheless interlocked through the shared necessity of exchanging knowledge. Through these networks, Madame Wellington Koo was able to overcome her difficulties and grow in her role as a diplomat’s wife.

In the coming years, Madame Wellington Koo was to become an expert in European social etiquette, a brilliant hostess, as well as a style icon. In due course, she would come to master her craft, to which her husband began to turn to her instead of embassy experts. Her husband relied on her ability to support his political career. Even a small mistake, such as not following the correct dress code, could have considerable negative consequences. The contacts she had made through her networking, and the knowledge she had gained, saved them from embarrassment on several occasions.

Diplomatic life in Beijing was different from that of Europe. Madame Wellington Koo was unfamiliar with Chinese politics, and the responsibilities that followed her husband’s new position as Minister of Foreign Affairs in China. In a sense, she had to start all over again. When they arrived in Beijing in 1922, the Chinese warlord General Wu Pei-fu was the most important figure in China. Wellington Koo found General Wu Pei-fu impressive, and wanted his wife to call on Madame Wu Pei-fu to establish closer relations. She often served as a mediator between her husband and notable people in informal settings, which sometimes would develop into official meetings. Madame Wellington Koo, and many other diplomats’ wives, were pulling the strings behind the scenes. Their networks became extensions for the influence of the diplomat wife, which she could draw upon to better assist her husband and country.

The social and diplomatic protocol in Beijing was far different from the one she had become familiar with in Europe. To make matters more tricky, the Chinese mixed different codes of conduct, meaning that she had to adhere to a double standard of manners. She herself described that the foreign wives and the Chinese wives were quite distant towards each other, something she believed stemmed from the lack of knowledge in foreign languages, culture and protocol. Thus, Madame Wellington Koo made it her mission to bring them together. Since she knew several foreign languages and was well acquainted with western society, she was vastly different from the other Chinese wives, who had little experience and knowledge of the outside world.

Although an old civilisation, China had only recently entered official foreign relations and gained a professional diplomatic corps. Therefore, the country did not have the same experience with western protocol, etiquette and foreign languages. Madame Wellington Koo would therefore come to bridge the East and the West. The use of the networks within the diplomatic corps were also crucial for Madame Wellington Koo to execute her role successfully.

The Republican period in Chinese history is characterised by its international engagements. As the Chinese entered global politics, they also began to operate across national borders. By studying the life of a Chinese diplomat’s wife, we are able to uncover the networks in which these wives existed, acted and interacted. The networks encouraged an exchange of knowledge, ideas, protocol, dress code and rules of etiquette. They were also mediums of passing on intelligence. The women learned from each other to better represent and perform for their countries, and managed to form a sense of solidarity and camaraderie within the limits of their countries standing with each other.

Yours Truly,

The Lady of the Moon

Further Reading

Clements, Jonathan. Wellington Koo, China. London: Haus Publishing, 2008.

Craft, Stephen G. V.K. Wellington Koo and the Emergence of Modern China. London: University Press of Kentucky, 2004.

Finnane, Antonia. Changing Clothes in China: Fashion, History, Nation. London: Hurst & Company, 2007.

Koo, Hui-lan and Mary Van Rensselaer Thayer. Hui-Lan Koo [Madame Wellington Koo]: An Autobiography as Told to Mary van Rensselaer Thayer. New York: Dial Press, 1943.

Koo, Hui-lan, Wellington Koo, and Isabella Taves. No Feast Lasts Forever. New York: Quadrangle-The New York Times Book Co, 1975.

Koo, V. K. Wellington. The Status of Aliens in China. PhD Diss., Columbia University, 1912. 

Kirby, William C. “The Internationalization of China: Foreign Relations At Home and Abroad in the Republican Era.” The China Quarterly 150 (1997): 433–58. https://doi.org/10.1017/S0305741000052541.

Liu, Xiaoyuan. Recast All under Heaven: Revolution, War, Diplomacy, and Frontier China in the 20th Century. New York: Continuum, 2010.

MacMillan, Margaret. Paris 1919: Six Months That Changed the World. London: John Murray, 2001.

Shi, Xia. “‘Madame Wellington Koo’: A Diplomatic Wife and a Peranakan Representing and Socializing for Republican China.” International Journal of Asian Studies 21, no. 1 (2024):109–27. https://doi.org/10.1017/S147959142300027X.

Shi, Xia. The Gendered Politics of Socializing and the Emergence of the “Public Wife” in Late Qing Diplomacy. Research on Women in Modern Chinese History 37 (2021): 139–194.

Xu, Guoqi. China and the Great War: China’s Pursuit of a New National Identity and Internationalization. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2005.