George Bancroft

George Bancroft
Bancroft c. 1860
United States Minister to Germany[a]
In office August 28, 1867 (1867-08-28) – June 30, 1874 (1874-06-30)
President	Andrew Johnson Ulysses S. Grant
Preceded by	Joseph A. Wright
Succeeded by	Bancroft Davis
United States Minister to the United Kingdom
In office November 12, 1846 (1846-11-12) – August 31, 1849 (1849-08-31)
Monarch	Victoria
President	James K. Polk Zachary Taylor
Preceded by	Louis McLane
Succeeded by	Abbott Lawrence
17th United States Secretary of the Navy
In office March 11, 1845 (1845-03-11) – September 9, 1846 (1846-09-09)
President	James K. Polk
Preceded by	John Y. Mason
Succeeded by	John Y. Mason
Personal details
Born	(1800-10-03)October 3, 1800 Worcester, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died	January 17, 1891(1891-01-17) (aged 90) Washington, D.C., U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouses	Sarah Dwight ​ ​ (m. 1827; died 1837)​ Elizabeth Davis Bliss
Education	Harvard University (BA) University of Göttingen (MA, PhD)

George Bancroft (October 3, 1800 – January 17, 1891) was an American historian, statesman and Democratic politician who was prominent in promoting secondary education both in his home state of Massachusetts and at the national and international levels.

During his tenure as U.S. Secretary of the Navy, he established the United States Naval Academy at Annapolis. He was a senior American diplomat in Europe, leading diplomatic missions to Britain and Germany. Among his best-known writings is the magisterial series, History of the United States, from the Discovery of the American Continent.
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