{{Short description|British diplomat (1908–1990)}} {{otherpeople|Paul Gray}} {{Use dmy dates|date=November 2025}} {{Infobox officeholder | name = Sir Paul Grey | office1 = British Ambassador to Switzerland | predecessor1 = Sir William Montagu-Pollock | successor1 = Sir Robert Isaacson | term_start1 = 1960 | term_end1 = 1964 | office2 = British Ambassador to Czechoslovakia | term_start2 = 1957 | term_end2 = 1960 | successor2 = Sir Cecil Parrott | predecessor2 = Sir Clinton Pelham | birth_date = 2 December 1908 | death_date = 15 December 1990 (aged 82) | children = 3 | alma_mater = Christ Church, Oxford | occupation = Diplomat and civil servant | honorific_suffix = KCMG | birth_place = Lahore }}

'''Sir Paul Francis Grey''' (2 December 1908 – 15 December 1990) was a British diplomat who served as ambassador to Czechoslovakia from 1957 to 1960 and ambassador to Switzerland from 1960 to 1964.

== Early life and education ==

Grey was born on 2 December 1908 in Lahore, the son of Lt-Col Arthur Grey who was a barrister there, and Teresa née Alleyne. He was a distant relative of Edward Grey, the Foreign Secretary. He was educated at Charterhouse School and Christ Church, Oxford.<ref name=":0">{{Cite news |date=19 December 1990 |title=Sir Paul Grey |work=The Times |pages=14}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |url=http://archive.org/details/whowaswho19811990008unse |title=Who was who 1981-1990 : a companion to Who's who |date=1991 |publisher=London : A. & C. Black |others=Internet Archive |isbn=978-0-7136-3336-8 |pages=309}}</ref>

== Career ==

Grey entered the Diplomatic Service in 1933,<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=33993 |date=7 November 1933 |page=7201 }}</ref> and his first posting was to Rome as third secretary in 1935. During the War, he worked at the Foreign Office until 1944 when he was sent as first secretary to Rio de Janeiro. In 1945, he served at The Hague as chargé d'affaires reopening the British Embassy there, and from 1947 to 1949 he was head of the South-East Asia Department at the Foreign Office. From 1949 to 1951, he was counsellor at Lisbon and then minister at Moscow from 1951 to 1954 before he returned to the Foreign Office as assistant under-secretary, serving from 1954 to 1957.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2">{{Cite book |last=Colin Mackie |url=http://archive.org/details/directorybritishdiplomats-mackie-pt1 |title=A Directory of British Diplomats [2013] |date=2013 |pages=213}}</ref>

Grey then served as ambassador to Czechoslovakia from 1957 to 1960<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=41200 |date=11 October 1957 |page=5919 }}</ref> and ambassador to Switzerland from 1960 to 1964.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=42346 |date=5 May 1961 |page=3340 }}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" /><ref name=":2" />

After his retirement to England, Grey was engaged in a wide range of charitable work as a member of the Catholic Union and as a Knight of Malta.<ref name=":0" />

== Personal life and death ==

Grey married Agnes Mary Weld-Blundell in 1936 and they had three sons.<ref name=":0" /><ref name=":1" />

Grey died on 15 December 1990, aged 82.<ref name=":0" />

== Honours ==

Grey was appointed Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in the 1951 Birthday Honours,<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=39243 |date=7 June 1951 |page=3065 |supp=y }}</ref> and promoted to Knight Commander (KCMG) in the 1963 New Year Honours.<ref>{{London Gazette |issue=42870 |date=1 January 1963 |page=5 |supp=y }}</ref>

== See also ==

* Czech Republic–United Kingdom relations * Switzerland–United Kingdom relations

== References == {{Reflist}}

== External links == * {{NPG name|134065|Sir Paul Francis Grey}}

{{s-start}} {{s-dip}} {{s-bef |before=Sir Clinton Pelham}} {{s-ttl |title = British Ambassador to Czechoslovakia |years=1957–1960}} {{s-aft |after =Sir Cecil Parrott}}

{{s-bef |before=Sir William Montagu-Pollock}} {{s-ttl |title =British Ambassador to Switzerland|years=1960–1964}} {{s-aft |after =Sir Robert Isaacson}} {{s-end}}

{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grey, Paul Francis}}

Category:1908 births Category:1990 deaths Category:Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford Category:20th-century British diplomats Category:Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Category:Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Category:Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Switzerland Category:Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Czechoslovakia Category:People educated at Charterhouse School