British Consulate-General, Boston

Like its sister posts across the United States, the Consulate serves as a regional outpost for the British Embassy located in Washington, DC. The Boston office was opened during the reestablishment of normal diplomatic relations between the US and UK following the War of 1812.[4] It was tasked with managing British nationals and interests in the former New England colonies, and was upgraded from a standard Consulate to a Consul-General in 1904. Before moving to Cambridge, it occupied offices throughout downtown Boston including the Prudential Tower, 220 Clarendon Street, and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.

Day-to-day operations at the Consulate are divided between personnel working under the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and those serving the Department for International Trade. Foreign Office staff cover press relations, political reporting, cultural affairs, consular services, scientific outreach, and academic consultation. International Trade staff manage trading relationships and business development for New England firms expanding operations to the UK and British firms expanding operations to New England.[2]

The Consulate-General is managed by a Consul General appointed by the Foreign Office to represent the Government of the United Kingdom. The Consulate and its consul ultimately answer to the British Embassy in Washington and the British Ambassador to the United States.[5]

Harriet Cross was British Consul General to New England since Summer 2016 until August 2020. She is the fourth woman to manage the Boston consulate and will be the first consul since 1972 to represent the United Kingdom outside the European Union. Before coming to Boston, she served as Deputy Ambassador at the British Embassy in Yemen. The ongoing conflict there compelled her to organize the evacuation of the Embassy, and she subsequently spent the rest of her posting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.[3]