Which Secretary of State (Foreign Minister) are you most closely connected to?

Question

US Secretary of State Madeleine Albright passed away on March 23, so we're featuring her and others who have held the role of Secretary of State (or Foreign Minister, as it is called in some countries) in the Connection Finder this week.

Featured alongside her are:

• Sir Garfield Barwick, Minister of External Affairs, Australia
• Julie Bishop, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Australia
• Helen Clark, Minister of Foreign Affairs, New Zealand
• Thomas Cromwell, Principal Secretary to the King, England
• Dag Hammarskjöld, Cabinet Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign of Affairs, Sweden
• Cordell Hull, Secretary of State, USA
• Thomas Jefferson, Secretary of State, USA
• Julia LaMarsh, Secretary of State, Canada
• Colin Powell, Secretary of State, USA
• Bernhard von Bülow, State Secretary for Foreign Affairs, Germany

Which one is most closely connected to you? If you're one of the 25.5 million of us who are connected to each other on our big tree you can check with the Connection Finder.

You can check for shared ancestors with the Relationship Finder. Are you a cousin to any of them? Your Relationship Finder Quick Links page (see your profile pull-down menu under "Relationships") has quick links for several notable groups.

Special feature: Check out how you're connected to other notables by using the green MyConnections button in the upper right hand corner of the category page. Browse related categories like US Secretaries of State, Australia Notables in Government, and Diplomats.

Let us know how you're related below! If you want to share your connection on social media with cousins and friends, click the "get shareable image" below the results, e.g. Madeleine Albright and Thomas Jefferson. Then just upload it along with the URL of your direct connection. (Please refrain from sharing your connection on the featured profiles themselves, though. It clutters conversations on research and collaboration. Thanks!)

Help us with next week's feature: Candy Makers. Help us choose and improve profiles for it.

Comments

Thank you for including Judy LaMarsh!

Answer 1

I am 17* from Bernhart Von Bulow http://[[Von_Bülow-177|Bernhard Heinrich Martin Karl von Bülow (1849-1929)]] and 18* from Thomas Jefferson https://www.wikitree.com/wiki/Jefferson-1

Answer 2

I am most closely connected to Julie Bishop at 14 degrees. This is the closest I have ever been to a featured profile. Her 1st cousin 3x removed was married to my 1st cousin 4x removed.

Answer 3

Thomas Cromwell (not that Cromwell) and I are very distant cousins. The Lord Protector was Thomas' second great grand nephew.

Dag Hammarskjöld - 22nd cousins, 8x removed

Cordell Hull - 21st cousins, 8x removed (through King John)

Thomas Jefferson - 16th cousins 11 times removed

Usually I sort with the closest connection first, but this week, the connection order is farthest first. 

Answer 4

• 15 degrees to Thomas Jefferson (1743 - 1826) - 9th Cousin 8 times removed (Uncertain)
• 18 degrees to Thomas Cromwell KG PC (abt. 1485 - 1540) - 9th Cousin 17 times removed
• 19 degrees to Cordell Hull (1871 - 1955) - 20th Cousin 4 times removed
• 22 degrees to Marie Jana (Korbelová) Albright (1937 - 2022)
• 22 degrees to Garfield Edward John Barwick AK GCMG QC (1903 - 1997)
• 25 degrees to Julia Verlyn LaMarsh (1924 - 1980)
• 26 degrees to Bernhard Heinrich Martin Karl von Bülow (1849 - 1929)
• 27 degrees to Helen Clark ONZ SSI PC
• 27 degrees to Colin Luther Powell (1937 - 2021)
• 29 degrees to Julie Bishop LLB AMP
• 29 degrees to Dag Hjalmar Agne Carl  Hammarskjöld (1905 - 1961) - 22nd Cousin  4 times removed

Answer 5

I am closest to:

Thomas Jefferson, 12 x 6 cousin and 15 degrees

Cordell Hull, 7 x 4 cousin and 17 degrees

Thomas Cromwell, 10 x 11 cousin, and 19 degrees 

Answer 6

11 degrees from Bernhard von Bulow, who is my third cousin, four times removed.

Not on the list, but 6 degrees from Christian Gunther von Bernstorff, my fourth great, grandfather, who served as Foreign Minister of Denmark from 1797 to 1810, and as Foreign Minister of Prussia from 1818 to 1832.  His father Andreas Peter von Bernstorff - 7 degrees - was Foreign Minister of Denmark from 1773 to 1780, and from 1787 to 1797.

Comments

They only get on the list if someone nominates them!

Answer 7

Steven is:

22 degrees from Thomas Jefferson

25 degrees from Cordell Hull

26 degrees from Thomas Cromwell

27 degrees from Madeleine Albright

27 degrees from Garfield Barwick

30 degrees from Dag Hammarskjöld

30 degrees from Bernhard von Bülow

31 degrees from Helen Clark

31 degrees from Judy LaMarsh

32 degrees from Colin Powell

33 degrees from Julie Bishop,

and 31 degrees from Claire C on our single family tree.

Answer 8

I am most closely connected to Thomas Jefferson at 17 degrees of separation.

• 17 degrees from Thomas Jefferson
  • 5 branches (2-2-1-4-9)
• 20 degrees from Cordell Hull
  • 5 branches (5-3-6-2-5)
• 22 degrees from Thomas Cromwell
  • 5 branches (5-2-8-4-4)
• 24 degrees from Madeleine Albright
  • 5 branches (1-9-3-3-9)
• 25 degrees from Judy LaMarsh
  • 4 branches (5-6-3-12)
• 25 degrees from Bernhard von Bülow
  • 3 branches (12-6-8)
• 26 degrees from Garfield Barwick
  • 5 branches (1-9-3-5-9)
• 28 degrees from Dag Hammarskjöld
  • 5 branches (8-6-8-2-5)
• 28 degrees from Colin Powell
  • 6 branches (7-1-6-6-2-7)
• 30 degrees from Julie Bishop
  • 8 branches (5-3-4-6-3-3-3-4)
• 32 degrees from Helen Clark
  • 7 branches (4-2-2-7-4-9-5)

Answer 9

13 degrees & 3rd cousins 9x removed with Thomas Jefferson

Answer 10

Dag Hammarskjöld - 9th cousins three times removed.

Answer 11

 I am 21 degrees from Madeleine Albright, 26 degrees from Garfield Barwick, 29 degrees from Julie Bishop, 31 degrees from Helen Clark, 19 degrees from Thomas Cromwell is my 12th cousin15x, 30 degrees from Dag Hammarskjöld is my 23rd cousin 3x, 19 degrees from Cordell Hull, 15 degrees from Thomas Jefferson is my 10th cousin 7x, 23 degrees from Judy LaMarsh, 24 degrees from Colin Powell, 25 degrees from Bernhard von Bülow and 30 degrees from Claire C.  

Answer 12

13 degrees to James Monroe - his wife is my 2nd cousin, 7x removed

John Foster Dulles - 7th cousin 4x removed

Robert Lansing - 8th, 3x

Henry Louis Stimson and Elihu Root - 7th, 5x

William Evarts - 6th, 7x

John Kerry - 8th, 5x

Answer 13

It would have been interesting to include the first Jewish US Senator (Louisiana) who was later Secretary of State for the Confederate States of America Judah P. Benjamin.

Among those included above:

Thomas Cromwell - 15th great grand uncle

Dag Hammarskjöld - 17th cousin, 2x removed

Cordell Hull - 20th cousin, 4x removed

Thomas Jefferson - 9th cousin, 8x removed (that requires exploration as he's never before been shown to be related). Edit: a very cursory examination shows "Uncertain" lineage from both sides where connections should very probably be severed rather than marked Uncertain.

Bernard von Bulow - 15th cousin, 5x removed

Answer 14

11 degrees from Thomas Jefferson (1st cousin 8 times removed.)  No wonder that nose looked familiar.

Answer 15

Bernhard Heinrich Martin Karl von Bülow (1849-1929)  15th cousins 4x removed

Cordell Hull (1871-1955)  20th cousins 3x removed

Thomas Cromwell KG PC (abt.1485-1540)  9th cousins 13x removed

Thomas Jefferson (1743-1826)  9th cousins 8x removed

Answer 16

Closest by Connection to Julie Bishop...  all the rest are roughly equivalent to 21st-24th cousins...

• 18 degrees from Julie Bishop
• 21 degrees from Thomas Jefferson (17C4R)
• 21 degrees from Garfield Barwick
• 23 degrees from Cordell Hull (24C)
• 23 degrees from Madeleine Albright
• 23 degrees from Thomas Cromwell (12C11R)
• 24 degrees from Bernhard von Bülow (22C)
• 28 degrees from Judy LaMarsh
• 29 degrees from Helen Clark
• 29 degrees from Claire C
• 30 degrees from Dag Hammarskjöld (24C2R)
• 32 degrees from Colin Powell

Answer 17

My closest is Thomas Jefferson at 14 degrees and he is my 11th cousin 6 times removed. This was a surprise as the last time I checked, we had no connection at all!

Answer 18

Wow! I am related to five Secretaries of State/Foreign Ministers:

1) 16 degrees: Thomas Cromwell; 6th cousins 20xr

2) 17 degrees: Thomas Jefferson; 16th cousins/2xr

3) 21 degrees: Cordell Hull: 20th cousins/2xr

4) 24 degrees: Bernhard von Bulow; 19th cousins/3xr

5) 29 degrees: Dag Hammarskjold; 22nd cousins/3xr

Answer 19

Dag Hammarskjöld is my closest connection-15 degrees.  We are fifth cousins four times removed, and actually have two pairs of most recent common ancestors. 

Answer 20

12 degrees from Thomas Jefferson (his grandson married the daughter of my 5th great grand uncle) and also a cousin--7th cousins, 9 times removed

Other cousins in this group:

Thomas Cromwell--6th cousin, 14 times removed

Cordell Hull--7th cousins-, 3 times removed

Bernhard von Bulow--15th cousin, 4 times removed

Dag Hammarskjold--22nd cousin, twice removed