Straus, Oscar Solomon (1850–1926)

German-born diplomat and author who went to the USA in 1854. In 1887, he was appointed ambassador to Turkey 1887–89, a post he returned to twice 1898–1900, 1909–10. He was appointed a member of the Permanent Court of Arbitration at the Hague in 1902, and was reappointed in 1908, 1912, and 1920. President Theodore Roosevelt appointed him secretary of commerce and labour 1906–09. He wrote many books including Roger Williams, The Pioneer of Religious Liberty (1894) and his own memoirs, Under Four Administrations: From Cleveland to Taft (1922).

He was born in Otterberg, Germany, the brother of Isidor and Nathan Straus. His mother Sara brought the family to join her husband Lazarus in Georgia in 1854. After they moved to New York City in 1866, Oscar studied and practised law until he joined the family's crockery and glassware firm, L Straus & Sons, in 1881 He headed the Progressive ticket as the unsuccessful candidate for governor of New York in 1912. He spoke out consistently for the safety of Russian and European Jews, backed the Zionist movement, and supported President Wilson in his efforts for the League of Nations at Versailles. He gave generously to Jewish charitable and cultural causes.