Jill Gallard

Jill Gallard CMG[1] is a British diplomat who took up the post of British Ambassador to Germany in November 2020.[2] Previously she was the British Ambassador to Portugal, director of human resources at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office and deputy political director at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office.[3]

Not to be confused with Julia Gillard.
Her Excellency
Jill Gallard
CMG
British Ambassador to Germany
Assumed office
11 November 2020
MonarchsElizabeth II
Charles III
Prime MinisterBoris Johnson
Liz Truss
Rishi Sunak
Preceded bySir Sebastian Wood
British Ambassador to Portugal
In office
2011–2014
MonarchElizabeth II
Prime MinisterDavid Cameron
Preceded byAlexander Ellis
Succeeded byKirsty Hayes
Personal details
Born
Jill Parkinson

Omagh, Northern Ireland
SpouseDominic Gallard
Children2
Alma materUniversity of Edinburgh

Early life

Born in Omagh, Northern Ireland, and raised in Omagh and County Antrim, Gallard was educated at Ballyclare High School[4] and gained a MA degree in French and Spanish from the University of Edinburgh.[4]

Career

Gallard joined the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) in 1991. She has served at Madrid and Prague and in various posts at the FCO,[1] including at the European Commission in Brussels.[4] She was Ambassador to Portugal from 2011 to 2014[5] and director of human resources at the FCO from 2014 to 2018.[3]

Gallard was appointed CMG in the 2018 Birthday Honours.[6]

From 2018 to 2020 she was deputy political director and director of the Western Balkans and Eastern Mediterranean at the FCO.[4]

In July 2020 Gallard was appointed Ambassador to Germany and took up the position in November.[7] She was the first ever woman to hold the position.[4] In March 2023 she received King Charles III and Queen Camilla on their first outbound state visit.[8]

Personal life

Gallard is married and has two children. She is multilingual.[4]

References
  1. "Gallard, Jill". Who's Who 2018. 1 December 2017.
  2. "Change of Her Majesty's Ambassador to Germany: November 2020" (Press release). Foreign & Commonwealth Office. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 20 July 2020.
  3. "Jill Gallard". gov.uk.
  4. Halliday, Gillian (20 November 2020). "NI woman Jill Gallard is UK's first female envoy to Germany". Belfast Telegraph. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  5. "Our Ambassador". British Embassy Lisbon. 2011. Archived from the original on 24 November 2011.
  6. "No. 62310". The London Gazette (Supplement). 9 June 2018. p. B4.
  7. "Change of Her Majesty's Ambassador to Germany: November 2020" (Press release). GOV.UK. 17 July 2020. Retrieved 2 February 2021.
  8. "State Visit to Germany". royal.uk. 29 March 2023. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
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