This is a list of dignitaries at the state funeral of John F. Kennedy. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22, 1963, in Dallas, Texas, and his state funeral took place on November 25, 1963, in Washington, D.C.
As President Kennedy lay in state, foreign dignitaries—including heads of state and government and members of royal families—started to arrive in Washington to attend the state funeral on Monday. Secretary of State Dean Rusk and other State Department personnel went to both of Washington's commercial airports to personally greet foreign dignitaries.
With so many foreign dignitaires attending the funeral, some law enforcement officials, including MPDC Chief Robert V. Murray, later said that it was the biggest security nightmare they ever faced.
Not since the funeral of Britain's King Edward VII, in 1910, had there been such a large gathering of presidents, prime ministers, and royalty at a state funeral. In all, 220 foreign dignitaries from 92 countries, five international agencies, and the papacy attended the funeral. The dignitaries including 19 heads of state and government and members of royal families. This was the largest gathering of foreign statesmen in the history of the United States.
Foreign delegations
A Country Person Title Afghanistan Assadullah Seraj Ambassador to France Abdelkadir ChanderilAbdelaziz BouteflikaEl Hadj BenallaAmar OuzeganeCherif GuellalAmbassador to the United NationsPresident of the National Assembly Foreign MinisterMinister of StateAmbassador to the United States Carlos Humberto PeretteMiguel Ángel Zavala OrtizIgnacio Ávalos Vice PresidentMinister of Foreign RelationsSecretary of War Alister McMullin President of the Senate Alfons Gorbach Chancellor
B Country Person Title Roland Theodore Symonette Premier-designate BaudouinPaul-Henri SpaakKingMinister of Foreign Affairs Enrique Sánchez de Lozada Ambassador to the United States João Augusto de Araújo CastroAuro de Moura AndradeVitorino FreireAntônio Carlos Konder ReisRoberto de Oliveira Campos Foreign MinisterPresident of the SenateMajority Leader of the SenateMinority Leader of the SenateAmbassador to the United States BulgariaMilko TarabanovDeputy Foreign Minister Léon NdenzakoAmbassador to the United States
C Country Person Title Cambodia Prince Norodom Kantol Prime Minister Benoît Balla-Ondoux Foreign Minister Lester B. PearsonPaul Martin Sr. Prime MinisterSecretary of State for External Affairs Carlos Martínez Sotomayor Representative to the United Nations Tsiang Tingfu Ambassador to the United States Alberto Lleras Camargo Former President Congo-Brazzaville Emmanuel Damongo-Dadet Ambassador to the United States Congo-Léopoldville Jacques Masangu Deputy Premier José Figueres Ferrer Former President Zenon Rossides Ambassador to the United States Jiří Hájek Representative to the United Nations
D Country Person Title Jens Otto Krag Prime Minister
E Country Person Title Neftali Ponce Miranda Foreign Minister Héctor Escobar Serrano Foreign Minister Ethiopia Haile Selassie IRas Andargachew MessaiEskinder DestaTeferawork Kidane-WoldLij Kassa Woldemariam EmperorGovernor of SidamoCommander of the Ethiopian NavyMinister of the PenPresident of Haile Selassie I University
F Country Person Title Veli Merikoski Minister for Foreign Affairs Charles de GaulleMaurice Couve de MurvilleCharles AilleretÉtienne Burin des RoziersPresidentMinister of Foreign AffairsChief of the Defence StaffSecretary General of the President
G Country Person Title Heinrich LübkeLudwig ErhardGerhard SchröderKai-Uwe von HasselWilly Brandt PresidentChancellorMinister of Foreign AffairsMinister of DefenceMayor of West Berlin Miguel A. RibeiroKwesi ArmahAlex Quaison-Sackey Ambassador to the United StatesHigh Commissioner in LondonRepresentative to the United Nations GreeceFredericaSofoklis VenizelosQueen consort (representing the King)Deputy Premier and Foreign Minister Alberto Herrarte GonzálezJosé de Dios Agular Foreign MinisterPrivate Secretary to the Government Saifonlaye DialloLeon MakaAlessane DiohMinister of StatePresident of the National AssemblyMinister of Communications
H Country Person Title Carlet Auguste Ambassador to the United Nations Rev. Egidio Vagnozzi Apostolic Delegate Hungary Péter Mód First Deputy Foreign Minister
I Country Person Title Guðmundur Ívarsson Guðmundsson Foreign Minister Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit Delegate to the United Nations Abdul Haris NasutionSudjarwo Tjondronegoro Minister for Defense and Security AffairsDeputy Foreign Minister Iran Gholam Reza PahlaviAbbas Aram Prince (representing the Shah)Foreign Minister Iraq Ali Haidar SulaimanAmbassador to the United States Éamon de ValeraFrank AikenVivion de Valera PresidentMinister of External AffairsSon of Éamon de Valera Zalman ShazarGolda Meir PresidentForeign Minister Cesare MerzagoraAttilio PiccioniPiero VinciGuerino RobertiEmiliano Scotti President of the SenateForeign MinisterForeign Ministry chef du cabinetAssistant Chief of ProtocolMilitary Counselor to the President Philippe YacéCamille Alliali President of the National AssemblyMinister Delegate for Foreign Affairs
J Country Person Title Alexander BustamantePaul CookJames LloydNoel Crosswell Prime MinisterChief of StaffSecretary of the Ministry of External AffairsChief of Police Hayato IkedaMasayoshi Ōhira Prime MinisterForeign Minister Antone Atallah Foreign Minister
K Country Person Title Park Chung-hee Acting President
L Country Person Title Laos Tiao KhampanSisouk na ChampassakPermanent Representative to the United NationsAmbassador to India Ibrahim AhdabGeorge Hakim Ambassador to the United StatesRepresentative to the United Nations William R. Tolbert, Jr.J. Rudolph Grimes Vice-PresidentSecretary of State Libya Wahbi al-Bouri Representative to the United Nations JeanEugène Schaus Hereditary Grand Duke (representing the Grand Duchess)Foreign Minister
M Country Person Title Madagascar Louis RakotomalalaPermanent Representative to the United Nations R. E. Oumar Sow Representative to the United Nations Manuel Tello Baurraud Secretary of Foreign Affairs Moulay AbdallahAhmed Reda GuediraMohammad ZianiAbdelkader BenjellounAli BenjellounAhmed Taibi BenhimaBadir din SenoussiMohamed MezianeMoulay Hafid Prince (representing the King)Foreign MinisterAttaché to the Cabinet of the Foreign MinisterMinister of JusticeAmbassadorPermanent Representative to the United NationsAttaché to the Royal CabinetInspector General of the Armed ForcesDirector General of Royal Protocol
N Country Person Title Nepal Matrika Prasad Koirala Ambassador to the United States BernhardBeatrixJoseph Luns Prince (representing the Queen)Crown PrincessMinister of Foreign Affairs R. E. George Laking Ambassador to the United States Luis Somoza DebayleAlfonso Ortega Urbina Senator and Former PresidentForeign Minister HaraldEinar GerhardsenCrown Prince (representing the King)Prime Minister
P Country Person Title Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Minister of Foreign Affairs Galileo SolísArturo Morgan Morales Minister of Foreign Affairs Juan Plate Ambassador to the United Nations Víctor Andrés Belaúnde Permanent Representative to the United Nations Diosdado MacapagalEva Macapagal PresidentFirst Lady Poland Stanisław KulczyńskiPiotr Jaroszewicz Deputy Chairman of the Council of StateDeputy Prime Minister Luís Supico Pinto President of the Corporative Chamber
R Country Person Title Romania Mircea Malița Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs
S Country Person Title Rashad PharaonAbdallah Hababi Ambassador to FranceChargé d'affaires in Washington John Karefa-Smart Minister of External Affairs Somalia Mohammed Ali Daar Undersecretary of Foreign Affairs Dr. Willem C. Naude Ambassador to the United Nations Anastas MikoyanFirst Deputy Chairman of the Council of Ministers Spain Agustín Muñoz GrandesFirst Vice President of the Government Prince Bertil, Duke of HallandTage ErlanderOlof Palme Prince of Sweden (representing the King)Prime MinisterMinister Without Portfolio Friedrich Traugott WahlenPierre MichellChief of the Political DepartmentSecretary General of the Political Department
T Country Person Title Chief Erasto A.M. Mangyenya Permanent Representative to the United Nations Thanat Khoman Foreign Minister Trinidad and Tobago Sir Ellis E.I. Clarke Ambassador to the United States Bahi LadghamMongi SlimTaieb SlimHabib Bourguiba, Jr.Hachemi Quanes Prime MinisterMinister of Foreign AffairsPermanent Representative to the United StatesAmbassador İsmet İnönüFeridun Cemal Erkin Prime MinisterMinister of Foreign Affairs
U Country Person Title Apollo Kironde Ambassador Mahmoud Fawzi Minister of Foreign Affairs Prince Philip, Duke of EdinburghAlec Douglas-HomeElizabeth Douglas-HomeHarold WilsonJo Grimond Consort to the British Monarch (representing the Queen)Prime MinisterSpouse of the Prime MinisterLeader of the OppositionLeader of the Liberal Party Juan Felipe Yriart Ambassador
V Country Person Title Rolando Leandro MoraAntonio Briceño Linares Acting Minister of Foreign AffairsMinister of Defence Tran Chanh Thanh Ambassador-designate
Y Country Person Title Koča PopovićPetar Stambolić Foreign MinisterPrime Minister
International organizations
Organization Person TitleEuropean Atomic Energy Community Maan Sassen Member of the Council European Coal and Steel Community Albert Coppé Jean Monnet Vice PresidentFormer President European Economic Community Jean Rey President Organization Person Title United Nations U Thant Ralph Bunche Paul G. Hoffman Maurice Pate David Vaughan Carlos Sosa Rodríguez and wife Sir Patrick DeanDr. Louis AlvaradoDavid Blanchard Secretary-General of the United NationsUnder-Secretary-General for Political AffairsManaging Director of the United Nations Special FundExecutive Director of UNICEFDirector of General ServicesPresident of the General Assembly and wifePresident of the United Nations Security CouncilInternational Labour OrganizationInternational Labour Organization
Prominent absences Various world leaders and statesmen did not attend the slain president's funeral. Those not present attended memorial services in their respective countries. Some of the key notable absences included: Australian Prime Minister Robert Menzies, citing the ongoing election campaign Italian President Antonio Segni, who could not make the trip because of a flu Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, on account of the helicopter crash on the same day as the assassination
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