Craig R. Stapleton
b. 1945, Missouri -
Service History
US Minister to Monaco, 2006 – 2009
US Ambassador to France, 2005 – 2009
US Ambassador to the Czech Republic, 2001 – 2003
Biography
The Honorable Craig R. Stapleton was born in Kansas City, Missouri, in 1945. His grandfather, Benjamin F. Stapleton, served five terms as the mayor of Denver, Colorado. Ambassador Stapleton received his secondary school education at Phillips Exeter Academy and is a graduate of Harvard College (BA) and Harvard Business School (MBA).
Ambassador Stapleton currently serves as a director of Tenax Aerospace, which provides aircraft finance and leasing services, and Vivino Inc., the world's largest online wine marketplace. He is a senior advisor to Stone Point Capital in Greenwich, Connecticut. In July 2009, he became a co-owner of the St. Louis Cardinals baseball team. He was president of Marsh and McLennan Real Estate Advisors of New York from 1982 until 2001.
During the administration of George H. W. Bush, Ambassador Stapleton served on the board of the Peace Corps. During the administrations of George W. Bush, he served as ambassador to the Czech Republic from 2001 to 2003 and received the Jan Masaryk Medal from the Czech Republic. In June 2005, he was appointed ambassador to France and served until January 2009. Additionally, he served as envoy and minister to Monaco from December 2006 until January 2009. He was named a commandeur of the French Legion of Honor by French President Nicholas Sarkozy in May 2009. He was also named an honorary citizen of the French towns of Deauville, Chateauneuf du Pape, Rocamadour, and Vienne.
Ambassador Stapleton serves on the boards of the American Society of the French Legion of Honor, the Vaclav Havel Foundation, the American Friends of Compiegne, the United Way Tocqueville of France, the World War I Centennial Commission, the National Medal of Honor Museum, and the Trust for the National Mall. He is a trustee of the American University in Paris, the 9/11 Memorial and Museum, and the Fishback Foundation. He has also served on the Visiting Committee for Harvard College Athletics and the Committee on University Resources and Athletics.