Consular Representation in an Emerging State: The Case of Norway

Abstract:

The consular institution has regularly been viewed by academics and practitioners alike as the poor sibling of diplomacy: as a career sidetrack or tour of duty for aspiring ambassadors; and as an example devoid of all the intrigue and politics by historians and theoreticians of diplomacy.

Through a detailed case study of the emergence and development of consular representation in Norway, this article demonstrates that any comprehensive history of diplomacy must include a history of the consular institution; that the history of the consular institution is nevertheless not reducible to a history of diplomacy; and that studying the consular institution offers up fresh perspectives on the social practices of representation and state formation.