Bush House: How the US ambassador鈥檚 home in China got its name
-
Ann Scott Tyson Staff writer
| Beijing
As dusk falls on a crisp October evening in Beijing鈥檚 quiet Jianguomenwai embassy district, guests flow into 17 Guanghua Road, the stately yet unassuming residence of U.S. Ambassador Nicholas Burns and his wife, Elizabeth Baylies.
Persimmons ripen on trees nearby, and magpies flit around the ancient Altar of the Sun park across the street, where early risers often perform tai chi. People cycle slowly by. A solemn-faced Chinese army guard stands at attention at the gate.
Indeed, the house and its immediate surroundings bear similarities to what then-U.S. Ambassador George H.W. Bush found when he arrived here almost exactly 49 years ago, assuming his post as head of the United States Liaison Office in Beijing. At that time, Chairman Mao Zedong鈥檚 radical Cultural Revolution was ongoing, and ties between the two countries 鈥� estranged from 1949 until President Richard Nixon鈥檚 historic China trip in 1972 鈥� were in their infancy.
Why We Wrote This
A story focused onNearly half a century ago, George H.W. Bush and his wife helped usher in a new era of U.S.-China relations. Though China looks different today, the couple鈥檚 leadership and perseverance still hold lessons for present-day diplomats.
鈥淲e swung into the mission: nice, clean, great-looking U.S. seal, two PLA [People鈥檚 Liberation Army] guards at the gate,鈥� Mr. Bush wrote in his diary on Oct. 21, 1974, his first night in Beijing. He asked his wife, Barbara, to 鈥済et a ping-pong table and a couple of bicycles鈥� as soon as she could. Then, as the wind howled at the windows, reminding him of West Texas, he went to bed early.
Last Friday, the dramatic sweep of five decades of U.S.-China relations seemed telescoped in time as the current occupants of 17 Guanghua Road celebrated that pioneering diplomatic couple 鈥� dedicating the house as 鈥淏ush House,鈥� in honor of President Bush and first lady Barbara Bush. Despite vast changes, parallels exist between then and now: The two countries once again stand at a crucial juncture in their ties, are emerging from years with limited contacts, and struggle with fundamental differences even as they face the necessity to get along.
鈥淭his is the house where America returned to China in 1973, 50 years ago this summer, after an absence of 24 years,鈥� Ambassador Burns told the gathering. 鈥淪o with our celebration this evening, we honor the return of the United States to China. And we are here to stay in China this time.鈥�
Finding connection
Mr. Bush had surprised his boss, President Gerald Ford, by turning down offers of two prestigious diplomatic posts 鈥� London and Paris. 鈥淗e said, 鈥榃ith all due respect, I want to go to China,鈥欌�� says Alexander 鈥淗ap鈥� Ellis III, chair of the board of the George and Barbara Bush Foundation and Mr. Bush鈥檚 nephew, who attended the dedication. 鈥淗e had this instinct that China was going to be a hugely important country.鈥�
The early Beijing posting would prove formative for Mr. Bush鈥檚 understanding of foreign affairs and consequential for U.S.-China relations, as he became the only American ambassador to China to rise to the presidency.
To be sure, daily life in Beijing for the Bushes held a stark contrast to that of Mr. Burns and Ms. Baylies. Mr. Bush rode a bicycle 鈥� with a makeshift 鈥淭exas George鈥� license plate 鈥� all around the city, sometimes donning goggles during dust storms. Iconic photos show the couple touring around markets and mingling with ordinary people, seemingly with little security.
Mr. Bush commented in his diary about drab clothing and a general lack of 鈥済aiety,鈥� cabbages stacked high on windowsills, and ubiquitous mule-drawn wagons that he thought would clog roads if China wanted to mobilize conventional military forces. He oversaw a tiny mission with nine U.S. diplomats, deciding he needed an 鈥渁gricultural person鈥� but no military attach茅.
Life at 17 Guanghua Road is not as free for its current residents. Arriving at the now heavily gated residence after a long commute on Beijing鈥檚 traffic-clogged highways, Ambassador Burns 鈥� who oversees several hundred U.S. employees from 47 government agencies 鈥� laughs when asked if he envies aspects of how the Bushes got around. 鈥淵es,鈥� he says, recalling how Mr. Bush and his mother casually biked down to Beijing鈥檚 Tiananmen Square 鈥� no bodyguards, no armored cars.
鈥淟ibby and I actually walked, in our second or third month here, from here to Tiananmen, and I think we went through 13 police checkpoints,鈥� he says. 鈥淲e were stopped at one for about 20 minutes because they really couldn鈥檛 figure out what the American ambassador was doing walking through Tiananmen.鈥�
Still, the couple find ways to connect with people. Like the Bushes before them, they are both studying Chinese. They strike up conversations on second-class train rides and go to local sporting events, such as a recent Beijing soccer match. 鈥淲e were seated with all sorts of people around us,鈥� he says. They sported green scarves, the color of the local soccer club, which earned them high-fives from other spectators. 鈥淚t was good,鈥� he says.
Righting the ship
More broadly, some fundamental challenges remain similar for both ambassadors. Mr. Bush said he came to China 鈥渋n spite of great warnings of isolation.鈥� When Mr. Burns and Ms.聽Baylies arrived in February 2022, China was largely cut off from the world by its strict COVID-19 prevention regime, which kept out most foreign visitors for three years.
鈥淲e had that 21-day quarantine,鈥� says Ms. Baylies. 鈥淲e were lucky enough to be quarantined in this house.鈥澛�
Exploring their new home during those wintry days of isolation, she says, 鈥淣ick was surprised that this house did not have a name,鈥� and lit upon the idea of Bush House.
Mr. Bush labored to try to form personal connections with Chinese leaders, starting with soon-to-be paramount leader Deng Xiaoping. Years later, President Bush wrote that his longstanding friendship with Mr. Deng helped prevent Sino-American relations from 鈥渄erailing.鈥� Similarly, Mr. Burns has worked to rebuild high-level contacts severed by both pandemic policies and political tensions. In a positive turn, a string of U.S. Cabinet members, lawmakers, and other senior envoys have arrived in Beijing since June.
Even as they compete as 鈥渞ivals鈥� in key realms such as technology, China and the U.S. are now cooperating well on issues of climate change, agriculture, and people-to-people exchanges, he says.
鈥淚 feel good about the progress we鈥檝e made in the last five months,鈥� says Ambassador Burns.
The Chinese balloon crisis in early February 鈥渨as kind of rock bottom in the relationship,鈥� he adds. 鈥淲e鈥檝e righted the ship.鈥�
One critical exception is military-to-military ties, which have yet to be restored.
鈥淚t鈥檚 frustrating,鈥� he says. 鈥淭here ought to be very close military-to-military contacts. We are working this issue with the Chinese as hard as we can, and it鈥檚 up to them. That鈥檚 one way you drive down the probability of any conflict,鈥� which 鈥渨ould be catastrophic for both countries and the world,鈥� he adds.
Mr. Bush also voiced many frustrations, but some notes of nostalgia entered his diary as he neared his departure. In July 1975, he wrote that he would not forget the sound of 鈥渆arly morning singing in the park鈥� or 鈥渢he jingle of bicycle bells.鈥�
At Friday鈥檚 dedication, Chinese Executive Vice Minister of Foreign Affairs Ma Zhaoxu spoke of Mr. Bush鈥檚 belief in the ability of China and the U.S. to resolve their differences, and of his reluctance to leave Beijing in December 1975. Overall, Mr. Bush would make dozens of trips to China in his lifetime.
鈥淚 may forget the four tones of Mandarin I learned here,鈥� Mr. Ma, speaking through a translator, quoted Mr. Bush as saying. 鈥淏ut I will never forget the warm hospitality of the Chinese people. Maybe no more than three weeks after I return home, I will already be wanting to come back to No. 17 Guanghua Road.鈥�
