Of Power and Influence Henry Deterding, Royal Dutch Shell's Unofficial Diplomat (1912-1922)

Abstract

This thesis aims to analyse the role of Henry Deterding, the director-general of Royal Dutch Shell (RDS), as an unofficial ‘diplomat’ and non-state actor during two events in which the interests of the RDS and that of the Dutch government collided. It tries to indicate as to what extent Deterding was able to exert power and influence vis-à-vis the Dutch government’s decision-makers in order to guard the business interests of the company. By analysing the contextual factors that led Deterding to decide to embark upon a campaign to influence the Dutch government’s decision-makers, and by focusing on the goals, modus operandi and interactions between Deterding and those decision-makers, this thesis provides answers to the raison d’être behind his corporate lobby and its effects. It provides insights as to why Deterding did this, how he operated and what effects it produced in relation to the decision-making process.

The methodology of New Diplomatic History (NDH) has been absolutely vital in this respect. As NDH specifically aims to reveal, interpret and analyse the roles of private, non-state actors, this thesis has based its research on primary sources of private and business archives in particular, instead of traditionally studied government archives. To this end, the archives of Royal Dutch Shell and the HDC archives at the Vrije Universiteit (VU) provided unique and fascinating insights. Moreover, this research is positioned within the academic debate concerning power relations between nation states and multinational corporations (MNC). As this thesis focuses on an early-twentieth century captain of industry, it provides insights into the role of an MNC during a hitherto neglected period of study within academia, which primarily focuses on MNCs and their relations with national governments after 1945. In addition, Deterding’s initiated private schemes of interest representation through unofficial diplomacy and lobbying campaigns will further indicate that diplomacy ought to be considered a fluid activity, one that is not merely to the disposal state actors, but also to unofficial, non-state entities. This thesis therefore also provides insights into the general nature of diplomacy, which, in our ever-globalising world is set to be increasingly used by a range of different actors other than national governments alone.