Editing Ambassador (section)

== Ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary ==
[[File:AmbassadorSchwarz,Bush.jpg|thumb|Before an ambassador takes office, their credentials must be accepted, such as when South African Ambassador [[Harry Schwarz]] handed his credentials to U.S. President [[George H. W. Bush]] in 1991.]]
[[File:Maria-Pia Kothbauer with Vaclav Klaus.jpg|thumb|[[Maria-Pia Kothbauer]], Princess of Liechtenstein and ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary to the Czech Republic, presenting her credentials to [[Václav Klaus]].]]

The [[Congress of Vienna]] of 1815 formalized the system of [[diplomatic rank]] under [[international law]], distinguishing between three hierarchical descending categories of diplomatic representatives: full ambassadors (including legates or ''nuntii''), accredited to heads of state; envoys or ministers, who were also accredited to heads of state; and finally [[Chargé d'affaires | chargés d’affaires]], who were accredited to [[minister of foreign affairs]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Vienna and the codification of diplomatic law|url=https://opil.ouplaw.com/page/514|access-date=2021-09-21|website=Oxford Public International Law|language=en|archive-date=21 September 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210921155332/https://opil.ouplaw.com/page/514|url-status=live}}</ref>

The [[Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations]] of 1961, which took effect in 1964 and is still in force, modified the system. According to it, ambassadors are diplomats of the highest rank, formally representing their head of state, with [[plenipotentiary]] powers (i.e. full authority to represent the government). In modern usage, most ambassadors on foreign postings as [[head of mission]] carry the full title of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary. The distinction between extraordinary and ordinary ambassadors was common when not all ambassadors resided in the country to which they are assigned, often serving only for a specific purpose or mission.<ref name="NYT">{{cite news |work=[[The New York Times]] |url=https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/08/06/100402996.pdf |title=Embassy Councilor; Suggestion to State Department in Regard to Ex-Gov. Lind |author=Leopold Grahame |date=1913-08-03 |access-date=13 June 2018 |archive-date=4 November 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181104084130/https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1913/08/06/100402996.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

The ''ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary'' being historically regarded as the personal representative of the sovereign, the custom of dispatching ambassadors to the head of state rather than the government has persisted. For example, ambassadors to and from the [[United Kingdom]] are accredited to or from the Royal [[Court of St James's]]. Ambassadors hold the highest [[diplomatic rank]] and have precedence over ''[[chargé d'affaires|chargés d'affaires]]'', who are accredited by the [[foreign minister]]. Ambassadors also outranked [[Envoy (title)|envoys]] until the 1960s, when the last legations were upgraded to embassies.

Because members of the [[Commonwealth of Nations]] have or had a common head of state, they do not exchange ambassadors, but instead have [[High Commissioner (Commonwealth)|High Commissioners]], who represent the government, rather than the head of state. The diplomat representing the [[Holy See]] is titled a [[nuncio]]. In diplomatic usage, both the high commissioner and nuncio are considered equivalent in rank and role to an ambassador; high commissioners, like ambassadors, carry the full title of "High Commissioner Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary",<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.minfor.gov.gy/accreditations/president-ali-accepts-letter-of-credence-from-new-uk-high-commissioner/ | title=President Ali accepts Letter of Credence from new UK High Commissioner – Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation&#124; Co-operative Republic of Guyana | access-date=27 March 2023 | archive-date=11 January 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230111092737/https://www.minfor.gov.gy/accreditations/president-ali-accepts-letter-of-credence-from-new-uk-high-commissioner/ | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.svgconsulate.vc/documents/diaspora/overseas-diplomatic-missions-consulates.pdf|title=Overseas diplomatic missions|website=svgconsulate.vc|access-date=6 March 2023|archive-date=11 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230111092725/https://www.svgconsulate.vc/documents/diaspora/overseas-diplomatic-missions-consulates.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | url=https://maldiveshighcom.lk/high-commissioner-omar-met-with-the-foreign-secretary/ | title=High Commissioner Omar met with the Foreign Secretary – High Commission of Maldives, Colombo | access-date=27 March 2023 | archive-date=11 January 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230111092734/https://maldiveshighcom.lk/high-commissioner-omar-met-with-the-foreign-secretary/ | url-status=live }}</ref> but nuncios do not. Resident Coordinators within the United Nations system are accredited to the Head of State and have the same rank as ambassador.

Ambassadors carry formal [[Letter of Credence|letters of credence]] from their [[head of state]], addressed to the host country's head of state. Because many Commonwealth countries have the same head of state, the accreditation of a High Commissioner is in the form of a simple and often informal letter of introduction from one [[head of government]] (Prime Minister) to that of another. The difference in accreditation is also reflected in the formal titles of envoys to foreign and Commonwealth states: e.g., British High Commissioners are formally titled "The High Commissioner for [[His Majesty's Government in the United Kingdom]]", whereas British Ambassadors to foreign countries are known as "His [[Britannic Majesty| Britannic Majesty's]] Ambassador". {{Citation needed|date=March 2016}}