ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the area of one diplomat's informal networks and cultural diplomacy as a case study in the fringes of diplomacy. In the world of diplomats there are two types of people, those who were born to good families and those whose family background was not as elevated but who developed and then exploited their own social networks and cultivated a reputation in order to reach ambassadorial level. James Rennell Rodd seems to be quite a contrast to Bertie, even though he succeeded Bertie as ambassador to Rome in 1908. The chapter examines how Rodd's official and unofficial networks enabled him to achieve his great goal in life to become an ambassador in an important diplomatic post. It examines Rodd's cultural activities as ambassador in Rome and how this helped to impress Italian political circles and may have eventually contributed to keeping Italy away from the Triple Alliance in 1914-1915.
