Ambassador George Krol joins the Battle of Rhode Island Association as a Director

The Battle of Rhode Island Association (BoRIA) recently announced the addition of retired U.S. Ambassador George Krol as a Director representing the Middletown Historical Society. Fellow Director Joe Studlick remarked “we’re very excited to have the Ambassador and his unique global knowledge to help us in our endeavors to expand the understanding of Rhode Island’s role in the war for independence. He will strengthen our relationships with our French partners much like the Patriots experienced during the Revolutionary War.”

Prior to retiring to Middletown, Rhode Island, George Krol served 36 years in the U.S. Foreign Service, during which he held foreign assignments in Poland, India, Russia, the Baltic republics, Ukraine and as U.S. Ambassador to Belarus, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan. In Washington he served as Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for Central Asia Affairs and as Director of the U.S. State Department’s Office of Russian Affairs. Krol teaches as an Adjunct Professor at the U.S. Naval War College and lectures frequently on foreign policy issues and the states of the former Soviet Union and Warsaw Pact. He is also an Associate of Harvard University’s Davis Center for Russian and Eurasian Studies. A graduate of Harvard College and Oxford University, and a lifelong lover of history, Krol currently enjoys learning the unique history, customs and languages of his now permanent assignment – Rhode Island.

Ambassador Krol remarked “I am honored to represent the Middletown Historical Society on the Board of the Battle of Rhode Island Association. The more I learned about this battle and the preceding siege of Newport that involved Middletown directly, the more I came to appreciate the importance of these events – and of Rhode Islanders of all colors and creeds, and our own Aquidneck Island communities — in the history of the American Revolution. This battle was the precursor to the ultimately successful Battle of Yorktown where again the First Rhode Island Regiment fought bravely and brilliantly. The Battle of Rhode Island deserves wide recognition and commemoration. I look forward to helping achieve that worthy goal.”