House, Edward Mandell (1858-1938), an American statesman, made secret missions to Europe during World War I (1914-1918) as the representative of United States President Woodrow Wilson. Although House held no official position, he helped Wilson draft the Fourteen Points, a set of principles meant to serve as the basis for a peace treaty to end the war. House helped persuade the Allies to accept the Fourteen Points. In 1919, he served on the American commission at the Versailles Peace Conference and helped plan the League of Nations, a forerunner to the United Nations.
House was born on July 26, 1858, in Houston and attended Cornell University. House became a leader in Texas state politics. He gained national influence in 1912 when he worked on Wilson’s presidential campaign. He was Wilson’s most trusted adviser until 1919, when he retired from public life. House died on March 28, 1938.
