born April 25, 1862, London, Eng.
died Sept. 7, 1933, Fallodon, near Embleton, Northumberland
British statesman.
A relative of Earl Grey , he entered Parliament as a Liberal (1885) and became foreign secretary in 1905. During the Moroccan crises (1905, 1911), he supported France against Germany, but with equivocations that caused diplomatic confusion. After the assassination of Francis Ferdinand (1914), Grey proposed that Austria-Hungary obtain satisfaction from Serbia by occupying Belgrade. When all peace moves failed, he maneuvered a divided British cabinet into World War I, about which he commented, "The lamps are going out all over Europe; we shall not see them lit again in our lifetime." He was responsible for the secret Treaty of London (1915).