Clinton Leads Power Elite in Bidding Harriman Adieu

From political leaders to fashion designers, the power elite who had been drawn to Pamela Harriman in life mourned the Democratic patroness and U.S. ambassador to France.

Wearing the necktie that was Harriman’s last gift to him, President Clinton led a gathering of nearly 1,200 in the grand Washington National Cathedral on Thursday as they said an official goodbye to the socialite and diplomat.

“Her country bids her farewell with profound gratitude,” Clinton said. “She felt to her bones America’s special leadership role in the world. Today we see her legacy in the growing promise of a Europe undivided.”

Harriman died at age 76 in Paris last week after suffering a stroke.

The flock at the Episcopalian funeral came from all corners of Harriman’s extraordinary life--the British-born girl who weathered World War II as Winston Churchill’s daughter-in-law, to adopted American who tossed millions of dollars at the Democratic Party.

Former House Speaker Thomas S. Foley, Bosnia peace negotiator Richard Holbrooke and presidential advisor Vernon E. Jordan Jr. served as pallbearers, escorting Harriman’s unadorned coffin through the sanctuary amid swells of “America the Beautiful” and “Battle Hymn of the Republic.”

The ambassador will be buried in a private ceremony today at Arden, the Harriman estate north of New York City.

Among those who half-filled the massive stone cathedral Thursday were: French Ambassador Francois Bujon de L’Estang, British Ambassador Sir John Kerr, New York investment tycoon Felix G. Rohatyn, actor Gregory Peck, designer Oscar de la Renta, and Katharine Graham, retired publisher of the Washington Post.

Surrounded by towering windows of stained glass filtering the cold winter sun, Clinton said he pondered “what made Pamela so remarkable” and concluded it was her insistence on success.

“It was more than the lilt of her voice and her laughter. More, even, than the luminous presence that could light up a room, a convention hall or even the City of Lights itself. . . . She was truly indomitable,” Clinton said.