Thomas P. Thornton

1931 - 2023

Thomas Perry Thornton passed away on May 5th, 2023, surrounded by his family. Thornton was born in Pittsburgh in 1931, the son of Thomas A. and Catherine B. Thornton. He attended Haverford College and earned a PhD from John Hopkins. Thornton was a resident of the Washington area for nearly 40 years, combining academic and governmental careers with a focus on foreign affairs. He was a senior member of the State Department's Policy Planning Staff during Henry Kissinger's years and was selected to join the staff of the National Security Council in the Carter Administration, where he was in charge of relations with much of the Third World. Thornton returned to academia in 1982, where he taught at the Johns Hopkins School of International Studies and later at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, where he resided since 1990. Recognized as one of the country's top experts on US relations with the countries of South Asia, Thornton was a frequent participant at national and international conferences, a consultant to the State Department and a witness before Congressional committees. He also served in the Navy as a Captain and member of the Naval Intelligence Reserve. Thornton is survived by his loving wife Hanne Schulten, three children, Thomas A. Thornton, Nalini T. Rogers, and Peter A. Thornton and eight grandchildren.

A funeral mass will be held on June 3rd at 1:00 pm at St Ignatius Church, 740 N. Calvert St., Baltimore, MD.