Finlay Crisp

Who was Finlay Crisp?

Leslie Finlay "Fin" Crisp was an Australian academic and political scientist.

Fin Crisp was born in Sandringham, Victoria. Educated at Black Rock State School, Caulfield Grammar School and St Peter's College, Adelaide, where he graduated in 1934, Crisp earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science and history from the University of Adelaide. While at university, he and his wife Helen formed the National Union of Australian University Students. In 1938 he was awarded a Rhodes Scholarship and went on to study at Balliol College in Oxford University, although his studies were disrupted while he worked for the Australian Public Service during World War II. His work included positions with the Shortwave Broadcasting Service, the Department of Labour and National Service, and the Department of Post-War Reconstruction. In 1945 he was also a member of the Australian Delegation to form the United Nations. He earned Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees from Oxford in 1948, and then became Director-General of the Department of Post-War Reconstruction.

From 1950 he was a professor of political science at the Australian National University in Canberra, serving as head of the department from 1950 to 1970. He continued teaching until retirement in 1977. He was appointed a director of the Commonwealth Banking Corporation in 1974, and served as chairman of the board from 1975 to 1984. He died in December 1984 in Canberra.