Douglas Laird Busk (1906–1990) was a British diplomat, mountaineer and geographer.

Personal life

Busk was born on 15 July 1906 and educated at Eton and

New College, Oxford New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as its feeder school, New College is one of the oldest colleges at ...

, also spending some time at

Princeton University Princeton University is a private research university in Princeton, New Jersey. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and one of the n ...

. He married Bridget Hemsley Thompson in 1937, and they had two daughters. She was an artist and her line drawings illustrate his 1957 book ''The Fountain of the Sun ''. He died on 11 December 1990, aged 84, at

Chilbolton Chilbolton is a village and civil parish in Hampshire, England, near to Stockbridge. It is situated north of Southampton and south of Andover. Its most notable feature is the Chilbolton Observatory situated on the disused RAF Chilbolton airfi ...

Diplomatic career

Baird joined the diplomatic service in 1927 and served in countries including Iran, Hungary, Japan, Turkey and Iraq. He served as Britain's ambassador to Ethiopia (1952–1956), Finland (1958–1960) and Venezuela (1961–1964).

Mountaineering

Baird was a notable mountaineer, gaining membership of the Alpine Club while an undergraduate, after making the first winter ascent of the north face of

Pic du Midi d'Ossau The Pic du Midi d'Ossau (2,884 m) is a mountain rising above the Ossau Valley in the French Pyrenees. Despite possessing neither a glacier nor, in the context of the range, a particularly high summit, its distinctive shape makes it a symbol ...

. His obituary in ''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' ...

'' said that his "greatest contribution" was his work as chairman of the library of the Alpine Club, culminating in the production of a 600-page catalogue and the 1981 exhibition "The Treasures of the Alpine Club".

Recognition

Baird was appointed

Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in hono ...

(KCMG) in the 1959 Birthday Honours. The

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

, of which he was honorary vice-president, awards an annual Busk Medal named in his honour.

References

1906 births 1990 deaths British geographers British mountain climbers Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Ethiopia Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Finland Ambassadors of the United Kingdom to Venezuela People educated at Eton College Alumni of New College, Oxford {{climbing-bio-stub