Leslie Finlay Crisp (19 January 191721 December 1984) was an Australian academic and political scientist. The son of Leslie Walter Crisp (1884–1965), and Ruby Elizabeth Crisp (1896–1951), née Duff, Leslie Finlay Crisp was born in

Sandringham, Victoria Sandringham ( or sometimes ) is a suburb in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, south of Melbourne's Central Business District, located within the City of Bayside local government area. Sandringham recorded a population of 10,926 at the 2021 c ...

on 19 January 1917. He married Helen Craven Wighton (1916–2002), whom he had met at university in Adelaide, on 22 June 1940 in Oxford, U.K. He suffered a heart attack on 19 December 1984, and died, in Canberra, on 21 December 1984. Educated at Black Rock State School,

Caulfield Grammar School Caulfield Grammar School is a private, co-educational, Anglican, International Baccalaureate, day and boarding school, located in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia. Founded in 1881 as a boys' school, Caulfield Grammar began admitting girls exactly ...

and

St Peter's College, Adelaide St Peter's College (officially The Anglican Church of Australia Collegiate School of Saint Peter, but commonly known as Saints) is an Private school, independent Anglican Church of Australia, Anglican Primary school, primary and Secondary school ...

, where he graduated in 1934, Crisp earned a Bachelor of Arts in political science and history from the

University of Adelaide The University of Adelaide is a public university, public research university based in Adelaide, South Australia. Established in 1874, it is the third-oldest university in Australia. Its main campus in the Adelaide city centre includes many Sa ...

. While at university, he and his, later, wife Helen (then Helen Wighton) formed the

National Union of Australian University Students The Australian Union of Students (AUS), formerly National Union of Australian University Students (NUAUS), was a representative body and lobby group for List of universities in Australia, Australian university and college of advanced education st ...

. In 1938, he was awarded a

Rhodes Scholarship The Rhodes Scholarship is an international postgraduate award for students to study at the University of Oxford in Oxford, United Kingdom. The scholarship is open to people from all backgrounds around the world. Established in 1902, it is ...

and went on to study at

Balliol College Balliol College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford. Founded in 1263 by nobleman John I de Balliol, it has a claim to be the oldest college in Oxford and the English-speaking world. With a governing body of a master and ar ...

Oxford University The University of Oxford is a collegiate research university in Oxford, England. There is evidence of teaching as early as 1096, making it the oldest university in the English-speaking world and the second-oldest continuously operating u ...

, although his studies were disrupted while he worked for the Australian Public Service during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. In 1945, he was a member of the Australian Delegation to form the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is the Earth, global intergovernmental organization established by the signing of the Charter of the United Nations, UN Charter on 26 June 1945 with the stated purpose of maintaining international peace and internationa ...

. He earned Bachelor of Arts and Master of Arts degrees from Oxford in 1948. His work included positions with the Short-wave Broadcasting Service (later

Radio Australia ABC Radio Australia, also known as Radio Australia, is the international broadcasting and online service operated by the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), Australia's public broadcaster. Most programming is in English, with some in Tok ...

) and the

Department of Labour and National Service The Department of Labour and National Service was an Government of Australia, Australian government department that existed between October 1940 and December 1972. Scope Information about the department's functions and government fund ...

, and he became head of the

Department of Post-War Reconstruction The Department of Post-War Reconstruction was an Australian Government department responsible for planning and coordinating Australia's transition to a peacetime economy after World War II. The department was established in December 1942 a ...

in 1949. In 1949, Crisp published his MA thesis from the University of Adelaide as ''The Parliamentary Government of the Commonwealth of Australia''. Widely prescribed as a politics textbook, it was expanded and renamed ''Australian National Government'' in 1965. From 1950, he was a professor of political science at the

Canberra University College Canberra University College was a tertiary education institution established in Canberra by the Australian government and the University of Melbourne in 1930. At first it operated in the Telopea Park School premises after hours. Most of the init ...

and then at the

Australian National University The Australian National University (ANU) is a public university, public research university and member of the Group of Eight (Australian universities), Group of Eight, located in Canberra, the capital of Australia. Its main campus in Acton, A ...

Canberra Canberra ( ; ) is the capital city of Australia. Founded following the Federation of Australia, federation of the colonies of Australia as the seat of government for the new nation, it is Australia's list of cities in Australia, largest in ...

, serving as head of the department from 1950 to 1970. Although increasingly disillusioned with changes in Australian universities, 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. In 2005, Crisp and his wife were two of the first 17 inductees in the

Australian Capital Territory The Australian Capital Territory (ACT), known as the Federal Capital Territory until 1938, is an internal States and territories of Australia, territory of Australia. Canberra, the capital city of Australia, is situated within the territory, an ...

Honour Walk, recognising their contribution to the development of Canberra. Crisp Circuit in the

suburb of

Bruce The English language name Bruce arrived in Scotland with the Normans, from the place name Brix, Manche in Normandy, France, meaning "the willowlands". Initially promulgated via the descendants of king Robert the Bruce (1274−1329), it has been ...

was dedicated in his name.

Notes

References and further reading

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Crisp, Fin 1917 births 1984 deaths Academic staff of the Australian National University Australian Rhodes Scholars University of Adelaide alumni Alumni of Balliol College, Oxford People educated at Caulfield Grammar School Australian political scientists People educated at St Peter's College, Adelaide 20th-century Australian public servants People from Sandringham, Victoria 20th-century political scientists Commonwealth Bank people

See also

Notes

References and further reading