- Frank Crisp
Sir Frank Crisp, 1st Baronet (
October 25 ,1843 in London -April 29 ,1919 ) was an Englishlawyer and microscopist.Life
Crisp's mother died when he was three years old and as a result he was brought up by his grandfather,
John Filby Childs . He resolved to take up thelaw and at 16 was articled to a firm ofsolicitor s. He also studied at theUniversity of London obtaining the degrees ofB.A. in 1864 andLL.B. in 1865. In 1867 he married Catherine Howes.McConnell (2007)]He qualified as a solicitor in 1869 and his reputation soon grew, acting in many important commercial contracts. He counted several foreign
railroad companies and theImperial Japanese Navy among his clients, and drew up the contract for the cutting of theCullinan diamond . He received hisbaronet cy in 1913 for services as legal advisor to the Liberal Party.In 1895, he bought
Friar Park inHenley-on-Thames where he entertained the great and the good. He was a keen horticulturalist and developed spectacular public gardens there, including an alpine garden featuring a 20 foot (6 m) replica of theMatterhorn . He published an exhaustive survey ofmedieval gardening titled "Mediaeval Gardens".Crisp was an enthusiastic member, and sometime officer, of the
Royal Microscopical Society . He was generous in his support of the Society, donating furniture, books and instruments in addition to his work on technical publications.Memorial in song
"Beatle"
George Harrison purchased Friar Park, where Frank Crisp had lived, as his new home in 1970. He also wrote a song called "Ballad of Sir Frankie Crisp (Let it Roll)", which appears on the album "All Things Must Pass ".Fact|date=September 2007References
Bibliography
*Obituaries:
**"The Times ", 1 May 1919; 5 May 1919;
**"Solicitors' Journal", 63 (1918–19), 484.----
*Buchan, U. (2000) " [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_qa3724/is_200001/ai_n8884422 Frank's fame] ", "The Spectator ", 22 January
* cite journal | author=Insley, J. | year=1982 | title=Court, Crisp and Clay - some notes on collectors and collections of antique microscopes | journal=Quekett Journal of Microscopy | volume=34 | pages=345–353, 376
*— (1984) "Sir Frank Crisp, baronet (1843–1919)", "Microscopy", 35 (Jan–June), "pp"10-24
*McConnell, A. (2007) " [http://www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/49715 Crisp, Sir Frank, first baronet (1843–1919)] ", "Oxford Dictionary of National Biography ", Oxford University Press, online edn, Jan 2007, accessed 17 September 2007 ODNBsub
*Sternberg, I. (2002) " [http://www.bbg.org/gar2/pgn/2002fa_offshoots.html Eccentric enthusiasts — stories from the far side of the garden] ", "Plants and Gardens News", 17(3)----
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