Mary Sibthorp

Mary Sibthorp (1905 – 1991) was a remarkable person. Largely self educated, her incisive intellect allowed her to hold more than her own in any discussion. In her twenties, she came to the notice of Lord Davies of Llandinam, a fighter for peace and a better world order.

She worked with and for him until his death in 1944, and continued to work for his New Commonwealth Society. When the David Davies Memorial Institute of International Studies was founded in 1951, she became its Assistant Secretary and in due course its Director, a post she held until her retirement in 1980.

Her energy and inspiring vision gave her great influence on the work of the Institute. Her outstanding characteristics were iconoclasm, dislike of utopianism and suspicion of received wisdom. She was greatly interested in the wise use of natural resources and in the international problems arising therefrom.

In her generous will she left instructions to set up the Sibthorp Trust. The more critical our discussions are of unsound views, and the more forward looking they are, the better they will fulfil her purpose.

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