born April 24, 1889, London, Eng.
died April 21, 1952, Zürich, Switz.
British statesman.
A successful lawyer, he served in Parliament (193150). He was on the extreme left of the Labour Party and helped found the Socialist League in 1932. After serving as ambassador to Moscow (194042), he joined the British war cabinet and conducted the Cripps Mission (1942), an unsuccessful attempt to rally Indian support against the Japanese. As chancellor of the Exchequer (194750), he instituted a rigid austerity program to revive Britain's economy.