1949
Quincy Wright
University of Chicago, United States
(1949 to 1952)
Quincy Wright (1890–1970) was an American political scientist and a leading authority on international law. He received his PhD from the University of Illinois in 1915 and held academic positions at Harvard University and the University of Minnesota before joining the University of Chicago in 1923. At the University of Chicago, he served as Professor of Political Science and, from 1931 to 1956, as Professor of International Law. After his retirement from the University of Chicago, he continued teaching as professor of foreign affairs at the University of Virginia from 1958 to 1961. He also served as an adviser to the U.S. Department of State (1943-45) and the International Military Tribunal in Nürnberg (1945). He was also a consultant to UNESCO in 1949.
Prof. Wright served as a guest lecturer at numerous universities worldwide, including the University of İstanbul (1949), the Indian School of International Studies in New Delhi (1957-58, 1962), the University of Manchester 1961), Columbia University (1962-63), American University in Cairo (1964), Cornell University (1964), and Indiana University (1965).
His books include The Role of International Law in the Prevention of War (1961); Problems of Stability and Progress in International Relations (1954); A Study of War (1942); The Causes of War and the Conditions of Peace (1935); Mandates Under the League of Nations (1930); The Control of American Foreign Relations (1922); and The Enforcement of International Law Through Municipal Law in the United States (1916).
As the first 5XPresident, Prof. Wright played a foundational role in shaping the Association during its formative years. In late 1949, the first Executive Committee, led by President Wright (1949–1952) and Executive Secretary François Goguel (1949–1950), began building the foundational structures of the organization. Prof. Wright’s efforts were instrumental in promoting IPSA’s core objectives of “building the organization, fostering the intellectual development of political science, and helping spread the discipline geographically,” as outlined in IPSA’s Constitution.
In addition to his 5Xleadership, Prof. Wright held numerous prestigious positions. He was President of the American Political Science Association (1950), President of the American Society of International Law (1955), President of the American Association of University Professors (1943–1945), and Director of the Conference of Teachers of International Law (1942, 1946). He was also a visiting research scholar at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in 1956.
The houses the archival collection of Quincy Wright’s papers, which offers an extensive record of his scholarly contributions.
