Samuel Edward Finer FBA (22 September 1915 – 9 June 1993) was a British political scientist and historian specializing in comparative politics, who was instrumental in advancing political studies as an academic subject in the United Kingdom, pioneering the study of UK political institutions.
Who Is Samuel Finer?
Samuel Edward Finer is the father of Jem Finer. Samuel’s most notable work is The History of Government from the Earliest Times a three-volume comparative analysis of all significant government systems.
He was also a major contributor to the study of civil-military relations with the publication of his book, The Man on Horseback.
Samuel Finer, the youngest of six children, was born on 22 September 1915 to Romanian-Jewish immigrant parents who had emigrated to the United Kingdom, and who ran a greengrocer’s stall at Chapel Street market, Islington.
Samuel’s parents were killed in London in January 1945 by V-2 rockets. One of his brothers, Herman Finer, was also a distinguished political scientist. Although Herman emigrated to the United States, his achievement was, according to Finer, an early source of inspiration.