George Fordyce (18 November 1736 – 25 May 1802) was a distinguished
Scottish physician, lecturer on medicine, and chemist, who was a
Fellow of the Royal Society
Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathemat ...
and a Fellow of the
Royal College of Physicians
The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...
.
Early life
George Fordyce was born at Aberdeen in 1736, a short time after the death of his father, George Fordyce, proprietor of a small landed estate called Broadford, near the city. He was taken from home at the age of two following his mother's remarriage and was sent to
Foveran
Foveran ( gd, Fobharan) is the name of both a parish and village in Aberdeenshire, Scotland. The village is located north of Aberdeen and southeast of Ellon; the main group of houses and the village school are located adjacent to the main A90 ...
, Aberdeenshire, where he received his schooling. Following that he attended the
University of Aberdeen
, mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom
, established =
, type = Public research universityAncient university
, endowment = £58.4 million (2021)
, budget ...
where he attained the degree of
Master of Arts
A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Th ...
at the age of 14.
Career
Fordyce had decided to study medicine and was apprenticed to his uncle, Dr. John Fordyce, in
Uppingham
Uppingham is a market town in Rutland, England, off the A47 between Leicester and Peterborough, south of the county town, Oakham. It had a population of 4,745 according to the 2011 census, estimated at 4,853 in 2019. It is known for its ...
, in
Rutland. He later returned to the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
, where he took his degree of
M.D.
Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. ...
in 1758; his
inaugural dissertation
A doctorate (from Latin ''docere'', "to teach"), doctor's degree (from Latin ''doctor'', "teacher"), or doctoral degree is an academic degree awarded by universities and some other educational institutions, derived from the ancient formalism ''li ...
was on
catarrh
Catarrh is an exudate of inflamed mucous membranes in one of the airways or cavities of the body, usually with reference to the throat and paranasal sinuses. It can result in a thick exudate of mucus and white blood cells caused by the swelling o ...
. From Edinburgh he went to
Leyden
Leiden (; in English and archaic Dutch also Leyden) is a city and municipality in the province of South Holland, Netherlands. The municipality of Leiden has a population of 119,713, but the city forms one densely connected agglomeration wit ...
, where he studied
anatomy
Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having it ...
under the famous
anatomist
Anatomy () is the branch of biology concerned with the study of the structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old science, having it ...
Bernhard Siegfried Albinus
Bernhard Siegfried Albinus (originally Weiss; 24 February 16979 September 1770) was a German-born Dutch anatomist. He served a professor of medicine at the University of Leiden like his father Bernhard Albinus (1653–1721). He also published ...
.
In 1759 he returned to England, having decided to settle in London as a teacher and medical practitioner. Despite his relations' disapproval, he persisted, and by the end of 1759 had commenced a course of lectures upon chemistry. In 1764, he also began to lecture upon ''
Materia medica'' and the
practice of physic. He delivered these lectures for nearly 30 years. According to the
Dictionary of National Biography, his habits had always been such as to try his constitution; and in early life, it is said, he often reconciled the claims of pleasure and business by lecturing for three hours in the morning without having gone to bed the night before.
In 1765 he became a
licentiate of the
Royal College of Physicians
The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...
and in 1770 was elected physician to
St Thomas' Hospital. In 1774 he was chosen as a member of the
Literary Club, in 1776 a
Fellow of the Royal Society
Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the judges of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural knowledge, including mathemat ...
, and in 1778 a Fellow of the
Royal College of Physicians
The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...
. This latter was chiefly to secure his assistance with a new edition of the College's ''
Pharmacopoeia
A pharmacopoeia, pharmacopeia, or pharmacopoea (from the obsolete typography ''pharmacopœia'', meaning "drug-making"), in its modern technical sense, is a book containing directions for the identification of compound medicines, and published by ...
''. He was
Harveian Orator
The Harveian Oration is a yearly lecture held at the Royal College of Physicians of London. It was instituted in 1656 by William Harvey, discoverer of the systemic circulation. Harvey made financial provision for the college to hold an annual feas ...
in 1791.
In 1783, with John Hunter, he assisted in setting up a small society of physicians and
surgeons, which later published several volumes of transactions under the title of ''Transactions of a Society for the improvement of medical and chirurgical knowledge'', and attended its meetings regularly until shortly before his death.
Dining habits
Fordyce was an
eccentric, who ate only one meal of meat a day at the same hour in the same place. He would always eat a pound and a half of
rump steak
Rump steak is a cut of beef. The rump is the division between
the leg and the chine cut right through the aitch bone. It may refer to:
* A steak from the top half of an American-cut round steak primal
* A British- or Australian-cut from the ru ...
and whilst this was being prepared, half a broiled chicken or plate of fish.
[McCormmach, Russell. (2014). ''The Personality of Henry Cavendish - A Great Scientist with Extraordinary Peculiarities''. Springer. p. 125. ]
As reported in
The Epicure's Almanack
''The Epicure's Almanack; or, Calendar of Good Living'', was a guide to eating establishments in London, written by Ralph Rylance and published by Longman in 1815. Given the poor reception of the initial printing, there was no effort to pull toge ...
(1815, page 3), Fordyce dined daily at Dolly's Chophouse:
:"At this house the ingenious anatomist and chemical lecturer, Dr. George Fordyce, dined every day for more than twenty years. His research in comparative anatomy had led him to conclude that man, through custom, eats oftener than nature requires, one meal a day being sufficient for that noble animal the lion. He made the experiment on himself at this, his favorite house, and finding it succeeded, he continued the following regimen for the term above mentioned. At four o'clock, his accustomed hour of dining, he entered, and took his seat at a table always reserved for him, on which were instantly placed a silver tankard full of strong ale; a bottle of port wine, and a measure containing a quarter pint of brandy. The moment the waiter announced him, the cook put a pound and a half of rump steak on the gridiron, and on the table a delicate trifle as a ''bon bouche'', to serve until the steak was ready. This morsel was sometimes half a broiled chicken, sometimes a plate of fish: when he had eaten this, he took one glass of his brandy, and then proceeded to devour his steak. We say devour, because he always ate so rapidly that one might imagine that he was hurrying away to a patient, to deprive death of a dinner. When he had finished his meat, he took the remainder of his brandy, having, during his dinner, drunk the tankard of ale, and afterwards the bottle of port. He thus daily spent an hour and a half of his time, and then returned to his house in Essex Street, to give his six-o'clock lecture on chemistry. He made no other meal until his return next day at four o'clock to Dolly's."
Family
In 1762 he married the daughter of Charles Stuart, Esq., conservator of Scottish privileges in the
United Netherlands, by whom he had four children: two sons and two daughters. His daughter
Mary Sophia Fordyce married
Samuel Bentham
Sir Samuel Bentham (11 January 1757 – 31 May 1831) was a noted English mechanical engineer and naval architect credited with numerous innovations, particularly related to naval architecture, including weapons. He was the only surviving siblin ...
(
Jeremy Bentham
Jeremy Bentham (; 15 February 1748 Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates">O.S._4_February_1747.html" ;"title="Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.html" ;"title="nowiki/>Old Style and New Style dates">O.S. 4 February 1747">Old_Style_and_New_Style_dates.htm ...
's brother).
He died in London in 1802, of disorders connected with gout, and was buried at St Anne's, Soho.
Bibliography
Books
* ''Elements of Agriculture and Vegetation'' (London, 1781). This was a collection of a course of lectures assembled by one of his listeners. Fordyce corrected the copy, and afterwards published it under this title.
* ''Elements of the practice of Physic'' (London, 1768–1770). This was used by him as a textbook for a part of his course of lectures on that subject.
* ''A Treatise on the Digestion of Food'' (London, 1791). It was originally read before the College of Physicians, as the Guelstonian Lecture.
* ''Four Dissertations on Fever'' (1794–1803). A fifth, which completed the subject, was left by him in manuscript form, and posthumously published
Boston 1823 edition.
Papers
Published in the ''
Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society
''Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society'' is a scientific journal published by the Royal Society. In its earliest days, it was a private venture of the Royal Society's secretary. It was established in 1665, making it the first journa ...
'':
*''Of the Light produced by Inflammation''.
*''Examination of various Ores in the Museum of Dr W. Hunter''.
*''A New Method of assaying Copper Ores''.
*''An Account of some Experiments on the Loss of Weight in Bodies on being melted or heated''.
*''An Account of an Experiment on Heat''.
*''The Cronian Lecture on Muscular Motion''.
*''On the Cause of the additional Weight which Metals acquire on being calcined''.
*''Account of a New Pendulum, being the Bakerian Lecture''.
Published in the ''Medical and Chirurgical Transactions'':
*''Observations on the Small-pox, and Causes of Fever''.
*''An Attempt to improve the Evidence of Medicine''.
*''Some Observations upon the composition of Medicines''.
References
Further reading
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fordyce, George
1736 births
1802 deaths
Fellows of the Royal Society
People from Aberdeen
Scottish chemists
18th-century Scottish medical doctors
Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians
Alumni of the University of Aberdeen
Scottish scholars and academics
Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
Leiden University alumni