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John French (1616–1657) was an
John French is chiefly remembered for publishing in 1651 ''The Art of Distillation'', a detailed handbook of knowledge and practice at the time, said to be possibly the earliest definitive book on British Library Card Catalog entry
/ref> All other English translations of the book available have been merely edited versions of his work.
(online text) * * {{DEFAULTSORT:French, John 1616 births 1657 deaths 17th-century English medical doctors Alumni of the University of Oxford 17th-century English chemists
English
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Peoples, culture, and language
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** English national ide ...
physician
A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...
known for his contributions to chemistry (in particular, distillation
Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heat ...
) as well as for his English translations of Latin and German works.
Life
He was born in 1616 at Broughton, nearBanbury
Banbury is a historic market town on the River Cherwell in Oxfordshire, South East England. It had a population of 54,335 at the 2021 Census.
Banbury is a significant commercial and retail centre for the surrounding area of north Oxfordshir ...
, Oxfordshire. He obtained a B.A.
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...
degree from Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to th ...
in 1637 and an M.A.
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. Tho ...
in 1640, qualifying as a physician
A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...
with an MD in 1648. He died in 1657 near Boulogne while serving as a physician to the English army. He left a widow, Mary, and a son, John.
He lived at a time when the new science of chemistry was developing from alchemy
Alchemy (from Arabic: ''al-kīmiyā''; from Ancient Greek: χυμεία, ''khumeía'') is an ancient branch of natural philosophy, a philosophical and protoscientific tradition that was historically practiced in China, India, the Muslim world, ...
and was an enthusiast for its application to medicine
Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pr ...
. He was known for his extensive knowledge of chemistry and was respected by scientists of the time such as Robert Boyle
Robert Boyle (; 25 January 1627 – 31 December 1691) was an Anglo-Irish natural philosopher, chemist, physicist, alchemist and inventor. Boyle is largely regarded today as the first modern chemist, and therefore one of the founders of ...
.
Works
John French is chiefly remembered for publishing in 1651 ''The Art of Distillation'', a detailed handbook of knowledge and practice at the time, said to be possibly the earliest definitive book on distillation
Distillation, or classical distillation, is the process of separating the components or substances from a liquid mixture by using selective boiling and condensation, usually inside an apparatus known as a still. Dry distillation is the heat ...
. However, it has been claimed that much of it was a translation of an earlier (1500) German
German(s) may refer to:
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** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law
**Ge ...
text by Hieronymus Brunschwig
Hieronymus Brunschwig or Hieronymus Brunschwygk (c. 1450c. 1512) was a German surgeon ("Wundarzt"), alchemist and botanist. He was notable for his methods of treatment of gunshot wounds and for his early work on distillation techniques. His most i ...
.
John French was also the translator of ''Three Books of Occult Philosophy
''Three Books of Occult Philosophy'' (''De Occulta Philosophia libri III'') is Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa's study of occult philosophy, acknowledged as a significant contribution to the Renaissance philosophical discussion concerning the power ...
'' in 1651 (original: ''De Occulta Philosophia libri tres'' by Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa
Heinrich Cornelius Agrippa von Nettesheim (; ; 14 September 1486 – 18 February 1535) was a German polymath, physician, legal scholar, soldier, theologian, and occult writer. Agrippa's '' Three Books of Occult Philosophy'' published in 1533 dre ...
, although he was only identified as ''J.F.'' in that work./ref> All other English translations of the book available have been merely edited versions of his work.
References
Further reading
*External links
(online text) * * {{DEFAULTSORT:French, John 1616 births 1657 deaths 17th-century English medical doctors Alumni of the University of Oxford 17th-century English chemists