Sir Robert Christison, 1st Baronet, (18 July 1797 – 27 January 1882) was a
Scottish toxicologist
Toxicology is a scientific discipline, overlapping with biology, chemistry, pharmacology, and medicine, that involves the study of the adverse effects of chemical substances on living organisms and the practice of diagnosing and treating ex ...
and
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 ...
who served as president of the
Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
The Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (RCPE) is a medical royal college in Scotland. It is one of three organisations that sets the specialty training standards for physicians in the United Kingdom. It was established by Royal charter ...
(1838–40 and 1846-8) and as president of the
British Medical Association
The British Medical Association (BMA) is a registered trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. The association does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The association's headquar ...
(1875).
He was the first person to describe renal
anaemia
Anemia or anaemia (British English) is a blood disorder in which the blood has a reduced ability to carry oxygen due to a lower than normal number of red blood cells, or a reduction in the amount of hemoglobin. When anemia comes on slowly, th ...
.
Life
Christison was born at 144 Nicolson Street in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
,
the son of Margaret Johnstone and
Alexander Christison FRSE
Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". This soci ...
(1753–1820). He was a twin, his elder brother (by a few minutes) being later Rev. Alexander Christison (1797–1874). He attended the
Royal High School before studying medicine at
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 ...
, graduating in 1819. At this time the family were living at 4 Argyll Square.
He then spent a short time in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, studying under
John Abernethy John Abernethy may refer to:
* John Abernethy (bishop), Scottish bishop, died 1639
* John Abernethy (judge) (born 1947), Australian judge
*John Abernethy (minister) (1680–1740), Presbyterian minister in Ireland
*John Abernethy (surgeon) (1764–18 ...
and Sir
William Lawrence, and in
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
, where he learned
analytical chemistry
Analytical chemistry studies and uses instruments and methods to separate, identify, and quantify matter. In practice, separation, identification or quantification may constitute the entire analysis or be combined with another method. Separati ...
from
Pierre Robiquet
Pierre Jean Robiquet (13 January 1780 – 29 April 1840) was a French chemist. He laid founding work in identifying amino acids, the fundamental building blocks of proteins. He did this through recognizing the first of them, asparagine, in 1806 ...
and
toxicology
Toxicology is a scientific discipline, overlapping with biology, chemistry, pharmacology, and medicine, that involves the study of the adverse effects of chemical substances on living organisms and the practice of diagnosing and treating expo ...
from
Mathieu Orfila
Mathieu Joseph Bonaventure Orfila (Catalan: ''Mateu Josep Bonaventura Orfila i Rotger'') (24 April 1787 – 12 March 1853) was a Spanish toxicologist and chemist, the founder of the science of toxicology.
Role in forensic toxicology
If th ...
.
[ In 1822 he returned to Edinburgh as professor of ]medical jurisprudence
Medical jurisprudence or legal medicine is the branch of science and medicine involving the study and application of scientific and medical knowledge to legal problems, such as inquests, and in the field of law. As modern medicine is a legal ...
and set to work to organise the study of his subject on a sound basis. He became an authority on poison
Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...
s, and his treatise on them was published in 1829. In the course of his research he undertook experiments on himself such as taking large doses of calabar bean
''Physostigma venenosum'', the Calabar bean or ordeal bean, is a leguminous plant, Endemic to tropical Africa, with a seed poisonous to humans. It derives the first part of its scientific name from a curious beak-like appendage at the end of th ...
(physostigmine
Physostigmine (also known as eserine from ''éséré'', the West African name for the Calabar bean) is a highly toxic parasympathomimetic alkaloid, specifically, a reversible cholinesterase inhibitor. It occurs naturally in the Calabar bean and ...
). In 1827, he was appointed physician-in-ordinary to the Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh
The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, or RIE, often (but incorrectly) known as the Edinburgh Royal Infirmary, or ERI, was established in 1729 and is the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The new buildings of 1879 were claimed to be the largest v ...
, a position he held until 1832. His attainments in medical jurisprudence and toxicology procured him the appointment, in 1829, of medical officer to the crown
The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has different ...
in Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
. From that time until 1866 he was called as a witness in many celebrated criminal cases, including the Burke and Hare murders
The Burke and Hare murders were a series of sixteen killings committed over a period of about ten months in 1828 in Edinburgh, Scotland. They were undertaken by William Burke and William Hare, who sold the corpses to Robert Knox for dissectio ...
.
In 1832, Christison gave up the chair of medical jurisprudence and accepted that of medicine and therapeutics, which he held until 1877; at the same time he became professor of clinical medicine, and continued in that capacity until 1855. At this time his address is listed as 3 Great Stuart Street on the Moray Estate, a large Georgian townhouse in the west end of Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
, a desirable area.
His fame as a toxicologist and medical jurist, together with his work on the pathology
Pathology is the study of the causes and effects of disease or injury. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in ...
of the kidney
The kidneys are two reddish-brown bean-shaped organs found in vertebrates. They are located on the left and right in the retroperitoneal space, and in adult humans are about in length. They receive blood from the paired renal arteries; blood ...
s and on fever
Fever, also referred to as pyrexia, is defined as having a body temperature, temperature above the human body temperature, normal range due to an increase in the body's temperature Human body temperature#Fever, set point. There is not a single ...
s, secured him a large private practice, and he succeeded to a fair share of the honors that commonly attend the successful physician, being appointed physician to Queen Victoria
Victoria (Alexandrina Victoria; 24 May 1819 – 22 January 1901) was Queen of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland from 20 June 1837 until Death and state funeral of Queen Victoria, her death in 1901. Her reign of 63 years and 21 ...
in 1848 and receiving a baronet
A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...
cy in 1871. Among the books which he published were a treatise on ''Granular Degeneration of the Kidneys'' (1839), and a ''Commentary on the Pharmacopoeias of Great Britain'' (1842).
In 1841, he was elected as a member of the American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
.
Christison was a strong opposer of women in the field of medicine, a view in Edinburgh eventually undermined by his colleague, Patrick Heron Watson
Sir Patrick Heron Watson (5 January 1832 – 21 December 1907) was an eminent 19th-century Scottish surgeon and pioneer of anaesthetic development. He was associated with a number of surgical innovations including excision of the knee jo ...
's admission of women students to his extra mural surgery classes. A further (still controversial) proposal was his creation of a system of lethal injection
Lethal injection is the practice of injecting one or more drugs into a person (typically a barbiturate, paralytic, and potassium solution) for the express purpose of causing rapid death. The main application for this procedure is capital puni ...
(through the discovery of physostigmine
Physostigmine (also known as eserine from ''éséré'', the West African name for the Calabar bean) is a highly toxic parasympathomimetic alkaloid, specifically, a reversible cholinesterase inhibitor. It occurs naturally in the Calabar bean and ...
in 1846) for human execution, in place of hanging. For various reasons, although this seems to pre-date its introduction into American use by 40 years, the method never appealed to British sensibilities.
Christison served as Vice President of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...
1845–1868 and was its President from 1868 to 1873.
From 1875 to 1881, he served as a vice-president of the Cockburn Association
The Cockburn Association (Edinburgh's Civic Trust) is one of the world's oldest architectural conservation and urban planning monitoring organisations, founded in 1875.
The Scottish judge Henry Cockburn (1779–1854) was a prominent campaigner t ...
, a newly established campaigning conservationist group in Edinburgh.
Christison, who retained remarkable physical vigour and activity until old age, died at home, 40 Moray Place in Edinburgh on 27 January 1882. He is buried in New Calton Cemetery
New Calton Burial Ground is a burial ground in Edinburgh. It was built as an overspill and functional replacement to Old Calton Burial Ground and lies half a mile to its east on Regent Road in Edinburgh, Scotland, on the south-east slopes of Ca ...
in a family plot created by his father, Alexander Christison (who is buried in Greyfriars Kirkyard
Greyfriars Kirkyard is the graveyard surrounding Greyfriars Kirk in Edinburgh, Scotland. It is located at the southern edge of the Old Town, adjacent to George Heriot's School. Burials have been taking place since the late 16th century, and a num ...
and only memorialised here), on one of the south-facing terraces.
Opposition to women doctors
Christison was unequivocally opposed to women studying medicine and qualifying as doctors, and led the campaign against Sophia Jex-Blake
Sophia Louisa Jex-Blake (21 January 1840 – 7 January 1912) was an English physician, teacher and feminist. She led the campaign to secure women access to a University education when she and six other women, collectively known as the Edi ...
and the Edinburgh Seven
The Edinburgh Seven were the first group of matriculated undergraduate female students at any British university. They began studying medicine at the University of Edinburgh in 1869 and, although the Court of Session ruled that they should neve ...
. He was an influential figure both within the University and in the wider civic life of Edinburgh, and his opinion was held in high regard.
When the Senatus met on 9 April 1870 to discuss the issue of Edith Pechey's right to a Hope Scholarship having come top of the class in the chemistry exam, he made his opinions clear.
He shared the view of many of his contemporaries that nature intended women to be mothers and housekeepers, and lacked the intellectual ability and stamina of men. Consequently, if women were to enter any learned profession in significant numbers they would lower its standards.
His influence was largely responsible for the eventual decision taken by the University not to allow the women to graduate.
James Stansfeld
Sir James Stansfeld, (; 5 March 182017 February 1898) was a British Radical and Liberal politician and social reformer who served as Under-Secretary of State for India (1866), Financial Secretary to the Treasury (1869–71) and President of ...
, who had been closely associated with the London campaign (following the failure of the Edinburgh campaign) wrote, in his brief history of the events, in 1877:
″Dr Sophia Jex-Blake has made the greatest of all contributions to the end attained. I do not say that she has been the ultimate cause of success. The ultimate cause has been simply this, that the time was at hand. It is one of the lessons of the history of progress that when the time for reform has come you cannot resist it, though if you make the attempt, what you may do is to widen its character or precipitate its advent. Opponents, when the time has come, are not merely dragged at the chariot wheels of progress – they help to turn them. The strongest forces, whichever way it seems to work, does most to aid. The forces of greatest concentration here have been, in my view, on the one hand the Edinburgh University led by Sir Robert Christison, on the other the women claimants led by Dr Sophia Jex-Blake.″
Family
On 20 October 1827 he and Henrietta Sophia Brown (1799–1843) were married and together they had three sons, including Sir Alexander Christison
Sir Alexander Christison, 2nd Baronet (26 August 1828 – 14 October 1918) was a member of the Edinburgh Christison medical dynasty. He was one of the first doctors to write on the medical benefits of cannabis.
He spent most of his working li ...
(who inherited the baronetcy) and Dr David Christison (1830-1912).
Works
*''A Dispensatory, or Commentary on the Pharmacopoeias of Great Britain : comprising the natural History, Description, Chemistry, Pharmacy, Actions, Uses, and Doses of the Articles of the Materia Medica''.
**2nd Ed. with 213 Ill. / by R. Eglesfeld Griffith. Philadelphia : Lea & Blanchard, 1848
Digital edition
by the University and State Library Düsseldorf
The University and State Library Düsseldorf (german: Universitäts- und Landesbibliothek Düsseldorf, abbreviated ULB Düsseldorf) is a central service institution of Heinrich Heine University. Along with Bonn and Münster, it is also one of th ...
See also
* Douglas Maclagan
Sir Andrew Douglas Maclagan PRSE FRCPE FRCSE FCS FRSSA (17 April 1812, in Ayr – 5 April 1900, in Edinburgh) was a Scottish surgeon, toxicologist and scholar of medical jurisprudence. He served as president of 5 learned societies: the Ro ...
* Christison baronets
The Christison Baronetcy relates to the Christisons of Moray Place in the City of Edinburgh, and was a title in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom. It was created on 28 November 1871 for the Scottish toxicologist and physician Robert Christiso ...
References
Citations
Bibliography
*
*
entry for Robert Christison
National Probate Calendar (Index of Wills and Administrations)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Christison, Robert
1797 births
1882 deaths
19th-century Scottish people
Medical doctors from Edinburgh
People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh
Academics of the University of Edinburgh
Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom
British toxicologists
Medical jurisprudence
Scottish surgeons
19th-century Scottish medical doctors
Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh
Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh
Presidents of the British Medical Association
Presidents of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Burials at the New Calton Burial Ground
Scottish twins