William Cullen
FRS 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 ...
FRCPE
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 ...
FPSG
The Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow, is an institute of physicians and surgeons in Glasgow, Scotland.
Founded by Peter Lowe after receiving a royal charter by James VI in 1599, as the Glasgow Faculty, it originally exis ...
(; 15 April 17105 February 1790) was a Scottish physician,
chemist
A chemist (from Greek ''chēm(ía)'' alchemy; replacing ''chymist'' from Medieval Latin ''alchemist'') is a scientist trained in the study of chemistry. Chemists study the composition of matter and its properties. Chemists carefully describe th ...
and
agriculturalist
An agriculturist, agriculturalist, agrologist, or agronomist (abbreviated as agr.), is a professional in the science, practice, and management of agriculture and agribusiness. It is a regulated profession in Canada, India, the Philippines, the ...
, and professor at the
Edinburgh Medical School
The University of Edinburgh Medical School (also known as Edinburgh Medical School) is the medical school of the University of Edinburgh in Scotland and the United Kingdom and part of the College of Medicine and Veterinary Medicine. It was est ...
. Cullen was a central figure in the
Scottish Enlightenment
The Scottish Enlightenment ( sco, Scots Enlichtenment, gd, Soillseachadh na h-Alba) was the period in 18th- and early-19th-century Scotland characterised by an outpouring of intellectual and scientific accomplishments. By the eighteenth century ...
: He was
David Hume
David Hume (; born David Home; 7 May 1711 NS (26 April 1711 OS) – 25 August 1776) Cranston, Maurice, and Thomas Edmund Jessop. 2020 999br>David Hume" ''Encyclopædia Britannica''. Retrieved 18 May 2020. was a Scottish Enlightenment philo ...
's physician, and was friends with
Joseph Black
Joseph Black (16 April 1728 – 6 December 1799) was a Scottish physicist and chemist, known for his discoveries of magnesium, latent heat, specific heat, and carbon dioxide. He was Professor of Anatomy and Chemistry at the University of Glas ...
,
Henry Home
Henry Home, Lord Kames (169627 December 1782) was a Scottish writer, philosopher, advocate, judge, and agricultural improver. A central figure of the Scottish Enlightenment, a founding member of the Philosophical Society of Edinburgh, and act ...
,
Adam Ferguson
Adam Ferguson, (Scottish Gaelic: ''Adhamh MacFhearghais''), also known as Ferguson of Raith (1 July N.S./20 June O.S. 1723 – 22 February 1816), was a Scottish philosopher and historian of the Scottish Enlightenment.
Ferguson was sympathet ...
,
John Millar, and
Adam Smith
Adam Smith (baptized 1723 – 17 July 1790) was a Scottish economist and philosopher who was a pioneer in the thinking of political economy and key figure during the Scottish Enlightenment. Seen by some as "The Father of Economics"——— ...
, among others.
He was President of the Royal College of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow (1746–47), 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 ...
(1773–1775) and First Physician to the King in Scotland (1773–1790). He also assisted in obtaining a
royal charter
A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, bu ...
for the Philosophical Society of Edinburgh, resulting in the formation 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 ...
in 1783.
Cullen was a beloved teacher, and many of his students became influential figures. He kept in contact with many of his students, including
Benjamin Rush
Benjamin Rush (April 19, 1813) was a Founding Fathers of the United States, Founding Father of the United States who signed the United States Declaration of Independence, and a civic leader in Philadelphia, where he was a physician, politician, ...
, a central figure in the founding of the United States of America;
John Morgan, who founded the first medical school in the American colonies, the Medical School at the
College of Philadelphia
The Academy and College of Philadelphia (1749-1791) was a boys' school and men's college in Philadelphia, Colony of Pennsylvania.
Founded in 1749 by a group of local notables that included Benjamin Franklin, the Academy of Philadelphia began as ...
;
William Withering
William Withering FRS (17 March 1741 – 6 October 1799) was an English botanist, geologist, chemist, physician and first systematic investigator of the bioactivity of digitalis.
Withering was born in Wellington, Shropshire, the son of a surg ...
, the discoverer of
digitalis
''Digitalis'' ( or ) is a genus of about 20 species of herbaceous perennial plants, shrubs, and biennials, commonly called foxgloves.
''Digitalis'' is native to Europe, western Asia, and northwestern Africa. The flowers are tubular in sha ...
;
Sir Gilbert Blane, medical reformer of the
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy (RN) is the United Kingdom's naval warfare force. Although warships were used by English and Scottish kings from the early medieval period, the first major maritime engagements were fought in the Hundred Years' War against F ...
; and
John Coakley Lettsom
John Coakley Lettsom (1744 – 1 November 1815, also Lettsome) was an English physician and philanthropist born on Little Jost Van Dyke in the British Virgin Islands into an early Quaker settlement. The son of a West Indian planter and an Iris ...
, the philanthropist and founder of the
Medical Society of London
The Medical Society of London is one of the oldest surviving medical societies (being organisations of voluntary association, rather than regulation or training) in the United Kingdom.
It was founded in 1773 by the Quaker physician and philanthrop ...
.
Cullen's student and later rival
John Brown John Brown most often refers to:
*John Brown (abolitionist) (1800–1859), American who led an anti-slavery raid in Harpers Ferry, Virginia in 1859
John Brown or Johnny Brown may also refer to:
Academia
* John Brown (educator) (1763–1842), Ir ...
developed the medical system known as
Brunonianism, which conflicted with Cullen's. The competition between the two systems had knock-on effects in how patients were treated worldwide, especially in Italy and Germany, during the end of the eighteenth and beginning of the nineteenth century.
Cullen was also an author. He published a number of medical textbooks, mostly for the use of his students, though they were popular in Europe and the American colonies. His best known work was ''First Lines of the Practice of Physic'', which was published in a series of editions between 1777 and 1784, and inventing the basis of modern refrigeration.
Early life
Cullen was born in
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to:
People
* Hamilton (name), a common British surname and occasional given name, usually of Scottish origin, including a list of persons with the surname
** The Duke of Hamilton, the premier peer of Scotland
** Lord Hamilt ...
, Lanarkshire.
His father William was a lawyer retained by the
Duke of Hamilton
Duke of Hamilton is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in April 1643. It is the senior dukedom in that peerage (except for the Dukedom of Rothesay held by the Sovereign's eldest son), and as such its holder is the premier peer of Sco ...
as
factor
Factor, a Latin word meaning "who/which acts", may refer to:
Commerce
* Factor (agent), a person who acts for, notably a mercantile and colonial agent
* Factor (Scotland), a person or firm managing a Scottish estate
* Factors of production, suc ...
, and his mother was Elizabeth Roberton of Whistlebury. He studied at the Old Grammar School of Hamilton (renamed in 1848 The
Hamilton Academy
Hamilton Academy was a school in Hamilton, South Lanarkshire, Scotland.
The school was described as "one of the finest schools in Scotland" in the Cambridge University Press County Biography of 1910, and was featured in a 1950 Scottish Seconda ...
), then, in 1726, began a General Studies arts course at the
University of Glasgow
, image = UofG Coat of Arms.png
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
Flag
, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
. He began his medical training as apprentice to John Paisley, a
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
apothecary surgeon, then spent 1729 as surgeon on a merchant vessel trading between London and the
West Indies
The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...
. After two years as assistant apothecary to Mr Murray of Henrietta Street, London, he returned to Scotland in 1732 to establish himself in general medical practice in the parish of
Shotts
Shotts is a town in North Lanarkshire, Scotland. It is located almost halfway between Glasgow () and Edinburgh (). The village has a population of about 8,840. A local story has Shotts being named after the legendary giant highwayman Bertram de ...
, Lanarkshire. From 1734 to 1736 he studied medicine at 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 became interested in chemistry, and was one of the founders of the
Royal Medical Society
The Royal Medical Society (RMS) is a society run by students at the University of Edinburgh Medical School, Scotland. It claims to be the oldest medical society in the United Kingdom although this claim is also made by the earlier London-based ...
in his first year of study.
In 1736 he began medical practice in Hamilton, where he rapidly acquired a high reputation. He also continued his study of the
natural science
Natural science is one of the branches of science concerned with the description, understanding and prediction of natural phenomena, based on empirical evidence from observation and experimentation. Mechanisms such as peer review and repeatab ...
s, especially of
chemistry
Chemistry is the science, scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the Chemical element, elements that make up matter to the chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions ...
. From 1737 to 1740
William Hunter was his resident pupil, and at one time they proposed to enter into partnership. In 1740 Cullen was awarded the degree of MD from
Glasgow University
, image = UofG Coat of Arms.png
, image_size = 150px
, caption = Coat of arms
Flag
, latin_name = Universitas Glasguensis
, motto = la, Via, Veritas, Vita
, ...
. In 1741, he married and started his family. He became ordinary medical attendant to James Douglas, 5th
Duke of Hamilton
Duke of Hamilton is a title in the Peerage of Scotland, created in April 1643. It is the senior dukedom in that peerage (except for the Dukedom of Rothesay held by the Sovereign's eldest son), and as such its holder is the premier peer of Sco ...
(1703–43), his family, and his livestock. In 1744, following the Duke's death, the Cullens moved to
Glasgow
Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...
.
In Glasgow he gave extramural lectures for the university, on physiology, botany, materia medica, and chemistry. His great abilities, enthusiasm, and use of practical demonstrations for instruction, made him a successful and highly popular teacher, attracting large classes. At the same time he also maintained a medical practice. In 1747, Cullen was awarded Britain's first independent lectureship in Chemistry and was elected President of the Faculty of Physicians and Surgeons of Glasgow. In 1748 while in Glasgow, Cullen invented the basis for modern refrigeration, although is not credited with a usable application.
In 1751 he was appointed
Professor of the Practice of Medicine, although he continued to lecture on chemistry.
Edinburgh
In 1755 he was enticed by
Lord Kames
Henry Home, Lord Kames (169627 December 1782) was a Scottish writer, philosopher, advocate, judge, and agricultural improver. A central figure of the Scottish Enlightenment, a founding member of the Philosophical Society of Edinburgh, and act ...
to become Professor of Chemistry and Medicine at 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 ...
. It was in Edinburgh, in 1756, that he gave the first documented public demonstration of artificial
refrigeration
The term refrigeration refers to the process of removing heat from an enclosed space or substance for the purpose of lowering the temperature.International Dictionary of Refrigeration, http://dictionary.iifiir.org/search.phpASHRAE Terminology, ht ...
. Cullen used a pump to create a partial
vacuum
A vacuum is a space devoid of matter. The word is derived from the Latin adjective ''vacuus'' for "vacant" or "void". An approximation to such vacuum is a region with a gaseous pressure much less than atmospheric pressure. Physicists often dis ...
over a container of
diethyl ether
Diethyl ether, or simply ether, is an organic compound in the ether class with the formula , sometimes abbreviated as (see Pseudoelement symbols). It is a colourless, highly volatile, sweet-smelling ("ethereal odour"), extremely flammable liq ...
, which then
boiled
Boiling is the rapid vaporization of a liquid, which occurs when a liquid is heated to its boiling point, the temperature at which the vapour pressure of the liquid is equal to the pressure exerted on the liquid by the surrounding atmosphere. T ...
, absorbing
heat
In thermodynamics, heat is defined as the form of energy crossing the boundary of a thermodynamic system by virtue of a temperature difference across the boundary. A thermodynamic system does not ''contain'' heat. Nevertheless, the term is al ...
from the surroundings. This created a small amount of ice, but the process found no commercial application.
From 1757 he delivered lectures on
clinical 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 practice ...
in the
Edinburgh Royal Infirmary
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 ...
. On the death of
Charles Alston
Charles Henry Alston (November 28, 1907 – April 27, 1977) was an American painter, sculptor, illustrator, muralist and teacher who lived and worked in the New York City neighborhood of Harlem. Alston was active in the Harlem Renaissance; Als ...
in 1760, Cullen at the request of the students undertook to finish his course of lectures on ''materia medica''; he delivered an entirely new course, notes of which were published in an unauthorised edition in 1771, but which he re-wrote and issued as ''A Treatise on Materia Medica'' in 1789.
On the death of
Robert Whytt
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
, the professor of the institutes of medicine, in 1766, Cullen accepted the chair, at the same time resigning that of chemistry. In the same year, he had been an unsuccessful candidate for the professorship of the practice of physic (medicine), but subsequently an arrangement was made between him and
John Gregory, the successful candidate, by which they both agreed to deliver alternate courses on the theory and practice of medicine. This arrangement continued until the sudden death of Gregory in 1773. Cullen was then appointed sole professor of the practice of physic, and he continued in this office until a few months before his death.
In 1783 Cullen (together with his sons) was a co-founder 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 ...
.
He died on 5 February 1790 at his home Ormiston Hill in
, and is buried in the churchyard there. His son
Robert
The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...
lies with him.
Influence
Cullen taught many students who would go on to influential careers in British science. Indeed, a large number of the doctors who taught in Edinburgh's medical school from the 1790s to 1810s had studied with him, including the chemist Joseph Black, the anatomist
Alexander Monro Secundus, and the naturalist
John Walker. Cullen's emphasis on the practical benefits of chemistry made his ideas popular amongst farmers, industrialists, naturalists and doctors alike. His influence on these fields was felt through the writings of his students, particularly in the books of John Anderson, the 'Aberdeen Agricola', and the lectures given by Joseph Black and John Walker from the 1770s to 1790s.
By studying the symptoms of diseases, Cullen classified diseases into different classes. One class of diseases was called "neuroses."
Medical practice
In the 18th century, there were three primary professions in medicine: physicians, surgeons, and apothecaries, although the barriers among them were starting to become blurred. William Cullen practiced as all three.
Because medical practitioners were not as established as they are now, patients generally took advice from a myriad of sources, including personal experience, books, and several consultations. Furthermore, because the diagnostic tools were not as advanced, patient history was the primary and most important information for the physicians to diagnose their patients.
There were no strict government regulations in place for physicians, surgeons, and apothecaries.
As a result, to become successful in the medical marketplace depended more on social skills than on medical expertise, similar to other forms of businesses.
Cullen was one of the more successful physicians because of his shrewdness in handling difficult patients.
Teaching at the University and seeing patients at the Edinburgh Infirmary as charity also helped Cullen become more famous.
Many of Cullen's consultations were done through written letters sent by patients from Scottish cities and towns.
Cullen managed his consultations with great efficiency; he usually read the letters early in the morning and his secretary-
amanuensis
An amanuensis () is a person employed to write or type what another dictates or to copy what has been written by another, and also refers to a person who signs a document on behalf of another under the latter's authority. In one example Eric Fenby ...
would record and mail back his responses.
He then went around Edinburgh to visit patients. This form of epistolary consultations was often limited by the literacy and socioeconomic status of the patients. Patients who would write letters to Cullen were usually in the upper and middle class. Besides letters from patients, he also consulted physicians, often students he had taught.
Based on how his letters were written, Cullen was most likely a "tactful and compassionate practitioner."
Like many physicians in his time, Cullen would often prescribe therapeutics "to support the patient's endangered constitution and assist the body's natural healing tendencies."
This is because medical practitioners at the time mostly believed that diseases and illnesses were unique to different patients depending on their constitutions.
Medical teaching
According to Rocca, Cullen was known for systemizing and promoting medical knowledge rather than producing original research.
Despite the lack of original work, some believed that Cullen's attempt to organize existing knowledge was actually a sign of his "practical sagacity" as a practitioner.
He was a lecturer for more than forty years.
In order to understand Cullen's medical teaching at the time, it is important to understand Cullen's conception of "system" as he taught it in his classes. Cullen described a system as "an organised body of opinions on particular topics in the medical curriculum."
He also referred to system as the principles in his book ''First Lines of the Practice of Physic.''
There were many possible reasons behind Cullen's emphasis of the system of medicine. In the 18th century, a period of Scottish Enlightenment, there were competing theories about the mechanisms of the human body and the causes of diseases proposed by different professors, who competed for students' teaching fees.
Thus, having an underlying system of medical knowledge was a practical way to organize the knowledge coherently for the students.
Like many prominent medical figures in the 18th century, William Cullen took a great interest in the nervous system. He defined the nervous system as an "animated machine" whose main function is to "perform a variety of motions," communicate and interact with "external bodies."
Cullen believed that the nervous system was composed of four elements: the medullary substance, consisting of the brain and the spinal cord, the membranous nerves, the sensory nerves, and the muscular fibers.
Cullen's understanding of the nervous system was also influenced by his contemporaries, one of whom was
Albrecht von Haller
Albrecht von Haller (also known as Albertus de Haller; 16 October 170812 December 1777) was a Swiss anatomist, physiologist, naturalist, encyclopedist, bibliographer and poet. A pupil of Herman Boerhaave, he is often referred to as "the fa ...
(1708–1777). Haller proposed that tissues, including muscles, were characterized by "irritability" (or contractility), while nerves were characterized by "sensibility" (or feeling).
Using Haller's characterization, Cullen defined disease "as an excess or deficiency of sensibility."
However, Cullen interpreted sensibility as "muscle mobility and vigour" and diseases were caused by the imbalance of irritability and sensibility.
Based on this definition of disease, his therapeutics "either stimulated or sedated the nervous system."
He categorized diseases into four main classes: pyrexiae, neuroses, cachexiae, and locales. Within the classes were nineteen orders and 132 genera.
The four orders of neuroses were comata, adynamiae, spasmi and vesaniae.
Comata was defined as "a diminution of voluntary motion, with sleep, or a deprivation of the senses." Adynamiae is defined as "a diminution of the involuntary motions, whether vital or natural." Spasmi was defined as "irregular motions of the muscles or muscular fibers." Vesaniae was defined as "disorders of the judgement without any pyrexia or coma."
Cullen's emphasis on the importance of the nervous system was driven by the understanding that the nervous system controls the human body and therefore, "all diseases may, in some sense, be called affections of the nervous system, because, in almost every disease, the nerves are more or less hurt."
Although Cullen's nosology did not last very long, Cullen's influential teachings on medical knowledge and his attempt to systematize and generalize medical knowledge were integral parts of 18th century Scottish Enlightenment.
Family
In 1741 he married Anne (or Anna) Johnstone (died 1786).
He was father to the judge
Robert Cullen, Lord Cullen and to the physician
Henry Cullen. Cullen's eldest son Robert became a Scottish judge in 1796 under the title of Lord Cullen later Baron Cullen, and was known for his powers of
mimicry
In evolutionary biology, mimicry is an evolved resemblance between an organism and another object, often an organism of another species. Mimicry may evolve between different species, or between individuals of the same species. Often, mimicry f ...
.
Publications
Because of the wide popularity of Cullen's work, many of his publications were translated into a multitude of languages across Europe.
Cullen's most popular and successful work was his medical textbook ''First Lines of the Practice of Physic'', published in two volumes in 1777 and expanded with each edition until it reached four volumes in its final edition (1784).
His first book-length publication was ''Synopsis Nosologiae Methodicae'' (1769), Cullen's very influential nosology, or classification of diseases. His next publication was also a medical textbook, and it dealt with the Institutions of medicine, i.e. medical theory. Its full title was ''Institutions of Medicine. Part I. Physiology'' (1772) because it focused on physiology, which was traditionally only one part of the Institutions (pathology and therapeutics were also essential parts of medical theory). It went through two more editions (1777 & 1785).
Work on his magnum opus, ''First Lines of Practice of Physic'', occupied much of his time in the 1770s and 1780s, but he did manage one final publication. This was his two volume ''A Treatise of the Materia Medica'' (1789), which was highly valued by other medical practitioners throughout Europe.
Thus, the following works, with their dates of publication (including multiple editions), comprise the majority of Cullen's ''oevre'':
*''Synopsis Nosologiae Methodicae'' (1769; 1771; 1780; 1785)
* ''Lectures on the Materia medica''. 2nd Ed. Dublin : Whitestone, 1781
Digital editionof 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 ...
.
* ''Cours de Matière médicale.'' Paris, 1788
Digital editionof 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 ...
.
*''Institutions of Medicine. Part I. Physiology'' (1772; 1777; 1785)
*''First Lines of the Practice of Physic'' (1777; 1778; 1781; 1784; 1793
vol. 1vol. 2)
*''A Treatise of the Materia Medica'' (1789)
**''Traité de Matière médicale'' translated by Édouard François Marie Bosquillon. Published: vol. 1 – 3. Pavie : Sauveur, 1791
Digital editionof 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 ...
.
** ''Trattato di Materia medica''. Involved: Dalladecima, Angelo. 2. Ed. Erschienen: Bd. 1 – 6. Padova : Bettinelli, 1798
Digital editionof 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 ...
.
Cullen also published a few, shorter works (e.g. "A Letter to Lord Cathcart" in 1776), which have not been included in this list.
References
*
Further reading
Basic biographical sources
*Thomson, John
''An Account of the Life, Lectures and Writings of William Cullen, M.D. Volume 1'' William Blackwood & T. Cadell, 1832.
*Thomson, John; Thomson, William;
Craigie, David''An Account of the Life, Lectures and Writings of William Cullen, M.D. Volume 2'' William Blackwood & Sons, 1859. This book, in conjunction with its predecessor (see previous reference), is the standard biography of William Cullen's life and thought.
*Doig, A., Ferguson, J. P. S., Milne, I. A., and Passmore, R (Editors). ''William Cullen and the Eighteenth Century Medical World''. Edinburgh University Press, 1993. This collection of edited essays is the most recent, full-length work on the life and thought of William Cullen. It was the result of an exhibition and symposium at the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh in 1990 to commemorate the bicentenary of Cullen's death.
*
* Eddy, M. D. 'Dr. William Cullen, M.D., (1710–1790)', ''New Dictionary of Scientific Biography'', Noretta Koertge (ed.), (New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 2007).
William Cullen and chemistry
*Donovan, Arthur L. ''Philosophical Chemistry in the Scottish Enlightenment: The Doctrines and Discoveries of William Cullen and Joseph Black''. Edinburgh: University Press, 1975.
*J V Golinski, "Utility and Audience in Eighteenth-Century Chemistry: Case Studies of William Cullen and Joseph Priestley," ''The British Journal for the History of Science'' (1988): 1–31.
*
* Eddy, M. D. ''The Language of Mineralogy: John Walker, Chemistry and the Edinburgh Medical School, 1750–1800'' (Aldershot: 2008).
* Eddy, M. D. "The Aberdeen Agricola: Chemical Principles and Practice in James Aderson's Georgics and Geology", in L. Principe (Ed.), ''New Narratives in Eighteenth-Century Chemistry'' (Dordrecht: Springer, 2007).
William Cullen and medicine
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
External links
The Consultation Letters of Dr William Cullen (1710–1790), University of GlasgowPapers of William Cullen at Special Collections, the University of GlasgowPapers of William Cullen at the Royal College of Physicians, Edinburghat University of Edinburgh, School of Chemistry
at Navigational Aids for the History of Science, Technology & the Environment
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cullen, William
1710 births
1790 deaths
Fellows of the Royal Society
Scottish chemists
18th-century Scottish medical doctors
18th-century Scottish writers
People educated at Hamilton Academy
Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
Alumni of the University of Glasgow
People from Hamilton, South Lanarkshire
Scottish agronomists
Academics of the University of Edinburgh
Mental health professionals
Members of the Philosophical Society of Edinburgh
Founder Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh
Scottish surgeons
Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh