Old Photograph Sir Robert Christison Scotland

Old photograph of Sir Robert Christison, born 18 July 1797, in Edinburgh, Scotland. Robert was a Scottish toxicologist and physician who served as president of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, president of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and as president of the British Medical Association. He attended the Royal High School and graduated at the University of Edinburgh in 1819. He then spent a short time in London, England, studying under John Abernethy and Sir William Lawrence, and in Paris, where he learnt analytical chemistry from P. J. Robiquet and toxicology from M. J. B. Orfila. In 1822 he returned to Edinburgh as professor of medical jurisprudence. His fame as a toxicologist and medical jurist, together with his work on the pathology of the kidneys and on fevers, 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 in 1848 and receiving a baronetcy in 1871. He retained remarkable physical vigour and activity until extreme old age, and died at Edinburgh on 27 January 1882. He is buried in New Calton Cemetery in the plot of his father, Alexander Christison. No mention is made of his fame or knighthood. Blog post of interest to folks with ancestry, genealogy or Scottish Family Roots in Scotland who may wish to travel and visit one day.



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