Richard Relhan
Encyclopedia
Richard Relhan was a botanist, a fellow of King's College, Cambridge
, and author of a renowned book about the plants around Cambridge
.
Relhan, the son of Dr. Anthony Relhan
, was born at Dublin in 1754. He was elected a King's Scholar
at Westminster School
in 1767, and was admitted a scholar of Trinity College, Cambridge
, on 7 May 1773. He graduated B.A. in 1776 and M.A. in 1779, and, having taken holy orders, was chosen in 1781 fellow and conduct (or chaplain) of King's College, Cambridge.
In 1783 Professor Thomas Martyn
(1735–1825) gave Relhan all the manuscript notes he had made on Cambridge plants since the publication of his Plantae Cantabrigienses in 1763. With this assistance Relhan published his chief work, the Flora Cantabrigiensis in 1785, de scribing several new plants and including seven plates engraved by James Sowerby
. It appears from his letters that he proposed to issue a Flora Anglica, but did not meet with sufficient encouragement. He published supplements to the Flora Cantabrigiensis in 1787, 1788, and 1793, and second and third editions of the whole in 1802 and 1820, the last edition being greatly amplified. In 1787 he printed Heads of Lectures on Botany read in the University of Cambridge.
Relhan was made a fellow of the Royal Society
on 12 June 1787,
and in 1788 became one of the original fellows of the Linnean Society. In 1791 he accepted the college rectory of Hemingby
, Lincolnshire
. Living in retirement there, he devoted himself to the study of Tacitus
. In 1809 he published an edition of Tacitus de Moribus Germanorum et de Vita Agricolse; and in 1819 an edition of the Historia. His annotations were largely based upon those of the French Jesuit scholar, Gabriel Brotier. Relhan died on 28 March 1823.
As a botanist he showed most originality in dealing with the Cryptogamia. His name was commemorated by L'Heritier
in a genus, Relhania
, comprising a few species of South African Composite. Many fungi were named by Richard Relhan.
Relhan was also a talented painter. There is a watercolor by him of the Barnwell Leper Chapel, the oldest complete building in Cambridge.
King's College, Cambridge
King's College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge, England. The college's full name is "The King's College of our Lady and Saint Nicholas in Cambridge", but it is usually referred to simply as "King's" within the University....
, and author of a renowned book about the plants around Cambridge
Cambridge
The city of Cambridge is a university town and the administrative centre of the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It lies in East Anglia about north of London. Cambridge is at the heart of the high-technology centre known as Silicon Fen – a play on Silicon Valley and the fens surrounding the...
.
Relhan, the son of Dr. Anthony Relhan
Anthony Relhan
Dr. Anthony Relhan was a medical doctor and fellow of the King and Queen's College of Physicians of Ireland, notable for writing a history of Brighton, and for promoting the drinking of mineral water.-Life:...
, was born at Dublin in 1754. He was elected a King's Scholar
King's Scholar
A King's Scholar is a foundation scholar of one of certain public schools...
at Westminster School
Westminster School
The Royal College of St. Peter in Westminster, almost always known as Westminster School, is one of Britain's leading independent schools, with the highest Oxford and Cambridge acceptance rate of any secondary school or college in Britain...
in 1767, and was admitted a scholar of Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College, Cambridge
Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Trinity has more members than any other college in Cambridge or Oxford, with around 700 undergraduates, 430 graduates, and over 170 Fellows...
, on 7 May 1773. He graduated B.A. in 1776 and M.A. in 1779, and, having taken holy orders, was chosen in 1781 fellow and conduct (or chaplain) of King's College, Cambridge.
In 1783 Professor Thomas Martyn
Thomas Martyn
Thomas Martyn was an English botanist and Professor of Botany at Cambridge University. He is sometimes confused with the conchologist and entomologist of the same name....
(1735–1825) gave Relhan all the manuscript notes he had made on Cambridge plants since the publication of his Plantae Cantabrigienses in 1763. With this assistance Relhan published his chief work, the Flora Cantabrigiensis in 1785, de scribing several new plants and including seven plates engraved by James Sowerby
James Sowerby
James Sowerby was an English naturalist and illustrator. Contributions to published works, such as A Specimen of the Botany of New Holland or English Botany, include his detailed and appealing plates...
. It appears from his letters that he proposed to issue a Flora Anglica, but did not meet with sufficient encouragement. He published supplements to the Flora Cantabrigiensis in 1787, 1788, and 1793, and second and third editions of the whole in 1802 and 1820, the last edition being greatly amplified. In 1787 he printed Heads of Lectures on Botany read in the University of Cambridge.
Relhan was made a fellow of the Royal Society
Royal Society
The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, known simply as the Royal Society, is a learned society for science, and is possibly the oldest such society in existence. Founded in November 1660, it was granted a Royal Charter by King Charles II as the "Royal Society of London"...
on 12 June 1787,
and in 1788 became one of the original fellows of the Linnean Society. In 1791 he accepted the college rectory of Hemingby
Hemingby
Hemingby is a dispersed village and civil parish in the East Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. It lies about north of the market town of Horncastle and just west of the junction of the B1225 road and A158. It is surrounded by the villages of Baumber, Goulceby and West Ashby...
, Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is a county in the east of England. It borders Norfolk to the south east, Cambridgeshire to the south, Rutland to the south west, Leicestershire and Nottinghamshire to the west, South Yorkshire to the north west, and the East Riding of Yorkshire to the north. It also borders...
. Living in retirement there, he devoted himself to the study of Tacitus
Tacitus
Publius Cornelius Tacitus was a senator and a historian of the Roman Empire. The surviving portions of his two major works—the Annals and the Histories—examine the reigns of the Roman Emperors Tiberius, Claudius, Nero and those who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors...
. In 1809 he published an edition of Tacitus de Moribus Germanorum et de Vita Agricolse; and in 1819 an edition of the Historia. His annotations were largely based upon those of the French Jesuit scholar, Gabriel Brotier. Relhan died on 28 March 1823.
As a botanist he showed most originality in dealing with the Cryptogamia. His name was commemorated by L'Heritier
Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle
Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle was an 18th century French botanist and magistrate. Born into an affluent upper-class Parisian family, connections with the French Royal Court secured him the position of Superindent of Parisian Waters and Forests at the age of twenty-six...
in a genus, Relhania
Relhania
Relhania is a genus of flowering plants in the daisy family, Asteraceae....
, comprising a few species of South African Composite. Many fungi were named by Richard Relhan.
Relhan was also a talented painter. There is a watercolor by him of the Barnwell Leper Chapel, the oldest complete building in Cambridge.