Description

Richard Pulteney (1730-1801) was a Leicestershire botanist and physician, whose medical career suffered from a lack of aristocratic patronage and his Anabaptist religious background. However, his lifelong interest in botany and natural history, and particularly his work on the new Linnaean system of botanical classification, led to publications in the Gentleman's Magazine and the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society. He corresponded with many influential figures, and was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1762. His book on Linnaeus, published in 1782, was later considered by J. E. Smith, the first president of the Linnaean Society, to be of great importance for the widespread adoption in England of the Linnaean system. His Progress of Botany, published in 1790, although not as popular, is still considered of importance for the study of the history of botanical science in England.