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William Roxburgh
William Roxburgh
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William Roxburgh FRSE FRCPE FLS (3/29 June 1751 – 18 February 1815[1]) was a Scottish surgeon and botanist who worked extensively in India, describing species and working on economic botany. He is known as the founding father of Indian botany. He published numerous works on Indian botany, illustrated by careful drawings made by Indian artists and accompanied by taxonomic descriptions of many plant species. Apart from the numerous species that he named, many species were named in his honour by his collaborators. He was the first to document the existence of the Ganges river dolphin.[2]

Key Information

Early life

[edit]

He was born on 29 June 1751[3] on the Underwood estate near Craigie in Ayrshire and christened on 29 June 1751 at the nearby church at Symington.[4]

His father may have worked in the Underwood estate or he may have been the illegitimate son of a well-connected family.[5] His early education was at Underwood parish school perhaps also with some time at Symington parish school, and he probably also had private tutoring in Latin, as demonstrated by his letters and some descriptions.

He studied medicine at Edinburgh University and matriculated around 1771 or 1772. He lived with the well-connected family of Dr John Boswell, living at "the back of the Meadows"[6] in south Edinburgh during this period. He studied surgery under Dr Alexander Monro and learnt botany under John Hope. His studies included mathematics and physics, which would make him interested in precise quantification later in life in studies on hemp.

He joined (as a surgeon's mate) an East India Company ship Houghton in 1772 serving under surgeon Richard Ballantyne. He also served on the Queen in 1774.[7] Several of these voyages took him to Madras and other ports in India. In 1776 he received his first doctorate (MD) from Edinburgh University.

He joined the Madras Medical Service as an Assistant Surgeon on 28 May 1776 and was promoted to the rank of Surgeon in 1780. He received a second doctorate (also MD) on 12 January 1790 from Marischal College in Aberdeen.[8][9]

Career

[edit]
Roxburgh's residence at the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden at Howrah.[10]

Roxburgh began work in the Carnatic region from 1781 and replaced Patrick Russell as the Company Botanist in Madras in April 1789. His early work was on botany as superintendent in the Samalkot garden in the Northern Circars. Here he conducted economic botany experiments. He employed native artists to illustrate plants. He had 700 illustrations by 1790. He then succeeded Patrick Russell (1727–1805) as Naturalist to the Madras Government in April 1789. From 1793, he and Andrew Ross established a garden at Corcondah, where they worked on sugarcane and indigo. He also studied the prospects of introducing sago and other food crops to help alleviate the effect of famine.[11] He was invited to fill the position of Superintendent at the Calcutta Botanical Garden where the death of Colonel Robert Kyd had created a vacancy.[12][13] He made rapid progress and acquired a good reputation and was later invited by the government of Bengal, to take charge of the Calcutta Botanical gardens from Colonel Robert Kyd in 1793 as Superintendent of the Company garden at Sibpur near Calcutta. A catalogue of the garden was made in 1814 – Hortus Bengalensis. He was succeeded by Francis Buchanan-Hamilton.

He had sent many illustrations to Sir Joseph Banks, who in May 1795, started publishing Plants of the coast of Coromandel in 3 volumes with over 300 drawings and descriptions of plants. The last part was published in March 1820.[13] The names of the local artists who produced the botanical illustrations were not recorded.

He meticulously collected vast amounts of meteorological data for years, and is considered as a pioneer in the collection of tropical meteorological data, to an extent unrivalled elsewhere until the 1820s.[9] He had begun collecting detailed meteorological data as soon as he set foot in India, at Madras, and is known to have taken measurements three times a day, using Ramsden barometers and Nairne thermometers, made by then reputed scientific instrument makers, Jesse Ramsden and Edward Nairne.[14] He trained under John Hope, who was the curator of the Edinburgh botanical garden as well an experimental physiologist. Roxburgh's interest in systematic meteorology may have stemmed from the influence of John Hope as well as his experiences at the Royal Society of Arts which, in the early 1770s, was greatly influenced by the climatic theories of Stephen Hales and Duhamel du Monceau. Such detailed measurements over many years led him to form an opinion on widespread famine and climate change in the empire.[9]

He became a member of the Asiatic Society, to whose Transactions he contributed, from time to time, many valuable papers. Amongst these was one of singular interest on the lacca insect, from which the substance lac is made.

In 1813, he returned to Scotland due to poor health.[15] To recuperate from his illness before continuing his voyage to Scotland, he stopped at Saint Helena island on 7 June 1813 and left on 1 March 1814. Despite his poor health he produced an annotated list of Saint Helena plants during his stay. This list formed the only accessible printed account of the flora until 1875. This was published as an appendix to Beatson's Tracts 1816.[16] He appears to have lived in, or close to, his original Edinburgh lodgings, then known as 4 Park Place or Street on the Meadows. He died there on 18 February 1815 and was buried nearby in Greyfriars Kirkyard. He was outlived by his third wife Mary.[17][18]

Recognition

[edit]
Roxburgh monument at the Acharya Jagadish Chandra Bose Indian Botanic Garden.

In 1791 he was erected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh. His proposers were William Wright, Daniel Rutherford and John Walker. In 1799 he was elected a Fellow of the Linnean Society.[19]

In 1802, Roxburgh was elected as a member of the American Philosophical Society held in Philadelphia.[20]

In 1805, he received the gold medal of the Society for the Promotion of Arts for a series of highly interesting and valuable communications on the subject of the productions of the East and a second gold medal in 1803 for a communication on the growth of trees in India. On 31 May 1814, he was presented, in the presence of a large assembly, a third gold medal by the Duke of Norfolk (then, the president of the Society of Arts).

Soon after receiving this last honourable testimony of high respect, Roxburgh returned to Edinburgh, where he later died. He was created Keeper of the Royal Botanic Garden, Edinburgh on arrival until death.

Posthumous honours

[edit]

In 1820, at the Mission Press in Serampore, William Carey posthumously edited and published vol. 1 of Dr. William Roxburgh's Flora Indica; or Descriptions of Indian Plants.[21] In 1824, Carey edited and published vol. 2 of Roxburgh's Flora Indica, including extensive remarks and contributions by Dr. Nathaniel Wallich. Carey and Wallich continued to work in the field of botany and in 1834, both Carey and Wallich contributed botanical specimens to the Royal Society for Agriculture and Botany's Winter Show in Ghent, Belgium.

Rosa roxburghii was initially named Rosa microphylla by Dr. Roxburgh in 1820, but because René Louiche Desfontaines had previously applied the name 'microphylla' to an unrelated European species in 1798. The name was then changed in 1823 by (Austrian botanist) Leopold Trattinnick.[22]

Authority abbreviation

[edit]
The standard author abbreviation Roxb. is used to indicate this person as the author when citing a botanical name.[23]

Notes

[edit]

Sources

[edit]
  • Robinson, Tim (2008). William Roxburgh. The Founding Father of Indian Botany. Chichester, England: Phillimore.
[edit]
Revisions and contributorsEdit on WikipediaRead on Wikipedia

William Roxburgh

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from Grokipedia
William Roxburgh (3 June 1751 – 18 February 1815) was a Scottish and renowned as the founding father of Indian for his pioneering work in documenting and cultivating the flora of the during his service with the . Born in Underwood, Craigie, , Roxburgh studied medicine and at the under John Hope before joining the as a 's mate in 1772, arriving in Madras as an assistant in 1776. Roxburgh's career in marked a transformative period for botanical science in the region, beginning with his posting to the Samalkot garrison in 1781, where he established experimental gardens to test crops like and . In 1793, he was appointed superintendent of the Calcutta Botanic Garden—originally founded in 1787 by Colonel Robert Kyd—expanding it from 300 to over 3,500 species by 1813 and turning it into a major center for plant acclimatization and research along the . Under his leadership, the garden facilitated the introduction and distribution of economically vital plants such as , , , , , and across and beyond, while he trained local artists to produce over 2,533 detailed colored botanical drawings, many of which were sent to for study. He established the garden's , which forms the basis of the Central National Herbarium and today holds over 2.5 million specimens. Roxburgh's scholarly output further solidified his legacy, with key publications including Plants of the Coast of Coromandel (1795, 1802, 1819), which featured exquisite illustrations of South Indian flora, and Hortus Bengalensis (1814), a catalog of 1,510 species grown in the Calcutta garden. His unfinished Flora Indica, based on extensive field collections and collaborations like those with Johann Gerhard König, was posthumously published in three volumes between 1820 and 1832, describing around 2,600 species and including 2,533 illustrations. Additionally, he contributed papers to the Asiatic Researches on topics such as the Bassia butyracea tree and the , earning recognition from contemporaries who compared him to Linnaeus. Honors included an M.D. from in 1790, fellowship in the Linnean Society (1799), and three gold medals from the Society of Arts for his work on fibrous plants; the Roxburghia was named in his honor. Roxburgh retired to in 1813 due to health issues, where he died two years later, leaving a pillar erected in his memory at the Calcutta Botanic Garden in 1822.

Early Life and Education

Birth and Family

William Roxburgh was born on 3 June 1751 at Underwood in the parish of Craigie, , . Details of his family background are uncertain; his father may have worked on the Underwood estate, or Roxburgh may have been the illegitimate son of a well-connected family. His rural upbringing in likely provided early exposure to .

Formal Education and Training

Roxburgh received his early education at the village school in Underwood, within the parish of Craigie near Symington in . He then pursued higher studies, matriculating at the around 1771–1772 to train in and surgery. At , Roxburgh studied anatomy and surgery under the renowned professor Alexander Monro secundus (1733–1817), a key figure in establishing the city's during the . Complementing his medical curriculum, he received botanical instruction from John Hope (1725–1786), professor of and , whose classes at the Botanic Cottage in introduced students to the Linnaean system of classification. He sent plant descriptions and seeds to Hope, gaining practical exposure to plant identification and collection. These experiences laid the groundwork for his dual expertise in and . As part of his medical training, Roxburgh served an apprenticeship as a surgeon's mate, joining ships in 1772 for voyages that provided hands-on clinical practice. He earned his first MD degree from the in 1776, qualifying him for advanced medical roles. Later, in 1790, he obtained a second MD from at the , further solidifying his professional credentials.

Professional Career

Medical Service in India

William Roxburgh joined the East India Company in November 1772 as a surgeon's mate, serving aboard several Company vessels before his formal appointment in India. He arrived in Madras in 1776 and was promptly appointed as an assistant surgeon in the Madras Medical Service, initially attached to the General Hospital there. During his early years in Madras, Roxburgh managed a substantial medical practice at the General Hospital, providing care to Company employees, military personnel, and civilians under the presidency's jurisdiction. In 1780, he received promotion to full surgeon within the Madras Medical Service, enabling greater responsibility in overseeing hospital operations and medical provisions across outposts. His postings included Samalkot in the Northern Circars, where he served as surgeon to the garrison starting in 1781, supervising healthcare for troops and local administration amid regional conflicts. As a senior , Roxburgh took on administrative duties, including the supervision of hospitals and the coordination of medical supplies for the 's establishments in the . These roles involved ensuring the health of European and native staff, managing outbreaks of common tropical ailments, and maintaining records of medical cases to inform policies. His service in these capacities laid the groundwork for his later integration of medical knowledge with broader scientific pursuits in .

Botanical Roles and Contributions

In 1793, William Roxburgh was appointed as the first official Superintendent of the Calcutta Botanic Garden, succeeding its founder Robert Kyd, and he transformed the institution into a major center for botanical research and cultivation. Under his leadership, the garden expanded significantly along the and cultivated 1,510 plant species by the time he departed in 1813, including both indigenous and introduced varieties from across and beyond. Roxburgh's medical background briefly informed his emphasis on plants with therapeutic potential, such as those used in treating fevers, though his primary focus remained on broader horticultural and economic applications. Roxburgh's fieldwork involved extensive plant collections across and southern , where he gathered specimens of economic importance, including (), (), and (Tectona grandis), which were vital to colonial trade and agriculture. By 1790, while serving as a company botanist in Madras, he had already commissioned over 700 detailed illustrations of these and other species, employing skilled Indian artists to create life-size, colored drawings using natural vegetable dyes for accurate scientific documentation. His observations extended to as well, notably documenting the (Platanista gangetica) in 1801 based on specimens from the tidal reaches of the , highlighting the interconnectedness of riverine ecosystems and . Roxburgh pioneered meteorological observations in , initiating systematic weather recordings at the Calcutta and earlier in Madras from the , which included measurements of , , and rainfall to understand their influence on plant growth and distribution. These efforts laid early groundwork for linking climate data to floral , such as the timing of monsoons affecting crop yields, and he advocated for coordinated observations across outposts to map regional variations in weather's impact on vegetation. Central to Roxburgh's contributions was his focus on economic botany, where he conducted experiments to improve crops and introduce useful species, such as testing fiber-producing plants like hemp (Cannabis sativa) for industrial applications and exploring bark from Swietenia febrifuga as a local substitute for in quinine production to combat . His collaboration with local artists not only produced thousands of precise illustrations—over 2,500 by the end of his tenure—but also facilitated the exchange of knowledge with indigenous experts, ensuring that studies on crop enhancement, such as better cultivation techniques, incorporated traditional practices alongside European methods.

Return to Scotland and Final Positions

In 1813, William Roxburgh retired from his position as superintendent of the Calcutta Botanic Garden due to deteriorating health after nearly four decades in . His return voyage to was protracted and circuitous; he first traveled to the for recuperation, then to , before proceeding to England and finally arriving in later that year. Throughout this journey, Roxburgh's physical condition limited his ability to engage in active work, marking the transition from his intensive fieldwork in to a more sedentary phase focused on preservation and dissemination of his botanical materials. Upon settling in , Roxburgh dedicated his remaining time to organizing and transferring his extensive Indian plant collections to key British institutions. He donated a large set of dried plant specimens to the Linnean in and handed over additional collections, along with his manuscripts, to the , where they were placed under the care of . Despite his declining health, which confined him largely to his residence at Park Place, Roxburgh also carried a personal copy of his Flora Indica manuscript to with intentions to revise and publish it in collaboration with Brown, though illness prevented completion of these efforts. These activities ensured that his Indian botanical records would support ongoing research in Britain, bridging his colonial contributions to European scientific networks. Roxburgh's health continued to fail in the months following his arrival, culminating in his on 18 February 1815 at Park Place in , at the age of 63. He was buried in , interred in the Boswell family tomb alongside his third wife.

Personal Life

Marriages and Family

William Roxburgh married three times, with each wife sharing the Christian name Mary, a circumstance that has historically complicated documentation of his family. His first wife was Mary Bonté, possibly the daughter of the of , whom he married during his early years in ; they had one daughter, Mary (c. 1784–1814), born in Calcutta, who later married Henry Stone of the and had four children. Roxburgh's second marriage was to Mary Huttenmann (d. 1804), of German origin and daughter of a Lutheran in , by whom he fathered five sons—three of whom pursued careers in the —and three daughters, totaling eight children from this union. This marriage took place amid his botanical postings in , where the rigors of colonial life, including health strains from the , affected families like his own. In 1805, Roxburgh wed his third wife, Mary Boswell (1774–1859) of the family and sister to the biographer , who outlived him. This marriage produced one son, William (1812–1897), who later became Assistant Superintendent of the Calcutta Botanic Garden, and two daughters. Roxburgh was buried in the in alongside his third wife, in the Boswell family tomb. Overall, Roxburgh fathered at least 12 children across his marriages, with family members providing occasional support for his scientific endeavors despite the separations and hardships of service in .

Health and Daily Life in Later Years

Upon his return to in 1813, Roxburgh's health, long undermined by decades of service in India's , had deteriorated significantly, compelling his retirement and journey via the and St. Helena to Britain. The humid heat of Calcutta had previously exacerbated his ailments, necessitating recovery periods such as an 18-month stay at the Cape in 1798–1799. In , Roxburgh resided at Park Place, where he spent his final months in relative seclusion, supported by family members amid his declining condition. His daily routines were marked by quiet reflection, including occasional engagement with the local scientific circles outside formal duties, and a persistent interest in , though limited by frailty. Personal correspondence from earlier years revealed nostalgic views of his Indian tenure, describing the Calcutta Botanic Garden as his "old paradise" despite the physical toll. As his health waned, Roxburgh focused on pre-death arrangements, entrusting his extensive collection of botanical manuscripts and drawings to William Carey in 1813 to ensure their preservation and eventual publication. Letters from this period hinted at regrets over unfinished projects, underscoring his dedication to completing his life's work on Indian flora. He passed away at Park Place on 18 February 1815.

Scientific Legacy

Major Publications and Works

Roxburgh's seminal work, Plants of the Coast of Coromandel, was published in three volumes between 1795 and 1820, featuring more than 250 hand-colored plates depicting South Indian plants, with illustrations created by Indian artists under his direction and presented to the Honourable Court of Directors of the . The publication was self-funded by Roxburgh, who selected drawings and descriptions from his extensive field collections along the , emphasizing detailed botanical accuracy in both text and visuals. In 1814, Roxburgh produced Hortus Bengalensis, a systematic catalog of the cultivated in the Honourable East India Company's Botanic Garden at Calcutta, listing approximately 4,000 species with their Latin binomials and indications of native uses. Printed at the Mission Press in under the editorial oversight of William Carey, the work served as an inventory of the garden's holdings, including both indigenous and introduced species, and included brief notes on their economic or medicinal applications. Roxburgh's most ambitious project, Flora Indica, provided comprehensive descriptions of Indian plants based on his manuscripts and was published posthumously in multiple volumes starting in 1820. The initial volume was edited by William Carey at the , with subsequent editions and additions compiled by Wallich up to 1824 and a complete text issued in 1832, forming a foundational systematic account of the subcontinent's flora. Beyond these major books, Roxburgh contributed several papers to the Asiatic Researches of the of Bengal, including detailed accounts of specific plants such as the lac (Coccus lacca). He also compiled meteorological reports from his observations in , such as those conducted at Fort St. George and , which were documented systematically over years and communicated to the Royal Society in .

Key Discoveries and Economic Botany

Roxburgh described the , Platanista gangetica, as a new species in 1801, distinguishing it from known cetaceans through detailed anatomical observations, including its elongated rostrum measuring up to one-third of the body length, small degenerate eyes adapted for murky river waters, and a series of 26 to 31 conical teeth in each jaw half that differ markedly from oceanic dolphins. These features, observed from specimens in the River, underscored its unique adaptation to freshwater habitats, marking the first scientific documentation of this blind, echolocating endemic to South Asian rivers. In his economic botany studies, Roxburgh provided detailed accounts of sugarcane (Saccharum officinarum) cultivation, advocating improved varieties such as those from Chinese introductions that yielded higher sucrose content and resistance to local pests, while outlining traditional Hindu methods of planting in furrows during the monsoon and harvesting after 12-18 months to maximize juice extraction for gur and refined sugar production. For indigo (Indigofera tinctoria), he documented cultivation techniques involving seed sowing in nurseries followed by transplanting to well-drained fields, and the dye extraction process of fermenting leaves in vats for 10-12 hours, beating to oxidize the liquor, and precipitating the blue pigment into cakes for export, enhancing the East India Company's trade efficiency. His work on cotton (Gossypium spp.) emphasized selecting hybrid varieties for finer fiber length and boll yield, recommending intercropping with pulses to improve soil fertility and detailing ginning processes to reduce contamination for textile manufacturing. Additionally, Roxburgh conducted experiments on teak (Tectona grandis) timber durability, testing samples under exposure to saltwater immersion and insect infestation, confirming its superior resistance compared to other hardwoods and supporting its use in shipbuilding for the Company's fleet. Roxburgh's documentation of medicinal plants included cinchona ( spp.) bark as an anti-malarial agent, though he focused on Indian substitutes like Swietenia febrifuga whose bark exhibited similar febrifuge properties when tested against intermittent fevers, extracting quinine-like alkaloids through infusion and promoting its cultivation to reduce reliance on South American imports. He also cataloged opium () production, detailing lancing of unripe capsules to collect latex for the Company's lucrative trade, alongside local herbs such as for fever treatments and for antimicrobial uses, integrating these into Company-supported pharmacopeias. As an innovator, Roxburgh advocated for botanical gardens as engines of , transforming the Calcutta Botanic into a hub for trialing cash crops like and to boost colonial revenues and alleviate famines through diversified . He classified over 3,000 Indian plant species using the Linnaean binomial system, adapting it with vernacular names and ecological notes to accommodate tropical diversity, such as flexible sexual classifications for hermaphroditic flowers common in monsoon flora. These findings were disseminated through his publications, influencing practical applications in and .

Influence on Indian and Global Botany

William Roxburgh's establishment of the Calcutta Botanic Garden as a premier institution for colonial profoundly shaped scientific practices in , transforming it from an initial economic horticultural outpost into a systematic center for plant classification and cultivation that served as a model for other imperial botanical gardens across . Under his superintendency from 1793 to 1813, the garden expanded to encompass extensive collections of indigenous and exotic , fostering rigorous taxonomic and experimentation that influenced the development of botanical in British colonial territories. This foundational work emphasized the integration of local knowledge with European scientific methods, establishing protocols for and distribution that endured beyond his tenure. Roxburgh's influence extended through the training of key successors who perpetuated and amplified his systematic approach to Indian flora. He mentored Nathaniel Wallich, who succeeded him as superintendent of the Calcutta Botanic Garden in 1815 and continued the comprehensive cataloging of plant specimens, building directly on Roxburgh's herbarium collections. Similarly, the missionary botanist William Carey collaborated closely with Roxburgh, assisting in the preparation of descriptive works and later editing posthumous publications that disseminated Roxburgh's findings to a wider audience. These protégés not only maintained the garden's operations but also expanded its role in international exchanges, ensuring the continuity of Roxburgh's emphasis on empirical observation and illustration by Indian artists. On a global scale, Roxburgh facilitated the introduction of numerous Indian plants to , enhancing within the by sending seeds, specimens, and detailed descriptions to institutions like the Royal Botanic Gardens at . Plants such as mango and bamboo, meticulously documented in his collections, were propagated in European greenhouses and influenced agricultural policies aimed at diversifying colonial economies through acclimatization trials. His correspondence with figures like underscored the strategic value of these transfers, informing Empire-wide initiatives to exploit botanical resources for trade and sustenance, thereby linking Indian biodiversity to broader imperial scientific networks. Contemporary botanists acclaimed Roxburgh as the "greatest botanist since Linnaeus" for his pioneering systematization of Indian flora during the Enlightenment era, where he bridged empirical fieldwork with Linnaean classification amid the challenges of colonial exploration. This recognition highlighted his role in elevating Indian from sporadic collections to a structured discipline, with his methodologies—such as standardized practices—setting benchmarks for accuracy in tropical . Roxburgh's legacies addressed critical gaps in biodiversity documentation, laying the groundwork for modern Indian studies and conservation efforts by creating enduring repositories like the Central National Herbarium, which preserves over 2 million specimens originating from his era. His emphasis on comprehensive floral surveys provided essential baseline data for subsequent ecological research, informing contemporary conservation strategies in India's diverse biomes and underscoring the long-term value of colonial-era botanical foundations in addressing current environmental challenges.

Honors and Recognition

Contemporary Awards and Fellowships

Roxburgh's contributions to earned him prestigious fellowships in leading scientific societies. In 1790, he received an M.D. from , , recognizing his medical and botanical contributions. He was elected a of Edinburgh in 1791, proposed by prominent botanists including John Walker. In 1799, he became a Fellow of the , honoring his systematic descriptions of flora that advanced Linnaean classification in tropical regions. Roxburgh was also elected a member of the in in 1802, reflecting international acclaim for his exchanges of specimens and knowledge on . The Society for the Promotion of Arts (later the Royal Society of Arts) awarded Roxburgh three gold medals for his practical contributions to and . In 1803, he received one for his paper on the growth and management of timber trees in , highlighting sustainable practices. The 1805 medal recognized his meteorological observations and communications on climate's impact on Indian , aiding colonial resource planning. In 1814, the third medal was granted for his work on Indian fibers and agricultural improvements, emphasizing their commercial potential for British industry. Roxburgh was an active member of the Asiatic Society of Bengal, founded in 1784, where he contributed papers on Indian natural history to its Transactions, fostering early scientific collaboration in the region. His seminal work, Plants of the Coast of Coromandel, published in installments from 1795 to 1819 under the direction of Sir Joseph Banks, President of the Royal Society, received high praise from Banks for its detailed illustrations and descriptions, which advanced global understanding of tropical botany.

Posthumous Tributes and Nomenclature

Following Roxburgh's death in 1815, his seminal work Flora Indica was completed and published posthumously from his manuscripts. Volumes 1 and 2 were edited by William Carey and issued in 1820 and 1824, respectively, with contributions from Wallich; volume 3, edited by Wallich, appeared in 1832, culminating in the full edition that year. Roxburgh's contributions to botany are commemorated in over 400 validly published names of vascular and Charales, with approximately 50 epithets still in current use. Notable examples include the Roxburghia and such as Rosa roxburghii, originally described by Roxburgh as Rosa microphylla in 1820 but renamed in his honor in 1823 to avoid a prior . His collections, comprising thousands of Indian specimens, were distributed to major institutions and remain preserved today, including sets at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh. In modern times, Roxburgh is recognized as the founding father of Indian botany, a title reflected in biographical works such as Tim Robinson's 2008 account of his life and achievements.

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  49. https://www.jstor.org/stable/4109049
  50. https://stories.rbge.org.uk/archives/26619
  51. https://books.google.com/books/about/William_Roxburgh.html?id=U_YfAQAAIAAJ
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