Jack Heslop-Harrison facts for kids

John Heslop-Harrison (born February 10, 1920, died May 8, 1998) was a British soldier and a famous botanist. A botanist is a scientist who studies plants. He was known for his important work on how plants grow and reproduce. He was also a member of the Royal Society, a group of top scientists.

Early Life and School Days

John Heslop-Harrison was born in Middlesbrough, England. He was the youngest of three children. His father, John William Heslop-Harrison, was also a scientist.

When John was very young, his family moved to Birtley, Tyne and Wear. His father became a professor at the University of Durham. They lived in a small wooden cabin for seven years.

John went to Elizabethville Infant School and then Elizabethville Elementary School. When he was 11, he went to Chester-le-Street Secondary School. In 1938, he finished high school. He did very well in chemistry and physics.

He wanted to go to Oxford or Cambridge. But he didn't get a scholarship for math. He then tried for a scholarship to King's College, Newcastle. He didn't get in at first.

However, one student dropped out, and John got a scholarship. So, in October 1938, he started studying chemistry, zoology, and botany at King's College.

University Life and Studies

At university, John learned from great teachers like Meirion Thomas. He also met Yolande Massey, who would later become his wife. They studied the same subjects. They often competed to get the best grades.

During World War II, the city was bombed. One bombing happened during his final exams. Everyone had to stop and go to an air-raid shelter. Despite this, John graduated with top honors in Biology. Yolande also graduated with top honors.

Serving in World War II

Because he was a university student, John's entry into the army was delayed. He was trained to operate radio equipment. This equipment was used for radar and finding locations. He learned about new technology like the cavity magnetron.

He finished first in his training course. He chose to be sent to Orkney, a group of islands in Scotland. He worked at an anti-aircraft (AA) battery. This was a place with guns to shoot down enemy planes.

In April 1942, he became an officer in the Royal Army Ordnance Corps. Later, he moved to South Ronaldsay. He often visited the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers (REME) base. He was offered a promotion to captain and became an operator there. He officially joined REME in October 1942.

His time in Orkney was mostly quiet. He helped with efforts to track V2 rockets. These were powerful German missiles. But the project ended when the Allies took over the rocket launch sites.

In March 1945, he went to Brussels, Belgium. His job was to get a special fungus. This fungus was useful for making vitamin B. After the war ended, he joined T-force teams. These teams found and collected technology from German research places. His team found research on infrared detection and radar systems.

A Life in Science

After the war, John worked for a company making penicillin. But he soon left to become a lecturer at King's College. A year later, he moved to Queen's University in Belfast. The science department there was small.

In 1949, he met W. H. Pearsall. Pearsall offered him a job as a lecturer at University College London (UCL). John moved to UCL in 1950. He became a Reader (a senior academic position) in 1953.

He returned to Queen's University in 1954. It was here that he started spelling his name as Heslop-Harrison. This was to avoid confusion with another colleague named Douglas Harrison. He helped many other scientists with their research. In 1960, he left Queen's again. He became a professor of botany at the University of Birmingham.

At Birmingham, he helped combine different biology departments. He became the head of the new School of Biological Sciences in 1963. In 1967, he received the Trail-Crisp Medal. He also became the first Chairman of the Institute of Plant Development. This was at the University of Wisconsin–Madison in the USA.

In March 1970, he was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society. This is a very high honor for a scientist. He also received an honorary degree from Queen's University. He valued this degree very much.

Leading the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew

In 1970, John was asked to become the Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. This was a very important job. Kew Gardens is a world-famous center for plant science. He spent a year preparing for the role. By the time he officially started, he knew exactly what he wanted to do.

He made big changes to how Kew Gardens worked. But he had disagreements with the government, who funded the gardens. Because of these disagreements, he resigned in 1976. He was the first Director to resign since the position was created in 1822.

Later Research and Awards

After leaving Kew, he became a Royal Society Research Professor. This was at Aberystwyth University in Wales. He became very focused on his research. After leaving Kew, he published 106 scientific papers.

In 1982, he and his wife, Yolande, were awarded the Darwin Medal. This was a joint award for their scientific work. He also became an honorary member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

He retired as a Research Professor in 1985 due to age rules. But both he and Yolande continued to work as Honorary Visiting Workers. In 1996, he received two more major awards: the Linnean Medal and the Royal Medal. John Heslop-Harrison passed away on May 8, 1998.