William Croone facts for kids
William Croone (born 15 September 1633 – died 12 October 1684) was an English doctor. He was one of the very first members, called Fellows, of the important scientific group known as the Royal Society.
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William Croone's Life
William Croone was born in London on 15 September 1633. He went to Merchant Taylors' School and later studied at Emmanuel College, Cambridge. He earned his first degree in 1651 and a master's degree in 1654. After his studies, he became a fellow at his college.
In 1659, he became a professor of rhetoric (the art of speaking and writing well) at Gresham College in London. While teaching there, he helped start the Royal Society. This group brought together leading scientists of the time. At their first official meeting in November 1660, Croone was chosen as their registrar, which meant he kept their records.
In 1662, he earned his doctor of medicine degree from Cambridge. He was chosen as one of the first Fellows of the Royal Society in 1663. He often served on their council, helping to guide the society. He also became a member of the Royal College of Physicians, a group for doctors. In 1665, he traveled to France and met many famous and smart people there.
In 1670, the Company of Surgeons asked him to teach about muscles. He taught anatomy (the study of the body's structure) until he died. Soon after, he left his teaching job at Gresham College. In 1675, he became a full [[1]] of the Royal College of Physicians. Later in his life, he became a very successful doctor and earned a lot of money. William Croone passed away on 12 October 1684. He was buried in St Mildred, Poultry church.
William Croone's Work
William Croone wrote a book called ‘De ratione motus Musculorum’ in 1664. This book was about how muscles move. He also gave talks to the Royal Society. One of his talks in 1671 was about how a chick develops inside an egg before it hatches. Some people believed that Croone had made important observations about eggs even before another famous scientist, Malpighius, published his own work on the subject.
William Croone's Legacy
William Croone planned to create two special lectures, which are now known as the Croonian Lectures. He wanted one lecture to be given at the College of Physicians and another at the Royal Society. These lectures were meant to be about how muscles move.
However, Croone's will did not include money to pay for these lectures. So, after he died, his wife, Mary, made sure his wishes came true. In her own will, she left money from a property she owned to set up these annual lectures. Most of the money went to the College of Physicians for their Croonian Lecture, and a smaller part went to the Royal Society for theirs.
His wife, Mary, later married Sir Edwin Sadleir. Because she wanted to honor William Croone's memory, she also helped set up special lectures about algebra at some colleges in Cambridge. These lectures, which started in 1710, eventually led to the creation of the Sadleirian Professorship at Cambridge University in 1860. This is a very important teaching position in mathematics.
William Croone's Family
William Croone married Mary Lorymer, who was the daughter of Alderman John Lorymer from London. After William Croone died, Mary married Sir Edwin Sadleir. She passed away on 30 September 1706.
