The life and times of Robert Smith

Abstract

Summary Robert Smith (1874–1900) is credited with having made the first systematic ecological studies to be carried out in Britain. His childhood in Dundee is described and consideration is given to the possible influence of his brother William and of the countryside of Angus and Ayrshire in forming his early interest in field botany and vegetation science. His pioneering studies were encouraged by Patrick Geddes and D'Arcy Thompson, and later by Charles Flahault in Montpellier, so that Smith became an outstanding teacher and researcher at a time of momentous developments in the natural sciences.