Joseph Dalton Hooker

Sir Joseph Dalton Hooker (1817-1911) was an English botanist and explorer, a founder of geographical botany and the closest friend of Charles Darwin. The son of the botanist William Jackson Hooker, he studied medicine at Glasgow and sailed as assistant surgeon on James Clark Ross Antarctic expedition. He later travelled in the Himalaya and Sikkim, collecting plants and publishing the Himalayan Journals and works on rhododendrons and Indian flora. For twenty years he directed the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew, succeeding his father. He helped arrange the joint presentation of the papers of Darwin and Wallace to the Linnean Society in 1858, supported Darwin views as a member of the X Club, and was president of the Royal Society from 1873 to 1877. His honours included the Royal Medal, the Copley Medal and the Darwin Medal.