Albert Seward

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British botanist and geologist

title: "Albert Seward" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["1863-births", "1941-deaths", "alumni-of-st-john's-college,-cambridge", "botanists-with-author-abbreviations", "19th-century-british-botanists", "british-eugenicists", "19th-century-british-geologists", "fellows-of-the-geological-society-of-london", "masters-of-downing-college,-cambridge", "british-paleobotanists", "presidents-of-the-british-science-association", "royal-medal-winners", "vice-chancellors-of-the-university-of-cambridge", "wollaston-medal-winners", "professors-of-botany-(cambridge)", "presidents-of-the-geological-society-of-london", "presidents-of-the-cambridge-philosophical-society", "british-fellows-of-the-royal-society"] description: "British botanist and geologist" topic_path: "philosophy" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Albert_Seward" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary British botanist and geologist ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox scientist"]

FieldValue
nameAlbert Charles Seward
imageAlbert Charles Seward, 1920.png
birth_date9 October 1863
birth_placeLancaster, Lancashire, England
death_date11 April 1941
death_placeOxford
::

| name = Albert Charles Seward | image = Albert Charles Seward, 1920.png | birth_date = 9 October 1863 | birth_place = Lancaster, Lancashire, England | death_date = 11 April 1941 | death_place = Oxford

Sir Albert Charles Seward FRS (9 October 1863 – 11 April 1941) was a British botanist and geologist.

Life

Seward was born in Lancaster. His first education was at Lancaster Grammar School and he then went on to St John's College, Cambridge, intending to fulfil parents' wish that he would dedicate his life to the Church. His boyhood interest in botany and zoology soon resurfaced, helped along by inspiring lectures from William Crawford Williamson. His aptitude soon became apparent and he was appointed lecturer in botany at Cambridge University in 1890, later becoming a tutor at Emmanuel, and still later succeeding Harry Marshall Ward as Professor of Botany, Cambridge University from 1906 to 1936. There, he became a founding member of the University of Cambridge Eugenics Society, eventually becoming its Chairman. He was joint editor (with Francis Darwin) of More letters of Charles Darwin (1903). He was elected as fellow of the Royal Society in 1898 and was awarded the Murchison Medal of the Geological Society of London in 1908. In 1931 Seward dismissed the notion of a biological origin of stromatolites. This rejection became known as "Seward's folly".

Seward's studies of Mesozoic palaeobotany earned him membership of the Royal Society at the youthful age of thirty-five. He devoted a great deal of time to education, both as college and departmental administrator, and as writer on educational matters. This botanist is denoted by the author abbreviation Seward when citing a botanical name.

His interest in plants went beyond the living and the fossil. In 1935 he published a study on the floral carvings in the chapter house of Southwell Minster.

Seward died in Oxford, aged 77.

Family

His daughter married his prize pupil, John Walton, son of the artist Edward Arthur Walton. John was later Professor of Botany at Glasgow University.

Timeline

Selected publications

References

References

  1. (1941). "Albert Charles Seward. 1863-1941". [[Obituary Notices of Fellows of the Royal Society]].
  2. {{acad
  3. (1941). "Obituary: Sir Albert Charles Seward, F.R.S., 1863-1941". The New Phytologist.
  4. (1992). "Eugenics, Human Genetics and Human Failings: The Eugenics Society, Its Sources and Its Critics in Britain". Routledge.
  5. [http://www.juntosociety.com/histtimeline/1900.html Junto Society] {{webarchive. link. (2008-05-11)
  6. Brummitt, R. K.. (1992). "Authors of Plant Names". [[Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew]].
  7. Seward, A.C.. (1935). "The Foliage, Flowers and Fruit of Southwell Chapter House". Proceedings of the Cambridge Antiquarian Society.
  8. (8 July 1893). "Review of ''Fossil Plants as Tests of Climate'' by A. C. Seward". The Academy.
  9. "EBooks on Demand: The Wealden Flora".
  10. "Western Kentucky University".
  11. [https://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/search-handle-url/ref=ntt_athr_dp_sr_1?_encoding=UTF8&search-type=ss&index=books&field-author=Albert%20Charles%20Seward Amazon Books]

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1863-births1941-deathsalumni-of-st-john's-college,-cambridgebotanists-with-author-abbreviations19th-century-british-botanistsbritish-eugenicists19th-century-british-geologistsfellows-of-the-geological-society-of-londonmasters-of-downing-college,-cambridgebritish-paleobotanistspresidents-of-the-british-science-associationroyal-medal-winnersvice-chancellors-of-the-university-of-cambridgewollaston-medal-winnersprofessors-of-botany-(cambridge)presidents-of-the-geological-society-of-londonpresidents-of-the-cambridge-philosophical-societybritish-fellows-of-the-royal-society