Meirion Thomas (28 December 1894 – 5 April 1977) was a 20th-century Welsh botanist and plant physiologist.

Education and early life

Thomas was born on 28 December 1894 at 2 Menai Terrace in

Bangor, Wales Bangor (; ) is a cathedral city and community in Gwynedd, north Wales. It is the oldest city in Wales. Historically part of Caernarfonshire, the community had a population of 15,060 at the 2021 census, and the built up area had a population ...

, the son of John Thomas, Vice Principal of Bangor Normal College, and his wife, Catherine Ann Roberts. He was educated at

Friars School, Bangor is a school in Bangor, Gwynedd, and the second oldest extant school in Wales. History 1557 Establishment The school was founded by Geoffrey Glyn who had been brought up in Anglesey and had followed a career in law in London. A friary had be ...

from 1906 to 1912 and began studies at the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

but this was interrupted by the war. In the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he served with the

Royal Welsh Fusiliers The Royal Welch Fusiliers () was a line infantry regiment of the British Army, and part of the Prince of Wales's Division, that was founded in 1689, shortly after the Glorious Revolution. In 1702, it was designated a fusilier regiment and becam ...

. He then won a commission in the

South Wales Borderers The South Wales Borderers was a line infantry regiment of the British Army in existence for 280 years. It came into existence in England in 1689, as Sir Edward Dering's Regiment of Foot, and afterwards had a variety of names and headquarters. In ...

. He was then transferred to the Gas Warfare section, and rose to the rank of captain. He returned to Cambridge in 1919, studying

Botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

. He graduated with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

(BA) degree in 1921 and a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

(MA) degree in 1925.

Career and research

From 1924 Thomas worked at the Armstrong College in

Newcastle-upon-Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne, or simply Newcastle ( , Received Pronunciation, RP: ), is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. It is England's northernmost metropolitan borough, located o ...

, first as a

lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

and

plant physiology Plant physiology is a subdiscipline of botany concerned with the functioning, or physiology, of plants. Plant physiologists study fundamental processes of plants, such as photosynthesis, respiration, plant nutrition, plant hormone functions, tr ...

, rising to senior lecturer and reader. In 1946 he was appointed Professor of Botany at Kings College, Newcastle. He retired in 1961 but was part of the college's push for university status (which was obtained in 1963) thereafter being known as

Newcastle University Newcastle University (legally the University of Newcastle upon Tyne) is a public research university based in Newcastle upon Tyne, England. It has overseas campuses in Singapore and Malaysia. The university is a red brick university and a mem ...

. He also served as a captain in the

Officer Training Corps The University Officers' Training Corps (UOTC), also known as the Officers' Training Corps (OTC), are British Army reserve units, under the command of the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, which recruit exclusively from universities and focus on ...

Awards and honours

In 1945 he was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

(FRSE). His proposers were John Heslop-Harrison, Alfred Hobson,

Ernest Dunlop Ernest McMurchie Dunlop FRSE MC (1893–1969) was a Scottish bacteriologist who also served with distinction in the First World War, winning the Military Cross. Life He was born in Glasgow on 15 November 1893 the son of Thomas Dunlop, a chem ...

and Robert Wheldon. In 1949 he was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

(FRS), his canditaure citation referring to his research investigating catabolic processes in plants.

Personal life

Thomas died on 5 April 1977 at Bryn Crug near

Tywyn Tywyn (; ), formerly spelled Towyn, is a town, community, and seaside resort on the Cardigan Bay coast of southern Gwynedd, Wales. It was previously in the historic county of Merionethshire. It is famous as the location of the Cadfan Stone, a ...

in Wales. He was unmarried and had no children.

References

1894 births 1977 deaths Welsh botanists Fellows of the Royal Society Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh People from Bangor, Gwynedd {{UK-botanist-stub