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More than 5000 entries on the history, culture and life of Britain (published in 1993 by Macmillan, now out of print)
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John Ray
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(1627–1705) Naturalist, born the son of a village blacksmith in Essex, who managed to get an education at Cambridge and then travelled Europe with a rich friend (Francis Willughby, 1635–72) looking for plant and animal specimens. They were hoping to provide a systematic description of all living species, and after Willughby's death Ray made an impressive start with his account of birds, fishes and above all plants (some 18,600). The concept of the species as a mutually fertile group is Ray's, earning him the title 'father of natural history'. Much of his system has remained at the heart of modern taxonomy.
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