Pierre Magnol - Youth and Education

Youth and Education

Pierre Magnol was born into a family of apothecaries (pharmacists). His father Claude ran a pharmacy as did his grandfather Jean Magnol. Pierre's mother was from a family of physicians. Pierre's older brother Cesar succeeded his father in the pharmacy. Pierre, being one of the younger children, had more freedom to choose his own profession, and wanted to become a physician. He had become devoted to natural history and especially botany at an early stage in his life, which might be regarded as self-evident for a son of a pharmacist. In Magnol's days, the study of botany and medicine were inseparable. Thus he enrolled as a student in medicine at the University of Montpellier on May 19, 1655.

Montpellier is an old city and in Magnol's days it had already been an important commercial and educational centre for several ages. The University of Montpellier was officially founded in 1289 (though it is said to be older) and it was the first French university to establish a botanic garden, donated in 1593 by Henry IV of France, for the study of medicine and pharmacology. Its medical school attracted students from all over Europe. Famous botanists such as François Rabelais (c. 1493-1553), Leonhart Fuchs (1501-1566), Guillaume Rondelet (1507-1566), Charles de l'Ecluse (1526-1609) and Pierre Richer de Belleval (c. 1564-1632) all studied at this university. So it was in one of the intellectual and botanical capitals that Magnol took his education. He got his doctor's degree (M.D.) on January 11, 1659. After receiving his degree, his attention once again shifted to botany, this time even more serious.