Early Life and Education
Tansley was born in London to businessman George Tansley and his wife Amelia. Although a successful businessman, George Tansley's passion had been education after he started attending classes at the Working Men's College when he was 19. George Tansley later went on to be a volunteer teacher, retiring from his business in 1884 to dedicate himself to teaching at the college. He married Amelia Lawrence in 1863 and had two children – the older a daughter, followed by Arthur seven years later, in 1871.
Tansley's interest in science was sparked by one of his father's fellow volunteer-teachers, who was described as "an excellent and enthusiastic field botanist". After attending preparatory school from the ages of 12 to 15, he enrolled in Highgate School. Unhappy with the science teaching, which he considered "farcically inadequate", he switched to University College London in 1889, where he was heavily influenced by Ray Lankester and F. W. Oliver. In 1890 Tansley attended Trinity College, Cambridge. After completing Part I of Tripos in 1893, he returned to University College London as an assistant to Oliver, a position he retained until 1907. In 1894 he completed Part II of Tripos.
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