Edmund King 1629-1709

Sir Edmund KING 1629-1709

Biographical Note

Son of Edmond King of Northampton, physician. He began practising as a surgeon in London in the early 1650s; his training is not known but he was licensed to practise outside London in 1663. He became a Cambridge MD in 1671. he developed a successful surgical practice during the 1660s and 70s, became a royal surgeon, and was knighted in 1676. He became a Fellow of the Royal Society in 1666 and undertook extensive animal anatomical experiments.

Books

In his will, King directed that his library, together with his plate, coach and horses, be sold by his executors to help fulfil his monetary bequests. His library was auctioned in London, 28.11.1709, as part of a joint sale with the books of Sir Henry Spelman.

Sources

• Will of Sir Edmund King, The National Archives PROB 11/509/88.
• Alston, R. C. Inventory of sale catalogues 1676-1800. St Philip, 2010.
• Bibliotheca selectissima: being the library of the late Sir Edmund King, [London, 1709], ESTC n37198.
• Martensen, Robert L. "King [alias Freeman], Sir Edmund (bap. 1630, d. 1709), physician and surgeon." Oxford Dictionary of National Biography.