François-Pierre Chaumeton

Who was François-Pierre Chaumeton?

François-Pierre Chaumeton was a French botanist and physician.

He studied medicine, humanities and languages in Paris, afterwards serving as a surgeon in military hospitals. Finding military surgery distasteful, he opted for work as a pharmacist at Val-de-Grâce. Severely depressed by the untimely death of his wife, his friends convinced him to leave Paris and travel as a remedy for his melancholic state. After obtaining his doctorate in medicine at Strasbourg in 1805, he relocated to Holland, where he remained for several years. Later on, he followed armies to Prussia, Poland, Austria and the Illyrian Provinces, and in the meantime, learned the languages of the countries he visited, while also conducting extensive research in their libraries. In retirement, he settled in Paris, spending the latter years of his life suffering from phthisis.