[Sir Henry Holland of Knutsford, physician to William IV and Victoria.] Autograph Letter Signed ('H Holland') to Dr George Gregory, pressing the claims of William Pulteney Alison to succeed Dr James Gregory as Professor of Medicine at Edinburgh.

See the entries in the Oxford DNB of Holland, and of the recipient of the letter, the physician and vaccinator George Gregory (1790-1853), and of the two individuals mentioned in it, James Gregory (1753-1821), Professor of the Institutes of Medicine at Edinburgh, and James Gregory's nephew William Pulteney Alison (1790-1859), who assisted him with his lectures and succeeded him in the professorship. 2pp, 4to. Bifolium. In good condition, lightly aged, with thin strip of paper adhering to the reverse of the second leaf, which is addressed, with small seal in red wax, 'To | Dr G. Gregory | 98 G Portland street', and endorsed by Gregory. Holland begins the letter, with regard to Gregory's uncle, Dr James Gregory: 'I need not speak to you of the deep regret with which I have received the intelligence of Dr Gregory's death. You will know with what admiration I regarded the various eminent talents & virtues, displayed both in his public & private life, & the sorrow I feel in common with all who knew him in either capacity is enhanced by the memory, which I shall ever retain, of the various personal obligations which I have myself received from him.' Holland points out how Dr Gregory's loss 'will be long & severely felt in Edinburgh, both as a Professor & a Physician'. He hopes that 'our common friend Dr Alison may come forward as a candidate' to fill 'the vacancy which is thus made in the Chair of Medicine'. Holland stresses the knowledge he has 'of his talents & general professional requirements, & the high esteem I feel for his character & personal qualities, founded on a long & intimate acquaintance', leading him to consider that Alison well suited to fill 'this very honourable & important situation'. From the distinguished autograph collection of the psychiatrist Richard Alfred Hunter (1923-1981), whose collection of 7000 works relating to psychiatry is now in Cambridge University Library. Hunter and his mother Ida Macalpine had a particular interest in the illness of King George III, and their book 'George III and the Mad Business' (1969) suggested the diagnosis of porphyria popularised by Alan Bennett in his play 'The Madness of George III'.