Martin Eccles

Martin Eccles had a long and varied career. The son of Dr William Eccles, who would later become President of the College, he was apprenticed to the surgeon-apothecary Robert Hope, father of President John Hope. After completing his apprenticeship, he opened his own apothecary on Niddry's Wynd, Edinburgh. In 1742 Eccles' shop was destroyed by rioters after the discovery of a 'resurrected' body, though Eccles and his apprentices avoided conviction for body snatching. In 1753, Eccles was awarded an MD from the University of St Andrews and began to style himself as a doctor. However, while keeping an apothecary's shop and being unlicensed by the College, he was prosecuted for impersonating a physician. By 1771 Eccles became a Fellow of the College before he died in October 1778 aged 76.