Born in Cawnpore, India, John Forbes Royle was employed as a surgeon by the British East India Company. He was an enthusiast for natural history, particularly botany and geology, and succeeded Dr George Govan as Curator (1823-1831) of the Saharunpur Botanic Garden in the Himalayan mountains. He brought back large collections of medicinal and other, mainly economical, plants to England in 1831 and his specialisation in Indian drug plants led to his appointment as Professor of Materia Medica at King's College (1837-1856). He was elected a fellow of the Royal Society (1837) and Secretary (1837-1858) of the Horticultural Society of London (later the Royal Horticultural Society). J. Forbes Royle created a museum of vegetable products at East India House and was superintendent of the Indian department of the Great Exhibition (1851). His own collections were made mainly in India and Nepal, often aided by other collectors, but he also collected in South Africa while journeying between England and India. He died at Acton on the 2nd January 1858. He is commemorated by the genus Roylea Wall. and in the names of many himalayan species, including Allium roylei Stearn, Epipactis royleana Lindl. and Fritillaria roylei Hook.