Lady Joan Margaret Legge JP (21 February 1885 – 4 July 1939) was an English botanist who had a fatal accident while collecting samples in the Valley of Flowers in India.[1]

Quick Facts Born, Died ...
Lady Joan Legge
Born(1885-02-21)21 February 1885
Marylebone, London, England
Died4 July 1939(1939-07-04) (aged 54)
FatherWilliam Legge
RelativesWilliam Legge (brother)
Humphry Legge (brother)
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Early life

Legge was born at 55 Manchester St.[2] in Marylebone, London, to William Legge, 6th Earl of Dartmouth, and Lady Mary Coke.[3] She held the office of Justice of Peace for Staffordshire.[1]

Death

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Tomb of Lady Joan Margaret Legge

In 1939, Legge went to India to study flora in the Valley of Flowers on behalf of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.[4] While traversing some rocky slopes to collect flowers, she slipped off and lost her life.[5] She died unmarried at the age of 54.

Legge's sister came in search of her and built a tomb in the Valley of Flowers.[6]

Commemoration

In 2010 a new species of Impatiens found near the Valley of Flowers was named Impatiens leggei as a tribute to Legge.[7][8]

References

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