John Michael Tedder, 2nd Baron Tedder, FRSE FRSC (4 July 1926 – 18 February 1994), was the Purdie Professor of Chemistry at St. Andrews University, Scotland. Early life and education He was born in London on 4 July 1926, the second born son of Arthur William Tedder and Rosalinde Maclardy. His father had a military career in the Royal Air Force, that culminated in his becoming Marshal of the Royal Air Force. As his father's military appointments involved frequent changes, the Tedder family's residences also shifted. He attended schools in Surrey, Whitgift School (1934–36), Sumatra in Indonesia (1936–38) and Dauntsey's School in Wiltshire (1938–44). He suffered with disabilities in both hearing and eyesight, and was rejected as a candidate for military service in the Second World War. Tedder's early life was shaped by two significant tragedies. His older brother Dick was killed on active service in France in 1940. His mother, Rosalinde Tedder, died in January 1943 in an air crash in Egypt. His father was a witness to the air crash and was deeply affected by the death of his wife. As Tedder was unfit to serve in military action, in 1944 he went to university to study chemistry. He studied at Magdalene College, University of Cambridge for his undergraduate degree and, owing to the impact of the family tragedies, initially obtained poor grades. However, he persisted and was awarded a degree (B.A.) in 1947. He received encouragement from some of his lecturers and went on to receive both an M.A in 1951, and then his first doctorate (PhD) at Birmingham University in 1951. He undertook post-doctoral studies at Ohio State University from 1952–53. He subsequently obtained a second honorary doctorate (D.Sc.) from the University of Birmingham in 1961, and honorary Sc. D. from the University of Cambridge in 1965. Career Tedder became a lecturer in chemistry at Sheffield University in 1955, and in 1964 was appointed to the Roscoe Chair in Chemistry at Queen's College, Dundee, which in 1967 became the University of Dundee. He became Purdie Professor of Chemistry at St. Andrews University in 1969, and held the post until retiral 1989, thereafter retaining the title emeritus professor. In 1977 he submitted a paper to the Courts of the Universities of St Andrews and Dundee which called for the reunification of the two Universities, which had separated when Queen's College became the University of Dundee a decade