Citizenship United Kingdom Fields Geomorphology Nationality English Notable awards Gold Medal | Influences Charles Cotton Influenced by Charles Cotton Name Lester King Institution University of Natal | |
Born 1907
Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom ( 1907 ) Residence England, New Zealand, South Africa Institutions Natal University College
University of Natal Known for Geography of Southern Africa
Pediplain
Scarp retreat
Cymatogeny Died 1989, Durban, South Africa Alma mater Victoria University of Wellington, University of South Africa, University of New Zealand | ||
Lester Charles King (1907–1989) was an English geologist and geomorphologist known for his theories on scarp retreat. He offered a very different view of the origin of continental landscaping than that of William Morris Davis. Studying at university in New Zealand King was a disciple of Charles Cotton who was heavily influenced by Davis. While King's ideas were an attempt at refuting Davis' cycle of erosion they were themselves of cyclical nature and contributed to what Cliff Ollier has called "Davis bashing" — the ridicule of cyclical theories in geomorphology, in particular Davis' ones. Critics did however not propose alternative models. For him, the weathering of physical factors in arid areas causes the erosion of the hills, the deposition of the weathered material (pediments) and the deposition of these material in lower altitudes, contributing to the formation of the pediplain. He was also an early proponent of continental drift, having lectured on this matter at a number of U.S. universities during a tour in 1958.
King was a supporter of the Expanding Earth hypothesis.