&NA;Percivall Pott was born in London on January 6, 1714, the son of a scrivener, in a house on Threadneedle Street where the Bank of England now sits. His father died three years later, but with the assistance of a relative, the Bishop of Rochester, Pott was able to attend a private school in Kent. At the age of 16, he demonstrated an interest in surgery and was apprenticed to Edward Nourse, an assistant surgeon at St. Bartholomew's Hospital. It was Pott's responsibility to prepare anatomical subjects for Nourse's lectures. In September 1736, Percivall Pott received his diploma and was admitted to the Company of Barber‐Surgeons. Following dissolution of the Company in 1745, Pott allied himself with the surgeons, having been appointed the previous year as assistant surgeon to St. Bartholomew's Hospital.Pott's reputation as a compassionate and gentle physician can be readily appreciated in his writing on fistula, the subject for thisClassicspresentation. He is harshly critical of the ubiquitous cautery and escharotic dressings. At the age of 43, he published the first of a large number of books. His wirints actually revolutionized the practice of British surgery. His style was direct, simple, and devoid of affectation.Two sections from one of his books are reproduced. The first presentation deals with the treatment of anorectal abscess, and next month, it will be directed to the management of anal fistula.