In his early forties, a chronic illness affecting his bones and requiring surgery to one of his knees,
The Last Days of Charles II (1909) The sudden death of King Charles II of England was initially recorded as due to being poisoned. It had therefore received much attention over the years and Crawfurd’s publication,
The Last Days of Charles II (1909), became a respected revision of the facts. His conclusion that Charles II died from chronic
interstitial nephritis resulting in
uraemic convulsions have since been endorsed by other biographers of Charles II.
''The King's Evil'' (1911) Published in 1911, ''The King's Evil'' covered the subject of his first of two FitzPatrick lectures, given in the same year at the RCP. He described how the 11th century French custom of
touching for
the King's Evil was observed by virtually all kings of England from
Edward the Confessor to
George I. Crawfurd explained how medical men gained courage to be sceptical after
William III's dismissal of the touch. His research went on to encompass the use of coins bearing images of
Charles I as alternatives to the touch, and how these coins were passed down through generations. Crawfurd's account in ''The King's Evil'' (1911), of how the royal touch was thought to cure scrofula, has been acknowledged as one of the most comprehensive accounts, frequently compared with the works of
Marc Bloch. Others have merely found it puzzling and evidence of “mass delusion”. He clearly stated that "no word in the whole of medical terminology has been more ill-used than the word 'scrofula'".
Plague and Pestilence in Literature and Art (1914) Plague and Pestilence in Literature and Art (1914) was a general account of
plague up to the 18th century, the subject of his second series of FitzPatrick lectures and contributions to the
proceedings of the Royal society of Medicine journal.
History of Medicine Section Crawfurd was a firm supporter of
Sir William Osler in forming a dedicated section to history of medicine at the RSM and recorded how Sir William's influence had been an attraction in recruiting members. When the first
History of Medicine Section meeting was held in 1912, Crawfurd, along with
D'Arcy Power were appointed the section’s secretaries. In addition, at the inaugural meeting, he spoke on contributions from the history of medicine to the problem of the transmission of
typhus. He later became president of the Section in 1916 and took up responsibilities on the library committee at RSM, both following on from
Sir Norman Moore. ==Death and legacy==