Born 12 April 1863, the third son of Arthur Isaac Solly, country gentleman and company director, and Georgina Reade, his wife. He was educated at Rugby School and St Thomas's Hospital, where he won many prizes, including the Solly gold medal for surgery, founded by his family. After qualifying in 1886 and taking honours at the London MB the next year, he served as resident accoucheur and surgical registrar at St Thomas's, and senior resident medical officer at the Royal Free Hospital. He took the Fellowship in 1888 at the earliest permitted age. In 1893 he settled at Harrogate, taking over the general practice of A G Russell, MD. At first he was a general physician and took particular interest in the development of the Spa at Harrogate, but later specialized in surgery. He was appointed surgeon to the Harrogate Infirmary in 1905, and was elected consulting surgeon on retirement in 1932; he was also consulting surgeon to the Yorkshire Home for Incurable and Chronic Diseases at Harrogate. Solly was a vice-president of the section of dermatology at the Toronto meeting of the British Medical Association in 1906, and afterwards president of the British Balneological and Climatological Society. He represented his branch in the Representative Meeting of the BMA on many occasions between 1905 and 1939, and served on the central ethical committee from 1932 to 1939. He, served as surgeon-captain in the Territorial Force and was awarded the Territorial Decoration. On the outbreak of war he was commissioned in the RAMC on 20 November 1914, promoted major 23 February 1915, and saw active service in France. He had served as mayor of Harrogate as early as 1898 and founded the Harrogate Rotary Club. He was a promoter of the Boy Scout movement. Solly married in 1893 Mary A Norbury, who died in 1932. They lived at Strathlea, Cold Bath Road, Harrogate, Yorkshire. He died on 26 July 1950 at a Harrogate nursing home, aged 87, survived by his son and three daughters; his other children had died before him. He was cremated, after a funeral service at St Peter's Church, Harrogate. Solly had many and varied interests, besides those of a public nature already mentioned; he was fond of cricket and carpentry, and collected stamps.