Berkeley George Andrew Moynihan, 1st Baron Moynihan

LL.D Legum Doctor (Latin: “teacher of the laws”) (LL.D.) or, in English, Doctor of Laws, is a doctorate-level academic degree in law or an honorary degree, depending on the jurisdiction. The double “L” in the abbreviation refers to the earl ...

(2 October 1865 – 7 September 1936), known as Sir Berkeley Moynihan, 1st Baronet, from 1922 to 1929, was a noted British

abdominal The abdomen (colloquially called the belly, tummy, midriff, tucky or stomach) is the part of the body between the thorax (chest) and pelvis, in humans and in other vertebrates. The abdomen is the front part of the abdominal segment of the torso. ...

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

Early years

Moynihan was born in

Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...

in 1865, the son of

Captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

Andrew Moynihan Andrew Moynihan, VC (1 January 1830 – 18 May 1867) was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Backgrou ...

, VC. His father died in 1867 and Moynihan moved with his mother to

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

Yorkshire Yorkshire ( ; abbreviated Yorks), formally known as the County of York, is a Historic counties of England, historic county in northern England and by far the largest in the United Kingdom. Because of its large area in comparison with other Eng ...

. He was educated in Leeds and the

Christ's Hospital Christ's Hospital is a public school (English independent boarding school for pupils aged 11–18) with a royal charter located to the south of Horsham in West Sussex. The school was founded in 1552 and received its first royal charter in 1553 ...

, Newgate, London (1875–1881).

Medical career

After two years at the

Royal Naval School The Royal Naval School was an English school that was established in Camberwell, London, in 1833 and then formally constituted by the Royal Naval College Act 1840. It was a charitable institution, established as a boarding school for the sons of ...

, Eltham, he returned to Leeds to study medicine at the

Leeds School of Medicine The School of Medicine is the medical school of the University of Leeds, in the city of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The School of Medicine was founded in 1831. The School of Medicine now forms part of the University's Faculty of Medicine an ...

. He graduated

MB BS Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United King ...

at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

in 1887 and joined

Leeds General Infirmary Leeds General Infirmary, also known as the LGI, is a large teaching hospital based in the centre of Leeds, West Yorkshire, England, and is part of the Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust. Its previous name The General Infirmary at Leeds is still ...

as house surgeon. He was then successively demonstrator of anatomy in the Medical School (1893–96), assistant surgeon to the infirmary (1896), surgeon from 1906 and consulting surgeon from 1927 until his death. In parallel with his appointment as surgeon, Moynihan was lecturer in surgery from 1896 to 1909, and from 1910 to 1927

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin as a "person who pr ...

of Clinical

Surgery Surgery ''cheirourgikē'' (composed of χείρ, "hand", and ἔργον, "work"), via la, chirurgiae, meaning "hand work". is a medical specialty that uses operative manual and instrumental techniques on a person to investigate or treat a pat ...

(from 1925 Surgery) at the

University of Leeds , mottoeng = And knowledge will be increased , established = 1831 – Leeds School of Medicine1874 – Yorkshire College of Science1884 - Yorkshire College1887 – affiliated to the federal Victoria University1904 – University of Leeds , ...

. By the end of the

Great War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

Moynihan held the rank of

major-general Major general (abbreviated MG, maj. gen. and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. It is derived from the older rank of sergeant major general. The disappearance of the "sergeant" in the title explains the apparent confusion of a ...

in the

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

and had been chairman of the Army Advisory Board from 1916 and chairman of the council of consultants 1916 to 1919. He delivered the

Bradshaw Lecture The Bradshaw Lectures are prestigious lectureships given at the invitation of the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of Surgeons of England. List of past lecturers at Royal College of Physicians List of past lecturers at Royal C ...

in 1920 and the

Hunterian oration The Hunterian Oration is a lecture of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. The oration was founded in 1813 by the executors of the will of pioneering surgeon John Hunter, his nephew Dr Matthew Baillie and his brother-in-law Sir Everard Home ...

in 1927. He served as President of the

Royal College of Surgeons of England The Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England) is an independent professional body and registered charity that promotes and advances standards of surgical care for patients, and regulates surgery and dentistry in England and Wales. The ...

from 1926 to 1932. In 1935, a year before his death, Moynihan and Dr Killick Millard had founded the British Voluntary Euthanasia Society. Moynihan's surgery on

Park Square, Leeds Park Square is a Georgian public square in central Leeds, West Yorkshire. The square is grassed over and is a traditional Georgian park. The square is in Leeds' financial quarter and is surrounded by Georgian buildings, which are occupied as of ...

in the city centre still stands, now used as private offices. Their former use and connection to Moynihan is marked with a Leeds Civic Society

blue plaque A blue plaque is a permanent sign installed in a public place in the United Kingdom and elsewhere to commemorate a link between that location and a famous person, event, or former building on the site, serving as a historical marker. The term i ...

. He would say that the perfect surgeon must have the heart of a lion and the hands of a lady, not the claws of a lion and the heart of a sheep. Or again, " Infinite gentleness, scrupulous care, light handling and purposeful, effective, quiet movements which are no more than a caress, are all necessary if an operation is to be the work of an artist and not merely of a hewer of flesh."

Honours

Moynihan was Knight Bachelor, knighted in 1912, appointed a

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregive ...

(CB) in 1917, a

Knight Commander Commander ( it, Commendatore; french: Commandeur; german: Komtur; es, Comendador; pt, Comendador), or Knight Commander, is a title of honor prevalent in chivalric orders and fraternal orders. The title of Commander occurred in the medieval mili ...

of the

Order of St Michael & St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, King George III. It is named in honou ...

(KCMG) in 1918 and created a

Baronet A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...

Carr Manor Carr Manor is a Victorian grade II listed house in Meanwood, Leeds, England, designed by Edward Schroeder Prior and built for Thomas Clifford Allbutt (1836–1925). In 1881 it replaced Carr Manor House, though retaining the 1796 stable block.W. ...

in 1922. On 19 March 1929 he was raised to the

peerage A peerage is a legal system historically comprising various hereditary titles (and sometimes non-hereditary titles) in a number of countries, and composed of assorted noble ranks. Peerages include: Australia * Australian peers Belgium * Belgi ...

as Baron Moynihan, of

in the County of

York York is a cathedral city with Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers Ouse and Foss in North Yorkshire, England. It is the historic county town of Yorkshire. The city has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a ...

. There is a lecture theatre/conference space at Thackray Medical Museum, Leeds, named the "Moynihan Auditorium".

Family

Moynihan married Isabella Wellesley Jessop, the daughter of prominent Leeds surgeon Thomas Jessop, on 17 April 1895.''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'' They had three children: *

Hon Hon or HON may refer to: People * Han (surname) (Chinese: 韩/韓), also romanized Hon * Louis Hon (1924–2008), French footballer * Priscilla Hon (born 1998), Australian tennis player Other uses * Hon (Baltimore), a cultural stereotype of ...

Dorothy Wellesley Moynihan (born 1897) * Hon Shelagh Berkeley Moynihan (born 1902), married Henry Wynn Parry, BCh in 1923 * Patrick Berkeley Moynihan, 2nd Baron Moynihan (born 29 July 1906, died 30 April 1965) Lady Moynihan died on 1 September 1936. Lord Moynihan died six days later at the age of 70 and was succeeded in the barony and baronetcy by his only son Patrick.

Arms

References

*Kidd, Charles, Williamson, David (editors). ''Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage'' (1990 edition). New York: St Martin's Press, 1990. *
Short biography of Lord Moynihan
{{DEFAULTSORT:Moynihan, Berkeley Moynihan, 1st Baron 1865 births 1936 deaths People educated at Christ's Hospital Alumni of University of London Worldwide Alumni of the University of London Barons in the Peerage of the United Kingdom English surgeons Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons Royal Army Medical Corps officers British Army generals of World War I English people of Irish descent Academics of the University of Leeds Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George Companions of the Order of the Bath 19th-century surgeons 19th-century British medical doctors 20th-century surgeons 20th-century British medical doctors Leeds Blue Plaques Barons created by George V