Elston Grey-Turner (16 August 1916 – 20 January 1984) was a British medical doctor who served in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

and was on the staff of the

British Medical Association The British Medical Association (BMA) is a registered trade union for doctors in the United Kingdom. The association does not regulate or certify doctors, a responsibility which lies with the General Medical Council. The association's headquar ...

for many years.

Education

The son of surgeon

George Grey Turner George Grey Turner (8 September 1877 – 24 August 1951) was an English surgeon. He was born in North Shields and received his medical degree from Newcastle Medical School (then a part of the University of Durham). He received a Fellowship fr ...

, he was educated at

Winchester College Winchester College is a public school (fee-charging independent day and boarding school) in Winchester, Hampshire, England. It was founded by William of Wykeham in 1382 and has existed in its present location ever since. It is the oldest of the ...

and

Trinity College, Cambridge Trinity College is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. Founded in 1546 by Henry VIII, King Henry VIII, Trinity is one of the largest Cambridge colleges, with the largest financial endowment of any college at either Cambridge ...

. He qualified in medicine in 1942.

Service in World War II

He joined the

Royal Army Medical Corps The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) is a specialist corps in the British Army which provides medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. The RAMC, the Royal Army Veterinary Corps, the Royal Army Dental Corps a ...

and served as regimental medical officer to the 2nd Battalion of the

Coldstream Guards The Coldstream Guards is the oldest continuously serving regular regiment in the British Army. As part of the Household Division, one of its principal roles is the protection of the monarchy; due to this, it often participates in state ceremonia ...

, 1942–1945. Among his assignments, he served at the

Battle of Monte Cassino The Battle of Monte Cassino, also known as the Battle for Rome and the Battle for Cassino, was a series of four assaults made by the Allies against German forces in Italy during the Italian Campaign of World War II. The ultimate objective was ...

. He was awarded the

Territorial Decoration __NOTOC__ The Territorial Decoration (TD) was a military medal of the United Kingdom awarded for long service in the Territorial Force and its successor, the Territorial Army. This award superseded the Volunteer Officer's Decoration when the Te ...

, and also the

Military Cross The Military Cross (MC) is the third-level (second-level pre-1993) military decoration awarded to officers and (since 1993) other ranks of the British Armed Forces, and formerly awarded to officers of other Commonwealth countries. The MC i ...

Service in the British Medical Association

In 1948, he joined the staff of the British Medical Association. He was secretary from 1976–79. He was made vice president in 1982.

Diarist and historian

He was a diarist whose notes about the war, the British Medical Association, and the development of the

National Health Service The National Health Service (NHS) is the umbrella term for the publicly funded healthcare systems of the United Kingdom (UK). Since 1948, they have been funded out of general taxation. There are three systems which are referred to using the " ...

have served as primary source material for researchers. He also was the Association's historian, and co-author of ''History of the British Medical Association.''

Burial

He is buried at

St Peter's Church, Petersham St Peter's Church is the parish church of the village of Petersham in the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames. It is part of the Diocese of Southwark in the Church of England. The main body of the church building dates from the 16th century, ...

Surviving papers

His papers are archived at the

Wellcome Library The Wellcome Library is founded on the collection formed by Sir Henry Wellcome (1853–1936), whose personal wealth allowed him to create one of the most ambitious collections of the 20th century. Henry Wellcome's interest was the history of med ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grey-Turner, Elston 1916 births 1984 deaths 20th-century British diarists 20th-century British historians 20th-century British medical doctors Alumni of Trinity College, Cambridge Burials at St Peter's, Petersham Commanders of the Order of the British Empire People educated at Winchester College Recipients of the Military Cross Royal Army Medical Corps officers British Army personnel of World War II Coldstream Guards officers