George Pinckard M.D. (1768–1835) was an English physician, known as an author, an

abolitionist Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The British ...

, and in the field of insurance.

Life

The son of Henry Pinckard of Handley Hall,

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

, he was tutored by a clerical relative, studied medicine first at the then united hospitals of St. Thomas's and Guy's, then at Edinburgh, and finally at Leyden, where he graduated M.D. on 20 June 1792. He resided afterwards for a short time with his brother and sister at Copet, near

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

, and witnessed the capture of the city by the French forces under General

Montesquieu Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (; ; 18 January 168910 February 1755), generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher. He is the principa ...

. On 30 September 1794 Pinckard was admitted a licentiate of the

College of Physicians of London The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...

. In October 1795 he was appointed a physician to the forces, and accompanied

Sir Ralph Abercromby Lieutenant General Sir Ralph Abercromby (7 October 173428 March 1801) was a British soldier and politician. He rose to the rank of lieutenant-general in the British Army, was appointed Governor of Trinidad, served as Commander-in-Chief, Ire ...

's expedition to the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

. He was on the

Santo Domingo , total_type = Total , population_density_km2 = auto , timezone = AST (UTC −4) , area_code_type = Area codes , area_code = 809, 829, 849 , postal_code_type = Postal codes , postal_code = 10100–10699 (Distrito Nacional) , websi ...

staff, and had numerous delays before starting, during which he made the acquaintance of

James Lind James Lind (4 October 1716 – 13 July 1794) was a Scottish doctor. He was a pioneer of naval hygiene in the Royal Navy. By conducting one of the first ever clinical trials, he developed the theory that citrus fruits cured scurvy. Lind arg ...

, then in charge of

Haslar Hospital The Royal Hospital Haslar in Gosport, Hampshire, was one of several hospitals serving the local area. It was converted into retirement flats between 2018 and 2020. The hospital itself is a Grade II listed building. History Formation and oper ...

. He reached

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

in February 1796. Pinckard was in Ireland during the

Irish Rebellion of 1798 The Irish Rebellion of 1798 ( ga, Éirí Amach 1798; Ulster-Scots: ''The Hurries'') was a major uprising against British rule in Ireland. The main organising force was the Society of United Irishmen, a republican revolutionary group influence ...

, and served on the staff of General

Samuel Hulse Field Marshal Sir Samuel Hulse, GCH (27 March 1746 – 1 January 1837) was a British Army officer. He saw his first active duty during the Gordon Riots in June 1780 before commanding the 1st Battalion of the 1st Regiment of Foot Guards at ...

. He was promoted for his services to the rank of deputy inspector-general of hospitals, and had part of the direction of the medical service in the

Duke of York Duke of York is a title of nobility in the Peerage of the United Kingdom. Since the 15th century, it has, when granted, usually been given to the second son of English (later British) monarchs. The equivalent title in the Scottish peerage was Du ...

's expedition to

Den Helder Den Helder () is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of North Holland. Den Helder occupies the northernmost point of the North Holland peninsula. It is home to the country's main naval base. From here the Royal TESO fe ...

. On his return he took a house in

Great Russell Street Great Russell Street is a street in Bloomsbury, London, best known for being the location of the British Museum. It runs between Tottenham Court Road (part of the A400 route) in the west, and Southampton Row (part of the A4200 route) in the east ...

, then moved to

Bloomsbury Square Bloomsbury Square is a garden square in Bloomsbury, in the London Borough of Camden, London. Developed in the late 17th century, it was initially known as Southampton Square and was one of the earliest London squares. By the early 19th century, Be ...

, London, and resided there till his death. He established the Bloomsbury Dispensary, and was physician to it for thirty years. In 1823 he formulated the idea of insuring lives beyond the normal bounds, from a medical standpoint, leading to the foundation in 1824 of

Clerical Medical Clerical Medical is a British life assurance, pensions and investments company founded in 1824, and a subsidiary of Lloyds Banking Group. History In 1824, Dr George Pinckard formed a committee of physicians and members of the clergy which publis ...

. He was chairman and a director from its foundation in 1824 to his death in 1835.www.lloydsbankinggroup.co
Our Heritage: Clerical Medical Pinckard suffered from

angina pectoris Angina, also known as angina pectoris, is chest pain or pressure, usually caused by insufficient blood flow to the heart muscle (myocardium). It is most commonly a symptom of coronary artery disease. Angina is typically the result of obstru ...

, and died while writing a prescription for a patient in his consulting-room on 15 May 1835.

Works

In his ''Notes on the West Indies'' (3 vols. 1806; 2nd ed. 2 vols. 1816), Pinckard described his experiences in the West Indies and

Guiana The Guianas, sometimes called by the Spanish loan-word ''Guayanas'' (''Las Guayanas''), is a region in north-eastern South America which includes the following three territories: * French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France * ...

, particularly of

slavery Slavery and enslavement are both the state and the condition of being a slave—someone forbidden to quit one's service for an enslaver, and who is treated by the enslaver as property. Slavery typically involves slaves being made to perf ...

. Passages from this work were reprinted by abolitionists in 1807. In 1808 he published ''Dr. Pinckard's Case of Hydrophobia'', from

Chipping Barnet Chipping Barnet or High Barnet is a suburban market town in north London, forming part of the London Borough of Barnet, England. It is a suburban development built around a 12th-century settlement, and is located north-northwest of Charing Cr ...

Hertfordshire Hertfordshire ( or ; often abbreviated Herts) is one of the home counties in southern England. It borders Bedfordshire and Cambridgeshire to the north, Essex to the east, Greater London to the south, and Buckinghamshire to the west. For govern ...

. He subsequently published in the '' London Medical Journal'' two other cases of hydrophobia, and reprinted all three, with another, in a pamphlet entitled ''Cases of Hydrophobia'' (1819), dedicated to John Latham. In April 1835 he published ''Suggestions for restoring the Moral Character and the Industrious Habits of the Poor; also for establishing District Work-farms in place of Parish Workhouses, and for reducing the Poor-rates''. He recommended farms laid out for the purpose by the spade-labour of paupers.

Notes

;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Pinckard, George 1768 births 1835 deaths 18th-century English medical doctors 19th-century English medical doctors English abolitionists Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians