John Hennen
FRSE (24 April 1779 – 3 November 1828) was an Irish-born military surgeon and author of the acclaimed medical textbook ''The Principles of Military Surgery''.
Life
He was born on 24 April 1779 in
Castlebar
Castlebar () is the county town of County Mayo, Ireland. Developing around a 13th century castle of the de Barry family, from which the town got its name, the town now acts as a social and economic focal point for the surrounding hinterland. W ...
,
County Mayo in Ireland, the son of Dr. James Hennen, a surgeon. He went to school in
Limerick
Limerick ( ; ga, Luimneach ) is a western city in Ireland situated within County Limerick. It is in the province of Munster and is located in the Mid-West which comprises part of the Southern Region. With a population of 94,192 at the 2016 ...
then studied medicine at the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
. In 1798, he appeared as an assistant Surgeon in the
Shropshire
Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to ...
Militia.
His first major tour of duty was with 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, Ir ...
and the 40th Regiment of Foot intended for
Egypt
Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...
, but waylaid 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 ...
en route. Here he served until returning to England around 1800, where he was promoted to full surgeon, serving the 7th Garrison Battalion. He was then transferred to the 2nd Battalion of the 30th Foot Regiment and accompanied them to
Portugal
Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic ( pt, República Portuguesa, links=yes ), is a country whose mainland is located on the Iberian Peninsula of Southwestern Europe, and whose territory also includes the Atlantic archipelagos of ...
as part of the ongoing
Peninsular War
The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
, under the overall medical charge of Dr. James McGrigor. He continued to serve through many battles until the peace of 1814, when he returned to
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
as a GP in
Dumfries.
After Napoleon's escape from Elba and re-assembly of the French Army, Hennen was again called to serve his country, and Director General of Military Medical Services, Dr James McGrigor ordered him to
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
. As a resultant, in June 1815 he served medical duties during the
Battle of Waterloo
The Battle of Waterloo was fought on Sunday 18 June 1815, near Waterloo, Belgium, Waterloo (at that time in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands, now in Belgium). A French army under the command of Napoleon was defeated by two of the armie ...
, rather oddly, accompanied by his son and daughter. Following Napoleon's defeat, Hennen was promoted to Deputy Inspector of (Military) Hospitals in
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...
and the
Netherlands
)
, anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau")
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, subdivision_type = Sovereign state
, subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands
, established_title = Before independence
, established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
.
In February 1816 he returned to England to work on the staff of the main naval hospital at
Portsmouth
Portsmouth ( ) is a port and city in the ceremonial county of Hampshire in southern England. The city of Portsmouth has been a unitary authority since 1 April 1997 and is administered by Portsmouth City Council.
Portsmouth is the most dens ...
. his period of relative peace enabled him to start on his writings. In October 1818 he moved to
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian on the southern shore of t ...
where he began lecturing in Military Surgery at the
University of Edinburgh
The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...
.
In 1819 he was elected a Fellow of the
Royal Society of Edinburgh. His proposers were
Thomas Charles Hope
Thomas Charles Hope (21 July 1766 – 13 June 1844) was a British physician, chemist and lecturer. He proved the existence of the element strontium, and gave his name to Hope's Experiment, which shows that water reaches its maximum density a ...
,
Andrew Duncan, and Sir
David Brewster.
In August 1820 the University of Edinburgh granted him his doctorate (MD). In 1821 he returned to service in the
Mediterranean
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western Europe, Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa ...
firstly returning to
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 ...
then, after establishing a convalescent hospital in
Gozo, going to
Corfu in April 1825, before finally locating to
Gibraltar
)
, anthem = " God Save the King"
, song = " Gibraltar Anthem"
, image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg
, map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe
, map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green
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in December 1825.
On 17 January 1824 he attended at the death-bed of
Sir Thomas Maitland
Lieutenant General The Right Honourable Sir Thomas Maitland (10 March 1760 – 17 January 1824) was a British soldier and British colonial governor. He also served as a Member of Parliament for Haddington from 1790 to 1796, 1802–06 and 1812 ...
along with Dr Robert Grieves and Alexander Broadfoot.
He died in
Gibraltar
)
, anthem = " God Save the King"
, song = " Gibraltar Anthem"
, image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg
, map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe
, map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green
, mapsize =
, image_map2 = Gib ...
during an
epidemic
An epidemic (from Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of patients among a given population within an area in a short period of time.
Epidemics of infectious ...
of
yellow fever
Yellow fever is a viral disease of typically short duration. In most cases, symptoms include fever, chills, loss of appetite, nausea, muscle pains – particularly in the back – and headaches. Symptoms typically improve within five days. ...
at 6 am on 3 November 1828, aged only 49.
A memorial plaque was erected in the
King's Chapel, Gibraltar paid for by medical admirers around the globe.
Publications
*''Hospital Gangrene'' (c.1816)
*''The Arrangement and Police of Hospitals'' (1818)
*''Principles of Military Surgery'' (1820, second edition 1825)
*''The Medical Topography of the Mediterranean'' (1830)
Family
He was married to Miss Malcolm from
Dunfermline. They had five children. Their daughter Martha Hennen married Deputy Assistant Commissary General William Condamine of
Guernsey in 1822.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hennen, John
1779 births
1828 deaths
19th-century British medical doctors
Alumni of the University of Edinburgh
British Army regimental surgeons
British Army personnel of the French Revolutionary Wars
British Army personnel of the Napoleonic Wars
Military personnel from County Mayo
People from Castlebar
People from County Mayo in health professions
Royal Army Medical Corps officers
30th Regiment of Foot officers
40th Regiment of Foot officers
British Militia officers