Sir Henry "Harry" Letheby Tidy (28 October 1877 – 3 June 1960) was a British physician and gastroenterologist.

Biography

After education 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 then at

New College, Oxford New College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1379 by William of Wykeham in conjunction with Winchester College as its feeder school, New College is one of the oldest colleges at th ...

, he studied medicine at the

London Hospital The Royal London Hospital is a large teaching hospital in Whitechapel in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is part of Barts Health NHS Trust. It provides district general hospital services for the City of London and Tower Hamlets and spe ...

and graduated BM BCh Oxon in 1905. After junior appointments at the London Hospital, he studied at Freiburg and Berlin, and then was appointed demonstrator of clinical pathology at the London Hospital. In 1906 he graduated DM Oxon and also qualified MRCS (Member of the Royal College of Surgeons), LRCP (Licentiate of the Royal College of Physicians). In 1908 he qualified MRCP. In the 1920s he also held appointments to the

Poplar Hospital Poplar Hospital was a medical facility opened in East India Dock Road in London, England, in 1855. It was opened under the patronage of Samuel Gurney, MP, to treat people who had suffered injuries in the docks. The premises which were leased for ...

and the Great Northern Hospital. In WWI he joined the

RAMC 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 attained the rank of major. In 1919, he was appointed an assistant physician to

St Thomas' Hospital St Thomas' Hospital is a large NHS teaching hospital in Central London, England. It is one of the institutions that compose the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. Administratively part of the Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foun ...

and was elected FRCP. His book ''A Synopsis of Medicine'' (1920) has a general arrangement that follows Osler's ''

The Principles and Practice of Medicine ''The Principles and Practice of Medicine: Designed for the Use of Practitioners and Students of Medicine'' is a medical textbook by Sir William Osler. It was first published in 1892 by D. Appleton & Company, while Osler was professor of Medicine ...

''. Tidy's ''Synopsis'' had a 5th edition in 1930 and a 10th edition in 1954. He was the editor of ''Index of Symptomatology'' (1928) and the co-editor of ''The Medical Annual: A Yearbook of Treatment and Practitioners' Index'' for many years from 1934. He delivered the

Lumleian Lectures The Lumleian Lectures are a series of annual lectures started in 1582 by the Royal College of Physicians and currently run by the Lumleian Trust. The name commemorates John Lumley, 1st Baron Lumley, who with Richard Caldwell of the College endowe ...

in 1937. In 1937 he was a co-founder of the

British Society of Gastroenterology The British Society of Gastroenterology (BSG) is a British professional organisation of gastroenterologists, surgeons, pathologists, radiologists, scientists, nurses, dietitians and others amongst its members, which number over 3,000. It was founde ...

along with

Arthur Frederick Hurst Sir Arthur Frederick Hurst, aka Arthur Frederick Hertz FRCP (23 July 1879 – 17 August 1944) was a British physician, and a cofounder of the British Society of Gastroenterology. The society's annual lecture is named for him. Biography Aurt ...

, John Ryle, L. J. Witts, and Lionel Hardy. In 1938 Tidy became dean of

St Thomas's Hospital Medical School St Thomas's Hospital Medical School in London was one of the oldest and most prestigious medical schools in the UK. The school was absorbed to form part of King's College London. History It was part of one of the oldest hospitals in London, ...

. Tidy resigned his Army commission in 1942 and was granted the honorary rank of major-general. From 1942 to 1945 he presided over the Inter-Allied Conferences on War Medicine at the

Royal Society of Medicine The Royal Society of Medicine (RSM) is a medical society in the United Kingdom, headquartered in London. History The Society was established in 1805 as Medical and Chirurgical Society of London, meeting in two rooms in barristers’ chambers ...

. He was the editor of the proceedings of the Inter-Allied Conferences on War Medicine published in 1947. He was knighted in 1943. From 1946 to 1951 during each winter he was a visiting professor at the University of Cairo. In 1936 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 ...

appointed him

Physician-in-Ordinary ''In ordinary'' is an English phrase with multiple meanings. In relation to the Royal Household, it indicates that a position is a permanent one. In naval matters, vessels "in ordinary" (from the 17th century) are those out of service for repair ...

to the Household of the Duke of York and then, after becoming

King George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of Ind ...

, appointed him an Extra Physician. In 1952 Sir Henry Tidy became Extra Physician to the Queen. Henry Tidy, whose father was

Charles Meymott Tidy Charles Meymott Tidy (1843–1892) was an English medical man and sanitary chemist, a barrister who wrote also on legal matters. Life Born on 2 February 1843, he was the son of William Callender Tidy, a physician in South Hackney and his wife, Ch ...

, married in 1906 Elizabeth Catherine Ramsay. Her father was the chemist Sir

William Ramsay Sir William Ramsay (; 2 October 1852 – 23 July 1916) was a Scottish chemist who discovered the noble gases and received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1904 "in recognition of his services in the discovery of the inert gaseous elements ...

. Henry and Elizabeth Tidy had two sons and one daughter. He was hon. major-general in the British Army and a member of the

Bath Club The Bath Club was a sports-themed London gentlemen's club in the 20th century. It was established in 1894 at 34 Dover Street. Its swimming pool was a noted feature, and it is thought that the swimming pool of the fictional Drones Club (also on D ...

Selected publications

Articles

* *with E. B. Morley: * * * (See Ayerza's disease.) * * (See

Bornholm disease Bornholm disease, also known as epidemic pleurodynia, is a condition characterized by myositis of the abdomen or chest caused by the Coxsackie B virus or other viruses. The myositis manifests as an intermittent stabbing pain in the musculature that ...

.) * (See

Banti's syndrome Banti's syndrome (also known as Banti's disease), named for Guido Banti, is a chronic congestive enlargement of the spleen resulting in premature destruction of the red blood cells by the spleen. Presentation Enlargement of spleen, ascites, jaun ...

Books

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tidy, Henry Letheby 1877 births 1960 deaths People educated at Winchester College Alumni of New College, Oxford 20th-century English medical doctors British gastroenterologists Alumni of the London Hospital Medical College Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians Physicians of St Thomas' Hospital Royal Army Medical Corps officers Knights Bachelor