Sir Hilarion Marcus Fernando, FRCP (21 October 1864 – 18 December 1936) was a pre-independence

Ceylonese Sri Lankan or Ceylonese may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Sri Lanka * A person from Sri Lanka, see Demographics of Sri Lanka ** Sinhalese people, the ethnic majority ** Sri Lankan Tamils, an ethnic minority ** Sri L ...

statesman A statesman or stateswoman typically is a politician who has had a long and respected political career at the national or international level. Statesman or Statesmen may also refer to: Newspapers United States * ''The Statesman'' (Oregon), a n ...

physician A physician (American English), medical practitioner (Commonwealth English), medical doctor, or simply doctor, is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through th ...

and

banker A bank is a financial institution that accepts Deposit account, deposits from the public and creates a demand deposit while simultaneously making loans. Lending activities can be directly performed by the bank or indirectly through capital m ...

. He was a member of both the executive council and legislative council as well as the

chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

of the State Mortgage Bank of Ceylon.

Education

Fernando was educated at St Benedicts Academy (later known as

St Benedict's College Colombo St. Benedict's College (Sinhala language, Sinhala: සාන්ත බෙනඩික් විදුහල, Tamil language, Tamil: புனித ஆசீர்வாதப்பர் கல்லூரி) is a Catholic school located in th ...

) and the Colombo Academy (which was subsequently renamed

Royal College Colombo Royal College, Colombo is a selective entry boys' school located in Cinnamon Gardens, Colombo, Sri Lanka. Started as a private school by Rev Joseph Marsh in 1835, it was established as the Colombo Academy by Sir Robert Wilmot-Horton in Janu ...

). At the Colombo Academy he won the Turnour Prize, Junior Cambridge Scholarship and the Mathematical Prize. He received a Ceylon Government Scholarship and Scholarship from th
Gilchrist Educational Trust
enabling him to study medicine at

University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...

. He graduated with a

BSc A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University ...

winning the Atchinson Scholarship and

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 ...

Gold Medals A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have bee ...

in Physiology, Medicine, Forensic Medicine and Obstetrics. He graduated with an MB in 1888, an MD in 1889 and in 1890 was elected a

Fellow A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context. In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements. Within the context of higher education ...

of University College London.The Sara Saga
Manicasothy Saravanamuttu (Areca) pp. 51-3

Medical career

On his return to Ceylon he served as

Registrar A registrar is an official keeper of records made in a register. The term may refer to: Education * Registrar (education), an official in an academic institution who handles student records * Registrar of the University of Oxford, one of the se ...

of the

Ceylon Medical College Ceylon Medical College was a public medical school in Ceylon. The college was established in 1870 as the Colombo Medical School. The college was based in Colombo. The college was merged with Ceylon University College in 1942 to form the University ...

and the Superintendent of the De Soysa Maternity Home and was appointed the first Consultant Physician to be appointed to the

General Hospital Colombo The National Hospital of Sri Lanka (sometimes General Hospital) is a government hospital in Colombo, Sri Lanka. Founded in 1864 as the General Hospital, it is the leading hospital in Sri Lanka and is controlled by the central government. The hos ...

. He contributed to scientific discussions on a wide range of diseases and is associated with a discussion on ''Diabetes in the Tropics'', where he is credited with the observation that it was more common among the affluent Ceylonese. He was a member of the Ceylon Branch of the British Medical Association, and was Secretary from 1891–1897 and President in the years 1905 and 1914. He was the founding Director of the Bacteriological Institute in Colombo and Chemical Examiner to the Government of Ceylon.Medical Research institute, Sri Lanka: History (Official Website)
Retrieved 2015-02-25.

Political career

At the age of 43 he resigned from the medical service to take up a career in business and politics. He contested unsuccessfully for the newly created seat (proposed by Sir

James Peiris Sir James Peiris (20 December 1856 – 5 May 1930) was a prominent leader in the Sri Lankan independence movement, the first elected Vice-President of the Legislative Council of Ceylon and the first native Governor of Ceylon (Acting).

) in the 1911 legislative council election losing to the conservative, but well known retired government servant, Sir

Ponnambalam Ramanathan Sir Ponnambalam Ramanathan, CMG, KC ( ta, பொன்னம்பலம் இராமநாதன், translit=Poṉṉampalam Irāmanātaṉ; 16 April 1851 – 26 November 1930) was a Ceylon Tamil lawyer, politician and Solicitor-General ...

, but subsequently served on both the Executive Council and Legislative Councils. Fernando's manifesto had proposed a progressive programme towards industrialisation. He supported the Donoughmore Constitution enabling general elections with adult universal suffrage and was largely responsible for devising wider representation to the Northern Tamils and Eastern Muslims. Fernando was a former proprietor of ''The Ceylon Independent,'' when the editorial staff included Noel Gratiaen and

Manicasothy Saravanamuttu Manicasothy Saravanamuttu (died 1970) was a Sri Lankan journalist and diplomat in Malaya. He was the editor of '' The Straits Echo'', Penang (1931–1941), and was credited with 'saving' Penang during Japanese invasion in 1941. Early life He was b ...

. In 1931 the State Mortgage Bank of Ceylon (the first state-owned bank) was established with Sir Marcus Fernando as its chairman.Ceylonese Participation in Tea Cultivation: Major constraint for Ceylonese entrepreneurs
by Maxwell Fernando: History of Ceylon Tea Website, Retrieved 5-12-2014 He also assisted to create the

Bank of Ceylon Bank of Ceylon (BOC; Sinhala: ලංකා බැංකුව ''Lanka Bænkuwa'', Tamil: இலங்கை வங்கி ''Ilangai Vangi'') is a state-owned, major commercial bank in Sri Lanka. Its head office is located in an iconic cyli ...

. He, along with Sir

and Sir

Ponnambalam Arunachalam Ponnambalam Arunachalam ( ta, பொன்னம்பலம் அருணாசலம், translit=Poṉṉampalam Aruṇācalam; 14 September 1853 – 9 January 1924) was a Ceylonese civil servant and a member of the Executive Council of Cey ...

, were instrumental in the creation of the

University of Ceylon The University of Ceylon was the only university in Sri Lanka (earlier Ceylon) from 1942 until 1972. It had several constituent campuses at various locations around Sri Lanka. The University of Ceylon Act No. 1 of 1972, replaced it with the Univer ...

. He was made a Knight Batchelor in 1923 (

New Year Honours List The New Year Honours is a part of the British honours system, with New Year's Day, 1 January, being marked by naming new members of orders of chivalry and recipients of other official honours. A number of other Commonwealth realms also mark this ...

). In 1929 he co-founded the

Rotary Club Rotary International is one of the largest service organizations in the world. Its stated mission is to "provide service to others, promote integrity, and advance world understanding, goodwill, and peace through hefellowship of business, profe ...

of Colombo.

Family

His father was Andrew Fernando Jr. and his grandfather Andrew Fernando Sr. was the Mudaliyer of

Colombo Colombo ( ; si, කොළඹ, translit=Koḷam̆ba, ; ta, கொழும்பு, translit=Koḻumpu, ) is the executive and judicial capital and largest city of Sri Lanka by population. According to the Brookings Institution, Colombo me ...

. In 1891 he married Mary Frances, second daughter of

Charles Henry de Soysa Charles Henry de Soysa Dharmagunawardana Vipula Jayasuriya Karunaratna Disanayaka popularly known as Charles Henry de Soysa, Justice of the peace#Sri Lanka, JP (3 March 1836 – 29 September 1890) was a Demographics of Sri Lanka, Ceylonese entrepr ...

and Lady de Soysa, they had two daughters and a son.

Advocate An advocate is a professional in the field of law. Different countries' legal systems use the term with somewhat differing meanings. The broad equivalent in many English law–based jurisdictions could be a barrister or a solicitor. However, ...

Charles Matthew Fernando, the first Ceylonese

Crown Counsel Crown counsel are lawyers, generally in Common Law jurisdictions, who provide advice to the government and acts as prosecutors in cases. In various jurisdictions their title can vary and they could also be known as the Queen's Advocate, King's Advo ...

was his brother. His nephews were

Chevalier Chevalier may refer to: Honours Belgium * a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II * a title in the Belgian nobility France * a rank in the French Legion d'h ...

C.H.Z. Fernando, a pioneer labour unionist Councillor and campaigner for

universal suffrage Universal suffrage (also called universal franchise, general suffrage, and common suffrage of the common man) gives the right to vote to all adult citizens, regardless of wealth, income, gender, social status, race, ethnicity, or political stanc ...

, founding the Young Lanka League and the

Ceylon Labour Party The Ceylon Labour Party (CLP) was a political party in Sri Lanka. History The Ceylon Labour Party was formed in October 1928, with A. E. Gunasinha as president and Proctor Marshall Perera as secretary. Its executive committee included C. H. Z. ...

, the only Ceylonese to have met

Lenin Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov. ( 1870 – 21 January 1924), better known as Vladimir Lenin,. was a Russian revolutionary, politician, and political theorist. He served as the first and founding head of government of Soviet Russia from 1917 to 19 ...

,Traversed new paths making History
Ananda E. Goonesinha (The Island) Retrieved 2 November 2015 and C. M. Fernando, a founder member of the

SLFP The Sri Lanka Freedom Party ( si, ශ්‍රී ලංකා නිදහස් පක්ෂය, translit=Śrī Laṁkā Nidahas Pakṣaya; ta, இலங்கை சுதந்திரக் கட்சி, translit=Ilaṅkai Cutantirak Ka� ...

Legacy

Th
Association Sri Lanka Medical Association
commemorates his life through an endowed oration.Rosenheim ML. The first Sir Marcus Fernando Memorial oration. Ceylon Med J. 1970 Mar;15(1):3-9. Orators include

Surendra Ramachandran Deshamanya Surendra Ramachandran, FRCP was a Sri Lankan Physician and Nephrologist. He was the founder of Sri Lankas First Dialysis Unit. Education Educated at Royal College Colombo, he studied medicine Colombo Medical College now known as Fa ...

Nimal Senanayake Professor Nimal Senanayake is a Sri Lankan neurologist, physician, author, film and television scriptwriter and academic. Education Senanayake was educated at the University of Peradeniya. He trained at the Professorial medical unit at General ...

and Hithanadura Janaka De Silva. A hall of residence in the

University of Peradeniya The University of Peradeniya ( si, පේරාදෙණිය විශ්වවිද්‍යාලය, ta, பேராதனைப் பல்கலைக்கழகம்) is a public university in Sri Lanka, funded by the University ...

and a road in

Colombo 7 Cinnamon Gardens ( si, කුරුඳු වත්ත ''Kurundu Vaththa'', ta, கறுவாத் தோட்டம்) is an affluent neighbourhood in Colombo, Sri Lanka located 3 kilometers south-east from Colombo's centre. Cinnamon Garde ...

are named after him in his honour.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fernando, Marcus Members of the Executive Council of Ceylon Members of the Legislative Council of Ceylon Sinhalese physicians Sri Lankan bankers Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians Alumni of Royal College, Colombo Alumni of University College London People of British Ceylon Ceylonese Knights Bachelor Sri Lankan Christians People associated with Ceylon Medical College People from Colombo 1864 births 1936 deaths Alumni of the UCL Medical School Alumni of St. Benedict's College, Colombo De Soysa family