Margery Grace Blackie
CVO MD, FFHom (4 February 1898 – 24 August 1981) was a British
Doctor of Medicine
Doctor of Medicine (abbreviated M.D., from the Latin ''Medicinae Doctor'') is a medical degree, the meaning of which varies between different jurisdictions. In the United States, and some other countries, the M.D. denotes a professional degree. T ...
who was appointed as the first woman royal physician to
Queen Elizabeth II.
Early life
Blackie was born at
Redbourn
Redbourn is a village and civil parish in Hertfordshire, England, lying on Watling Street, from Harpenden, from St Albans and from Hemel Hempstead. The civil parish had a population of 5,113 according to the 2011 Census.
The three tiers of ...
, Hertfordshire, on 4 February 1898, the youngest of ten children of Robert Blackie (c.1852–1936), who was independently wealthy, and his wife, Elizabeth (d. 1941), daughter of Rowland Rees, the civil engineer and Mayor of Brighton. Her uncle, by marriage, was James Compton-Burnett, a noted Homeopathic Doctor. His daughter, the novelist
Ivy Compton-Burnett
Dame Ivy Compton-Burnett, (; 5 June 188427 August 1969) was an English novelist, published in the original editions as I. Compton-Burnett. She was awarded the 1955 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for her novel ''Mother and Son''. Her works co ...
, was a first cousin.
In 1911 the family moved to London, and she was educated at the
Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls
Haberdashers' Girls' School is an independent day school in Elstree, Hertfordshire. It is often referred to as "Habs" (or "Habs Girls" to distinguish it from the neighbouring Haberdashers' Boys' School). The school was founded in 1875 by the Wo ...
in Acton.
Her uncle
Rowland Rees was an architect and politician in South Australia.
She studied medicine at the
London School of Medicine for Women
The London School of Medicine for Women (LSMW) established in 1874 was the first medical school in Britain to train women as doctors. The patrons, vice-presidents, and members of the committee that supported and helped found the London School of Me ...
, and qualified as a doctor in 1923. In 1924, she joined the staff at the
London Homeopathic Hospital
The Royal London Hospital for Integrated Medicine (formerly the Royal London Homoeopathic Hospital) is a specialist alternative medicine hospital located in London, England and a part of University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust. ...
.
In 1928, she received her MD from the University of London, where she was the only woman candidate.
Career
In 1926, encouraged by her closest friend, Dr Helena Banks, she set up her own practice at
Drayton Gardens, London, by reopening a homoeopathic dispensary that had been closed for 12 years.
In 1929, together with Dr. Banks, she moved to a large six-storey house at 18 Thurloe Street, South Kensington, London, where they maintained a busy homoeopathic medical practice in addition to Dr. Blackie's hospital work. She remained there until 1980, the year before her death. Dr. Blackie and Dr. Banks were both ardent Christians, and for over thirty years Banks was her "partner and intimate friend". Dr. Banks died in 1971.
At the
Royal London Homeopathic Hospital, Blackie was an assistant physician from 1927 to 1957, and spent some of that time (1929–1937) as assistant to Dr. Douglas Borland in the Children's Department. She became senior consultant physician from 1957 to 1966.
In 1968, Dr. Blackie succeeded physician
Sir John Weir GCVO
The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...
to become Physician to Queen
Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...
,
the first woman to hold this position. Other notable patients include
Lady Julia Namier.
Dr. Blackie was admitted to the
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...
in the rank of Commander in 1979.
In 1978, it was reported that her
medical bag
A medical bag (doctor's bag, physician's bag) is a portable bag used by a physician or other medical professional to transport medical supplies and medicine.
Traditionally, the medical bag was made of leather, opened on the top with a split- ...
for house calls at
Buckingham Palace included "arsenic, strychnine, wormwood, wolfsbane, death cap mushroom, and the venom of the Gila monster, rattlesnake and hooded cobra",
although according to the principles of homoeopathy most of her preparations would have contained practically none of the material substances for which they were named.
Later life
In the last year of her life, from 1980 to 1981, she lived at
Hedingham Castle
Hedingham Castle, in the village of Castle Hedingham, Essex, is arguably the best preserved Norman keep in England. The castle fortifications and outbuildings were built around 1100, and the keep around 1140. However, the keep is the only major ...
with the owner, her close friend and companion,
Musette Majendie, CBE (1903–1981), the granddaughter of
Lewis Majendie MP.
On 24 August 1981, she died peacefully from a stroke, and was buried on 29 August at Castle Hedingham.
Personal life
Since 1945, she shared her London home with her close friend and secretary,
Musette Majendie. They spent weekends at Hedingham Castle, the 100-acre estate which had been home to Majendie's family since 1720.
It has been speculated that Blackie and Majendie were actually lovers.
Publications
* ''The Patient, Not the Cure: The Challenge of Homoeopathy'' (London : Macdonald and Jane's, 1976)
*''Classical Homeopathy'' (Beaconsfield: Beaconsfield Publishers, 1986)
Honours
In 1979, she was appointed a Commander of the
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order (french: Ordre royal de Victoria) is a dynastic order of knighthood established in 1896 by Queen Victoria. It recognises distinguished personal service to the British monarch, Canadian monarch, Australian monarch, or ...
, for her services to the royal family.
Legacy
The Blackie Foundation Trust is a charity that gives research grants and financial help to "medically qualified health care professionals".
It was founded by Blackie in 1971, when she was homoeopathic physician to the Queen.
In 1986,
Constance Babington Smith
Constance Babington Smith MBE, FRSL (15 October 1912 – 31 July 2000) was a British journalist and writer, but is probably best known for her wartime work in imagery intelligence.
Early life
Constance Babington Smith was born on 15 Octo ...
published ''Champion of Homeopathy: the Life of Margery Blackie''.
References
External links
1977 Photograph by Mayotte Magnus, in the National Portrait Gallery, London collection
{{DEFAULTSORT:Blackie, Margery
1898 births
1981 deaths
Alumni of the London School of Medicine for Women
British homeopaths
Commanders of the Royal Victorian Order
Court physicians
People educated at Haberdashers' Girls' School
People from Redbourn
British women medical doctors