Michael John Hargrave (8 December 1923 – 25 July 1974) was a British general practitioner in

Wootton Bassett Royal Wootton Bassett , formerly Wootton Bassett, is a market town and civil parish in Wiltshire, England, with a population of 11,043 in 2001, increasing to 11,385 in 2011. Situated in the north of the county, it lies to the west of the major ...

, Wiltshire, who in 1945 assisted British Army occupation forces at the recently-liberated

Bergen-Belsen concentration camp Bergen-Belsen , or Belsen, was a Nazi concentration camp in what is today Lower Saxony in northern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle. Originally established as a prisoner of war camp, in 1943, parts of it became a concent ...

when he volunteered as a medical student from

Westminster Hospital Westminster Hospital was a hospital in London, England, founded in 1719. In 1834 a medical school attached to the hospital was formally founded. In 1939 a newly built hospital and medical school opened in Horseferry Road, Westminster. In 1994 the ...

at the age of 21. After graduating in medicine in 1947, Hargrave took a house job at Westminster Hospital after which he completed his

national service National service is the system of voluntary government service, usually military service. Conscription is mandatory national service. The term ''national service'' comes from the United Kingdom's National Service (Armed Forces) Act 1939. The l ...

with the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) and ...

in Egypt and Kenya. Upon returning to Wootton Bassett in 1950, he became a general practitioner and a clinical assistant to the

ear, nose and throat Otorhinolaryngology ( , abbreviated ORL and also known as otolaryngology, otolaryngology–head and neck surgery (ORL–H&N or OHNS), or ear, nose, and throat (ENT)) is a surgical subspeciality within medicine that deals with the surgical a ...

clinic at the

Princess Margaret Hospital, Swindon The Princess Margaret Hospital was a large hospital situated in Okus Road, Swindon, Wiltshire, England. It was managed by the Swindon and Marlborough NHS Trust. History The hospital, which was built to replace the aging Victoria Hospital, w ...

. By 1956, he had a purpose-built surgery with an appointment system and

radiotelephone A radiotelephone (or radiophone), abbreviated RT, is a radio communication system for conducting a conversation; radiotelephony means telephony by radio. It is in contrast to '' radiotelegraphy'', which is radio transmission of telegrams (mes ...

. His memoirs, written for his mother, were used by historian

Ben Shephard Benjamin Peter Sherrington Shephard (born 11 December 1974) is an English television presenter and journalist who is currently employed by ITV. He was a main presenter on the now defunct breakfast programme '' GMTV'' and since April 2014 has ...

in his 2005 book '' After Daybreak: The Liberation of Belsen, 1945'', and were published by

Imperial College Press Imperial College Press (ICP) was formed in 1995 as a partnership between Imperial College of Science, Technology and Medicine in London and World Scientific publishing. This publishing house was awarded the rights, by The Nobel Foundation, Swede ...

in 2014, in a book titled '' Bergen-Belsen 1945: A Medical Student's Journal''.

Early life

Michael Hargrave was born on 8 December 1923, in

Simla Shimla (; ; also known as Simla, the official name until 1972) is the capital and the largest city of the northern Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. In 1864, Shimla was declared as the summer capital of British India. After independence, the ...

British India The provinces of India, earlier presidencies of British India and still earlier, presidency towns, were the administrative divisions of British governance on the Indian subcontinent. Collectively, they have been called British India. In one ...

, the elder of two sons of a decorated

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

pilot who was posted there by the

. Hargrave was sent to England to attend Harcourt Preparatory School at

Weyhill Weyhill is a village, 2.5 miles (3.8 km) west of Andover, Hampshire. It sits within the civil parish of Penton Grafton, which includes the village of the same name. The village is famous for having a medieval fair and then later a livestock ...

, following which he attended St Edward's School, Oxford. In 1942, he gained admission to

King's College London King's College London (informally King's or KCL) is a public research university located in London, England. King's was established by royal charter in 1829 under the patronage of King George IV and the Duke of Wellington. In 1836, King's ...

and then to

for his clinical education in medicine.Hargrave, David (2014). "Dr Michael John Hargrave and Acknowledgements", in ''Bergen-Belsen 1945: A Medical Student's Journal''. Imperial College Press, London. pp. xv-xx. "Michael J. Hargrave Obituary Notice"
''

British Medical Journal ''The BMJ'' is a weekly peer-reviewed medical trade journal, published by the trade union the British Medical Association (BMA). ''The BMJ'' has editorial freedom from the BMA. It is one of the world's oldest general medical journals. Origi ...

'', Vol. 3, No. 598 (17 August 1974), p. 47.

Belsen

Hargrave had, until May 1945, spent the Second World War at school and studying medicine.Bardgett, Susan (2014). "Foreword", in ''Bergen-Belsen 1945: A Medical Student's Journal''. Imperial College Press, London. pp. vii-ix. In April 1945, he was among eleven medical students from Westminster who volunteered to help relieve a famine in

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former province on the western coast of the Netherlands. From the 10th to the 16th c ...

, a part of the Netherlands still occupied by the Germans but awaiting liberation. On the day of departure, the students were informed that they were instead being sent to help at the recently liberated

in Germany. At Belsen, army medics were trying to prevent the spread of disease and save those they could. Hargrave described in his daily journal the process by which the huts in Camp One were cleaned, disinfected and turned into basic temporary hospitals, after which its inmates were cleaned, disinfected and then moved out. He led this process in hut 210 and performed treatments including the excision of eyelid cysts and tuberculous glands in the neck. He became accustomed to seeing

boil A boil, also called a furuncle, is a deep folliculitis, which is an infection of the hair follicle. It is most commonly caused by infection by the bacterium ''Staphylococcus aureus'', resulting in a painful swollen area on the skin caused by an ...

gangrene Gangrene is a type of tissue death caused by a lack of blood supply. Symptoms may include a change in skin color to red or black, numbness, swelling, pain, skin breakdown, and coolness. The feet and hands are most commonly affected. If the ga ...

diarrhoea Diarrhea, also spelled diarrhoea, is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements each day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration due to fluid loss. Signs of dehydration often begin wi ...

typhus Typhus, also known as typhus fever, is a group of infectious diseases that include epidemic typhus, scrub typhus, and murine typhus. Common symptoms include fever, headache, and a rash. Typically these begin one to two weeks after exposure. ...

and severe

malnutrition Malnutrition occurs when an organism gets too few or too many nutrients, resulting in health problems. Specifically, it is "a deficiency, excess, or imbalance of energy, protein and other nutrients" which adversely affects the body's tissues a ...

. Supervision and briefings were given by nutritionist

Arnold Peter Meiklejohn Arnold Peter Meiklejohn (1909 – 14 June 1961) was an English physician and academic, specializing in nutrition. In 1938, he was elected as a Peabody Fellow of the Harvard Medical School and during the Second World War worked for the Rockefelle ...

, Brigadier Hugh Glyn-Hughes and Colonel James Johnston. Hargrave also taught a Polish girl, Zosia Wiśniowska, how to speak English.

Career

In 1947, Hargrave graduated in medicine and took up his first house job at Westminster Hospital. He completed his

with the

"Medical Branch"
''Supplement to the London Gazette''. March 1949, p. 1053. in Egypt and Kenya, returning to Wootton Bassett in 1950 to become a general practitioner. By 1956, he had a purpose-built surgery with an appointment system and

. He also helped at the

clinic at the

. In 1957, he became a member of the

Royal College of General Practitioners The Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) is the professional body for general (medical) practitioners (GPs/Family Physicians/Primary Care Physicians) in the United Kingdom. The RCGP represents and supports GPs on key issues including l ...

Family

Hargrave married nurse Joy Thompson in 1948, a year after qualifying as a doctor. They had a daughter, Sally, and a son, David. Both developed

polio Poliomyelitis, commonly shortened to polio, is an infectious disease caused by the poliovirus. Approximately 70% of cases are asymptomatic; mild symptoms which can occur include sore throat and fever; in a proportion of cases more severe s ...

in 1953, two years before the first injectable

Salk vaccine Polio vaccines are vaccines used to prevent poliomyelitis (polio). Two types are used: an inactivated poliovirus given by injection (IPV) and a weakened poliovirus given by mouth (OPV). The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends all chil ...

. David made a full recovery, but Sally, who was nine months old at the time, was left with a paralysed leg. She became a secretary and David a GP in

Portland Portland most commonly refers to: * Portland, Oregon, the largest city in the state of Oregon, in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States * Portland, Maine, the largest city in the state of Maine, in the New England region of the northeas ...

, Dorset.

Death and legacy

Hargrave was diagnosed with a brain tumour, and died on 25 July 1974. His papers are held at the

Imperial War Museum Imperial War Museums (IWM) is a British national museum organisation with branches at five locations in England, three of which are in London. Founded as the Imperial War Museum in 1917, the museum was intended to record the civil and military ...

in London. His memoirs were used by historian

in his 2005 book ''After Daybreak: The Liberation of Belsen, 1945''. The story of the London students was portrayed in the 2007 feature film ''

The Relief of Belsen ''The Relief of Belsen'' is a feature-length drama that was first shown on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom on 15 October 2007. It depicts events that unfolded at Bergen-Belsen concentration camp following the liberation of the camp by British t ...

''. His diary, written for his mother, was published by

in 2014,Hargrave, Michael John (2014)
''Bergen-Belsen 1945: A Medical Student's Journal''

, London. with all royalties donated to

Amnesty International Amnesty International (also referred to as Amnesty or AI) is an international non-governmental organization focused on human rights, with its headquarters in the United Kingdom. The organization says it has more than ten million members and sup ...

and the polio charity Rotary Club PolioPlus.

Selected publications

"A New Surgery for a Group Practice of Three Doctors"
''Journal of the College of General Practitioners and Research Newsletter'', Vol. 1, Issue 4 (1958), pp. 356–359. (With J. N. Watson and R. D. C. Hart)
"The Radiotelephone"
''Journal of the College of General Practitioners'', (1961) Vol. 4, p. 446. (With R. D. C. Hart and P. S. Mitchell)
"Acute otitis media; A survey of 400 cases"
''

Journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners The ''British Journal of General Practice'' is a monthly peer-reviewed medical journal for general practitioners and primary care researchers. History The journal was established in 1953 as the ''College of General Practitioners' Research Newsl ...

'', Vol. 16, Issue 1 (1968), pp. 78–80.

References

External links

Joy Rodger: Bergen-Belsen 1945: A Medical Student's Journal
YouTube video {{DEFAULTSORT:Hargrave, Michael John 20th-century British medical doctors London medical students who assisted at Belsen 1945 in medicine 1923 births 1974 deaths Royal Air Force officers Physicians of the Westminster Hospital General practitioners People from Shimla People educated at St Edward's School, Oxford Alumni of King's College London Deaths from brain cancer in England Neurological disease deaths in England 20th-century Royal Air Force personnel