Sir Patrick Hehir, Malaria in India Wellcome L0026242

Major-General Sir Patrick Hehir (17 May 1859 – 1 May 1937) was a British military surgeon. He served in the Indian Medical Service (IMS) and as the Principal Medical Officer to the army of the

Nizam of Hyderabad The Nizams were the rulers of Hyderabad from the 18th through the 20th century. Nizam of Hyderabad (Niẓām ul-Mulk, also known as Asaf Jah) was the title of the monarch of the Hyderabad State ( divided between the state of Telangana, Mar ...

. During the 148 day

Siege of Kut The siege of Kut Al Amara (7 December 1915 – 29 April 1916), also known as the first battle of Kut, was the besieging of an 8,000 strong British Army garrison in the town of Kut, south of Baghdad, by the Ottoman Army. In 1915, its population ...

he suffered alongside the troops and wrote extensively on the topic of prolonged starvation.

Life

He was born on 17 May 1859, the son of Robert Martin Hehir of

Ennis Ennis () is the county town of County Clare, in the mid-west of Ireland. The town lies on the River Fergus, north of where the river widens and enters the Shannon Estuary. Ennis is the largest town in County Clare, with a population of 25,27 ...

County Clare County Clare ( ga, Contae an Chláir) is a county in Ireland, in the Southern Region and the province of Munster, bordered on the west by the Atlantic Ocean. Clare County Council is the local authority. The county had a population of 118,817 ...

, Ireland. He studied at

Calcutta University The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a public collegiate state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered one of best state research university all over India every year, C ...

, qualified as a doctor in Brussels's, became a Licentiate of the Royal College of Surgeons and the Royal College of Physicians 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 ...

, obtained a Diploma in Public Health from the

University of Cambridge , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...

and then received a Diploma in Tropical Medicine from the

University of Liverpool , mottoeng = These days of peace foster learning , established = 1881 – University College Liverpool1884 – affiliated to the federal Victoria Universityhttp://www.legislation.gov.uk/ukla/2004/4 University of Manchester Act 200 ...

.Roll of the Indian Medical Service 1615–1930 by D. G. Crawford, pages 208 & 209 In 1893 he was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was established i ...

. His proposers were

Patrick Doyle Patrick Doyle (born 6 April 1953) is a Scottish film composer with Irish heritage. A longtime collaborator of actor-director Kenneth Branagh, Doyle is known for his work composing for films such as ''Henry V'', ''Sense and Sensibility'', ''Hamle ...

, Sir Joseph Fayrer, Sir Byrom Bramwell and

Thomas Annandale Thomas Annandale, FRCS FRSE (1838–1907) was a Scottish surgeon who conducted the first repair of the meniscus and the first successful removal of an acoustic neuroma, and introduced the pre-peritoneal approach to inguinal hernia repair. H ...

. During his years in

India India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the so ...

he appears to have become an

opium Opium (or poppy tears, scientific name: ''Lachryma papaveris'') is dried latex obtained from the seed capsules of the opium poppy ''Papaver somniferum''. Approximately 12 percent of opium is made up of the analgesic alkaloid morphine, which i ...

addict. Back in Britain, when this was made illegal in 1894, he wrote he rued not being addicted to legal activities. He saw active service in many military campaigns and was highly decorated. In the

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 ...

he served in Mesopotamia as the Principal Medical Officer. He was present at the Battle of Ctesiphon and the ill-fated

under General

Charles Townshend Charles Townshend (28 August 1725 – 4 September 1767) was a British politician who held various titles in the Parliament of Great Britain. His establishment of the controversial Townshend Acts is considered one of the key causes of the Ame ...

. He was captured when the garrison surrendered on 29 April 1916 but was released 25 September 1916. He went on to see service in

Waziristan Waziristan (Pashto and ur, , "land of the Wazir") is a mountainous region covering the former FATA agencies of North Waziristan and South Waziristan which are now districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province of Pakistan. Waziristan covers some . ...

in 1917 and lastly

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

(1919). He retired 9 December 1919. He died on 1 May 1937. Kut1915

Honours

See *Companion of the

Order of the Bath The Most Honourable Order of the Bath is a British order of chivalry founded by George I of Great Britain, George I on 18 May 1725. The name derives from the elaborate medieval ceremony for appointing a knight, which involved Bathing#Medieval ...

(CB) *Companion of the

Order of St Michael and St George The Most Distinguished Order of Saint Michael and Saint George is a British order of chivalry founded on 28 April 1818 by George IV, George IV, Prince of Wales, while he was acting as prince regent for his father, George III, King George III. ...

(CMG) *Knight Commander of

Order of the Indian Empire The Most Eminent Order of the Indian Empire is an order of chivalry founded by Queen Victoria on 1 January 1878. The Order includes members of three classes: #Knight Grand Commander (GCIE) #Knight Commander ( KCIE) #Companion ( CIE) No appoi ...

(KCIE) *Knight of Grace of the Order of St John of Jerusalem *Campaign Medal, Burma 1886–1887 *Campaign Medal, North-West Frontier 1897–1898 *Campaign Medal, North-West Frontier 1908, Afghanistan NWF 1919

Publications

*''Outlines of Medical Jurisprudence for India'' (1892) *''The Medical Profession in India'' (1923) *''Malaria in India'' (1927)

Family

In 1908 he married Dora Lloyd and together they one daughter.Who's Who, 1935

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Hehir, Patrick 1859 births 1937 deaths British Indian Army officers Companions of the Order of the Bath Companions of the Order of St Michael and St George Knights Commander of the Order of the Indian Empire Knights of Grace of the Order of St John Indian Army generals of World War I World War I prisoners of war held by the Ottoman Empire British World War I prisoners of war 19th-century Anglo-Irish people 20th-century Anglo-Irish people People from County Clare Alumni of the University of Liverpool British non-fiction writers Indian Medical Service officers 19th-century Irish medical doctors 20th-century Irish medical doctors