Sir Samuel Thompson Irwin

CBE The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is a British order of chivalry, rewarding contributions to the arts and sciences, work with charitable and welfare organisations, and public service outside the civil service. It was established o ...

(3 July 1877 – 21 June 1961), often known as S. T. Irwin, was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

rugby player,

surgeon In modern medicine, a surgeon is a medical professional who performs surgery. Although there are different traditions in different times and places, a modern surgeon usually is also a licensed physician or received the same medical training as ...

and unionist

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

. Born in

Claudy Claudy () is a village and townland (of 1,154 acres) in County Londonderry, Northern Ireland. It lies in the Faughan Valley, southeast of Derry, where the River Glenrandal joins the River Faughan. It is situated in the civil parish of Cumber Upp ...

County Londonderry County Londonderry ( Ulster-Scots: ''Coontie Lunnonderrie''), also known as County Derry ( ga, Contae Dhoire), is one of the six counties of Northern Ireland, one of the thirty two counties of Ireland and one of the nine counties of Ulster. B ...

, Irwin studied at

Foyle College Foyle College is a co-educational non-denominational voluntary grammar school in Derry, Northern Ireland. The school's legal name is Foyle and Londonderry College. In 1976, two local schools, Foyle College and Londonderry High School, merged und ...

and

Queen's College, Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

."In Memoriam: Samuel Thompson"
''

The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery ''The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery'' is a biweekly peer reviewed medical journal in the field of orthopedic surgery. It is published by the non-profit corporation The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery, Inc. It was established as the ''Transact ...

'', Vol.43B, No.4, pp.844-845 While studying, Irwin played for the

Irish national rugby union team The Ireland national rugby union team is the men's representative national team for the island of Ireland in rugby union. The team represents both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland. Ireland competes in the annual Six Nations Champio ...

in nine Home Nations Championship matches, between 1900 and 1903, and he also played

cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by striki ...

to a high level.Samuel Irwin
, ESPN Scrum In 1911, Irwin was elected as a fellow of the

Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) is a professional organisation of surgeons. The College has seven active faculties, covering a broad spectrum of surgical, dental, and other medical practices. Its main campus is located on ...

, and began working at the Ulster Hospital for Children, where he developed an interest in

orthopaedics Orthopedic surgery or orthopedics ( alternatively spelt orthopaedics), is the branch of surgery concerned with conditions involving the musculoskeletal system. Orthopedic surgeons use both surgical and nonsurgical means to treat musculoskeletal ...

, and he took up membership of the

British Orthopaedic Association The British Orthopaedic Association is a professional association in Britain for doctors who specialize in orthopaedic surgery. History The British Orthopaedic Association was founded in 1918. One of the founders was Harry Platt, who went on to s ...

. He spent most of his career at the

Royal Victoria Hospital, Belfast The Royal Victoria Hospital commonly known as "the Royal", the "RVH" or "the Royal Belfast", is a hospital in Belfast, Northern Ireland. It is managed by the Belfast Health and Social Care Trust. The hospital has a Regional Virus Centre, which ...

, but during

World War I 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 worked at the Ulster Volunteer Force Hospital, serving in the

Royal Army Medical Corps 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 ...

. He was the chair of the Northern Ireland Medical War Committee during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, and received the

for this work. Irwin continued his sporting interests, and was elected President of the

Irish Rugby Union The Irish Rugby Football Union (IRFU) ( ga, Cumann Rugbaí na hÉireann) is the body managing rugby union in the island of Ireland (both Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland). The IRFU has its head office at 10/12 Lansdowne Road and home ...

in 1935, and was Captain of the

Royal County Down Golf Club Royal County Down Golf Club is a golf club in Northern Ireland, located in Newcastle, County Down. It opened on 23 March 1889 and is one of the oldest golf clubs in Ireland. It has two 18-hole links courses, the Championship Course and the Anne ...

in 1947/8. On retirement from his medical post, he stood for the

Ulster Unionist Party The Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) is a unionist political party in Northern Ireland. The party was founded in 1905, emerging from the Irish Unionist Alliance in Ulster. Under Edward Carson, it led unionist opposition to the Irish Home Rule movem ...

at a 1948 by-election for the

Queen's University of Belfast , mottoeng = For so much, what shall we give back? , top_free_label = , top_free = , top_free_label1 = , top_free1 = , top_free_label2 = , top_free2 = , established = , closed = , type = Public research university , parent = ...

seat, and held this until his death in 1961. Alongside this, he served on the senate of the university, and sat on a wide range of committees, including serving as President of the Central Presbyterian Association. He was knighted in 1957. Irwin's son

Sinclair Irwin Sinclair may refer to: Places * Lake Sinclair, near Milledgeville, Georgia * Sinclair, Iowa * Sinclair, West Virginia * Sinclair, Wyoming * Sinclair Mills, British Columbia * Sinclair Township, Minnesota * Sinclair, Manitoba People * Sinc ...

also played rugby for Ireland and worked as a surgeon.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Irwin, Samuel 1877 births 1961 deaths Alumni of Queen's University Belfast Ireland international rugby union players Queen's University RFC players Irish rugby union players Rugby union forwards Members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland 1945–1949 Members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland 1949–1953 Members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland 1953–1958 Members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland 1958–1962 Medical doctors from County Londonderry Royal Army Medical Corps officers Irish orthopaedic surgeons Ulster Unionist Party members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland Members of the House of Commons of Northern Ireland for Queen's University of Belfast Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh Commanders of the Order of the British Empire Irish military doctors Military personnel from County Londonderry