Lieutenant-General Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

Sir Alfred Henry Keogh, (3 July 1857 – 30 July 1936) was a

medical doctor 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 ...

in the British Army. He served as

Director-General Army Medical Services The Army Medical Services (AMS) is the organisation responsible for administering the corps that deliver medical, veterinary, dental and nursing services in the British Army. It is headquartered at the former Staff College, Camberley, near the ...

twice; from 1905 to 1910 and 1914 to 1918.

Early life

Keogh was born in Dublin on 3 July 1857 to Henry Keogh, a barrister and magistrate of Roscommon. He was educated at Queen's College, Galway, and

Guy's Hospital, London Guy's Hospital is an NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in central London. It is part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust and one of the institutions that comprise the King's Health Partners, an academic health science centre. I ...

. He received his Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree from the

Queen's University of Ireland The Queen's University of Ireland was established formally by Royal Charter on 3 September 1850, as the degree-awarding university of the ''Queen's Colleges'' of Belfast, Cork, and Galway that were established in 1845 "to afford a university e ...

in 1878. Upon graduation he moved to London to undertake his house officer placements. He served as a house physician at the Brompton Hospital for Diseases of the Chest, and as a clinical assistant at the

Royal Westminster Ophthalmic Hospital Moorfields Eye Hospital is a specialist NHS eye hospital in Finsbury in the London Borough of Islington in London, England run by Moorfields Eye Hospital NHS Foundation Trust. Together with the UCL Institute of Ophthalmology, which is adjacent ...

Military career

On 2 March 1880, Keogh was commissioned into the Army Medical Services as a surgeon-captain. His first posting was as a surgeon to the

Royal Arsenal The Royal Arsenal, Woolwich is an establishment on the south bank of the River Thames in Woolwich in south-east London, England, that was used for the manufacture of armaments and ammunition, proofing, and explosives research for the Britis ...

, Woolwich. On 6 March 1892, he was promoted to surgeon-major. With the outbreak of the Second Boer War in 1899, he was posted to South Africa. He was promoted to lieutenant-colonel on 6 March 1900, and became commander of No. 3 General Hospital near Cape Town. During the war, he served in Cape Colony, the Orange Free State, and the Transvaal Republic. In January 1902, following his return from the Second Boer War, he was appointed Deputy Director-General of the Army Medical Services. He was promoted to colonel on 2 December 1904. On 1 January 1905, he was appointed

and promoted to

lieutenant-general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a three-star military rank (NATO code OF-8) used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the ...

. He retired from the military on 6 March 1910. With the outbreak of the First World War, he was reappointed DGAMS on 3 October 1914. He supervised the huge expansion of the Army’s medical services to cope with the war, and was in command of the medical services in the UK. He left the appointment and the military in June 1918.

Later life

He was appointed

Rector of Imperial College London The President of Imperial College London is the highest academic official of Imperial College London. The President, formerly known as the Rector, is the chief executive, elected by the Council of the college and Chairman of the Senate. The positi ...

and served from 1910 to 1922. He died at 10 Warwick Square, London, on 30 July 1936. A requiem mass was held at Westminster Cathedral. He was buried in the Marylebone Cemetery, Finchley.

Honours and decorations

On 29 November 1900, he was appointed

Companion of the Order of the Bath Companion may refer to: Relationships Currently * Any of several interpersonal relationships such as friend or acquaintance * A domestic partner, akin to a spouse * Sober companion, an addiction treatment coach * Companion (caregiving), a caregive ...

(CB) in recognition of services in the campaign in South Africa, 1899 to 1900. On 7 May 1903, he was appointed a Knight of Grace of the Venerable Order of Saint John (KStJ). He was promoted to Knight Commander of the Order of the Bath in the 1906 King's Birthday Honours. On 24 July 1907, he was appointed Honorary Physician to the King (KHP). He was promoted to Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath (GCB) on 24 January 1917 'for services rendered in connection with WI. He was appointed to the

Order of the Companions of Honour The Order of the Companions of Honour is an order of the Commonwealth realms. It was founded on 4 June 1917 by King George V as a reward for outstanding achievements. Founded on the same date as the Order of the British Empire, it is sometimes ...

(CH) on 25 February 1918 'for services in connection with the war'. In the 1918 King's Birthday Honours, he was appointed Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO). He was a recipient of a number of foreign honours. In 1917, he was appointed Grand Officer of the Order of the Crown by the King of the Belgians, and Grand Officer of the Legion of Honour by the President of France. In 1918, he was awarded the Order of the White Eagle, 2nd Class by the King of Serbia. He received the Queen's South Africa Medal with four clasps in 1901.

Legacy

*The Keogh Platoon is named in honour of Sir Alfred Keogh, who is enshrined in the history of 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 ...

(RAMC). *The

Keogh Barracks Keogh Barracks is a military installation on Mytchett Place Road, Mytchett, Surrey, England. History The barracks were commissioned to accommodate the Army School of Hygiene and are named after Sir Alfred Keogh, a former Director-General of Ar ...

at Mytchett,

Surrey Surrey () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South East England, bordering Greater London to the south west. Surrey has a large rural area, and several significant urban areas which form part of the Greater London Built-up Area. ...

, was also named in Sir Alfred Keogh's memory. *Keogh Hall, a hall of residence at Imperial College London is named in his honour.

References

External links

Military background of Sir Alfred Keogh
{{DEFAULTSORT:Keogh, Alfred 1857 births 1936 deaths Medical doctors from Dublin (city) Alumni of the University of Galway Alumni of Queen's University Belfast Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons Irish surgeons 20th-century Irish medical doctors Royal Army Medical Corps officers Knights Grand Cross of the Order of the Bath Knights Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order Rectors of Imperial College London Members of the Order of the Companions of Honour Knights of Grace of the Order of St John Grand Officers of the Order of the Crown (Belgium) Grand Officiers of the Légion d'honneur 20th-century surgeons