Sir John Marnoch (23 May 1867 – 2 February 1936) was a Scottish surgeon and British Army officer. He was Surgeon to the Royal Household in Scotland, Regius Professor of Surgery at the

University of Aberdeen , mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom , established = , type = Public research universityAncient university , endowment = £58.4 million (2021) , budget ...

(1909 to 1932), and President of the Aberdeen Medico-Chirurgical Society (1909 to 1910).

Early life and education

Marnoch was born on 23 May 1867 in

Aberdeen Aberdeen (; sco, Aiberdeen ; gd, Obar Dheathain ; la, Aberdonia) is a city in North East Scotland, and is the third most populous city in the country. Aberdeen is one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas (as Aberdeen City), and ...

, Scotland, the son of James Annand Marnoch, a postman from Kintore. He was educated at

Aberdeen Grammar School Aberdeen Grammar School is a state secondary school in Aberdeen, Scotland. It is one of thirteen secondary schools run by the Aberdeen City Council educational department. It is the oldest school in the city and one of the oldest grammar school ...

, then an all-boys

grammar school A grammar school is one of several different types of school in the history of education in the United Kingdom and other English-speaking countries, originally a school teaching Latin, but more recently an academically oriented secondary school ...

in Aberdeen. He studied at Kings and Marischal College Aberdeen (i.e. the

), from which he graduated with an

undergraduate Master of Arts The degree of Master of Arts (MA; , ) in Scotland is an undergraduate degree. The degree can be either a three-year general or four-year ''Honours degree'' in humanities or social sciences, awarded by one of several institutions. Chiefly, the ...

(MA Hons) degree in 1888, and

Bachelor of Medicine Bachelor of Medicine, Bachelor of Surgery ( la, Medicinae Baccalaureus, Baccalaureus Chirurgiae; abbreviated most commonly MBBS), is the primary medical degree awarded by medical schools in countries that follow the tradition of the United Ki ...

(MB) and Master of Surgery (CM) degrees with highest honours in 1891.

Career

Early career

From 1891 to 1893, following graduation, he held training posts at the

Aberdeen Royal Infirmary Aberdeen Royal Infirmary (ARI) is the largest hospital in the Grampian area, located on the Foresterhill site in Aberdeen, Scotland. ARI is a teaching hospital with around 900 inpatient beds, offering tertiary care for a population of over 600, ...

and the

Royal Hospital for Sick Children, Edinburgh The Royal Hospital for Sick Children was a hospital in Edinburgh, Scotland, specialising in paediatric healthcare. Locally, it was commonly referred to simply as the "Sick Kids". The hospital provided emergency care for children from birth to ...

. He was appointed assistant surgeon at the Royal Infirmary in 1893, and promoted to surgeon in charge of wards in 1900. Alongside his medical roles, Marnoch was made a lecturer in clinical surgery at the

in 1900. On the retirement of Sir Alexander Ogston in 1909, he was appointed to Regius Professor of Surgery. He stepped down in June 1932, and was succeeded by

James Learmonth Sir James Rögnvald Learmonth (1895–1967) was a Scottish surgeon who made pioneering advances in nerve surgery.Regius Professor: Marnoch was then made

emeritus professor ''Emeritus'' (; female: ''emerita'') is an adjective used to designate a retired chair, professor, pastor, bishop, pope, director, president, prime minister, rabbi, emperor, or other person who has been "permitted to retain as an honorary title ...

. Marnoch was commissioned as a surgeon-lieutenant in the 1st Aberdeen volunteer artillery in 1895. His military service continued when he was transferred in 1909 as an "a la suite" Officer to the 1st Scot. General. Hospital. Mobilised Lieut.-Col., Aug. 1914. M.O. i/c spec. mil. section (Surgery of reconstruction), 1st Scottish. General Hospital with rank of Brevet-Colonel; Inspector of Tetanus, Northern Area January 1915. There is an annual Sir John Marnoch lecture in Aberdeen University medical school.

Operation on the Duke of York

Marnoch had been an army surgeon in the volunteer corps for many years and at the outbreak of war he was commissioned in the 1st Scottish General Hospital

RAMC 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 ...

with the rank of

lieutenant-colonel Lieutenant colonel ( , ) is a rank of commissioned officers in the armies, most marine forces and some air forces of the world, above a major and below a colonel. Several police forces in the United States use the rank of lieutenant colo ...

(latterly Brevet Colonel). Three weeks after the outbreak of war the Kings Surgeon in Scotland, Sir James Reid, received a call from the Palace asking him to go to Wick in northern Scotland. There he received Prince Albert (‘Bertie’, 1895–1952), second son of the King, and the future King

George VI George VI (Albert Frederick Arthur George; 14 December 1895 – 6 February 1952) was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death in 1952. He was also the last Emperor of I ...

. Prince Albert, who was serving as a midshipman on

HMS Collingwood Three ships and one shore establishment of the British Royal Navy have been named HMS ''Collingwood'', after Admiral Cuthbert Collingwood, 1st Baron Collingwood: * , an 80-gun second-rate ship of the line, converted to screw propulsion in 1861, a ...

, had suffered from abdominal problems from an early age but on this occasion appendicitis was diagnosed. Reid travelled with the prince to Aberdeen on the

hospital ship A hospital ship is a ship designated for primary function as a floating medical treatment facility or hospital. Most are operated by the military forces (mostly navies) of various countries, as they are intended to be used in or near war zones. I ...

'' Rohilla''. Marnoch performed an appendectomy on Albert in the Northern Nursing Home, Albyn Place, Aberdeen on 29 August 1914. The prince made a good recovery. He later returned to serve on the ship and thereafter took part in the Battle of Jutland.

Later career

Personal life

Marnoch was a keen amateur musician and through his friendship with Charles Sanford Terry, Burnett-Fletcher Professor of History and Archaeology at the University of Aberdeen, he received the bound final proof of the full score of Edward Elgar's Violin Concerto. Terry was a close friend of Elgar and had been gifted the proof for his help with the proofreading of the concerto.

Honours

*Knighted KCVO - 1928 *Deputy Lieutenants of Aberdeen – 5 April 1930 Brevet Colonel Sir John Marnoch KCVO

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Marnoch, John 1867 births 1936 deaths People from Aberdeen Alumni of the University of Aberdeen Scottish surgeons Knights Commander of the Royal Victorian Order Royal Army Medical Corps officers British Army personnel of World War I Deputy Lieutenants of Aberdeen Volunteer Force officers Royal Artillery officers British Army regimental surgeons People educated at Aberdeen Grammar School