Sir Weldon Dalrymple-Champneys, 2nd Baronet (7 May 1892 – 14 December 1980) was a British physician who was a leading figure in the public health service.
Career
Weldon Champneys was the only surviving son of
Sir Francis Champneys, 1st Baronet (also a physician) and his wife Virginia, daughter of
Sir John Dalrymple, 7th Baronet. He was educated at
Gresham's School
Gresham's School is a Public school (United Kingdom), public school (English Independent school (United Kingdom), independent Day school, day and boarding school) in Holt, Norfolk, Holt, Norfolk, England, one of the top thirty International Bac ...
and studied medicine at
Oriel College, Oxford
Oriel College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title formerly claimed by University College, wh ...
, and
St Bartholomew's Hospital
St Bartholomew's Hospital, commonly known as Barts, is a teaching hospital located in the City of London. It was founded in 1123 and is currently run by Barts Health NHS Trust.
History
Early history
Barts was founded in 1123 by Rahere (died ...
, London. His studies were interrupted by 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 ...
when he served in the
Grenadier Guards
"Shamed be whoever thinks ill of it."
, colors =
, colors_label =
, march = Slow: " Scipio"
, mascot =
, equipment =
, equipment ...
and reached the rank of
captain
Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...
. He finally obtained his first medical degrees (
MB BCh
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 Kin ...
) in 1922 and went on to gain a doctorate (
MD) from Oxford in 1929. In 1924 he changed his name by
deed poll
A deed poll (plural: deeds poll) is a legal document binding on a single person or several persons acting jointly to express an intention or create an obligation. It is a deed, and not a contract because it binds only one party (law), party.
Et ...
, adding his mother's surname to his father's and becoming Weldon Dalrymple Champneys. He joined the
Ministry of Health and rose to be Deputy Chief Medical Officer 1940–56. He was appointed in the 1957 New Year Honours. He was awarded an honorary fellowship of his ''alma mater'',
Oriel College, Oxford
Oriel College () is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in Oxford, England. Located in Oriel Square, the college has the distinction of being the oldest royal foundation in Oxford (a title formerly claimed by University College, wh ...
, in 1967.
Family
In 1924 Weldon Dalrymple-Champneys married Anne Spencer Pratt. He inherited the baronetcy on his father's death in 1930, becoming Sir Weldon Dalrymple-Champneys, 2nd Baronet.
Anthony Blunt
Anthony Frederick Blunt (26 September 1907 – 26 March 1983), styled Sir Anthony Blunt KCVO from 1956 to November 1979, was a leading British art historian and Soviet spy.
Blunt was a professor of art history at the University of London, the ...
later claimed that Lady Dalrymple-Champneys was a low-level
MI5
The Security Service, also known as MI5 ( Military Intelligence, Section 5), is the United Kingdom's domestic counter-intelligence and security agency and is part of its intelligence machinery alongside the Secret Intelligence Service (MI6), Go ...
agent. She died in 1968 and in 1974 he married
Norma Russell (née Lewis) who had been librarian of
Somerville College, Oxford
Somerville College, a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England, was founded in 1879 as Somerville Hall, one of its first two women's colleges. Among its alumnae have been Margaret Thatcher, Indira Gandhi, Dorothy Hodgkin, Ir ...
, 1952–69; she died in 1997.
Obituary: Norma Dalrymple-Champneys
''The Independent'', London, 12 January 1998 There were no children of either marriage, so the baronetcy became extinct on Sir Weldon's death.
References
Sources
DALRYMPLE-CHAMPNEYS, Captain Sir Weldon
''Who Was Who'', A & C Black, 1920–2016 (online edition, Oxford University Press, 2014)
*Obituary: Sir Weldon Dalrymple-Champneys: Leading figure in the public health service, ''The Times'', London, 16 December 1980, page 15.
External links
*
Portrait of Captain Sir Weldon Dalrymple-Champneys
by Isaac Michael Cohen (1884–1951) at Oriel College, Oxford
Dalrymple-Champneys, Sir Weldon (1892-1980)
Wellcome Library Western Manuscripts and Archives
* Sir George Godber
"Lives of the fellows: Weldon (Sir) Dalrymple-Champneys"
Royal College of Physicians
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dalrymple-Champneys, Weldon
1892 births
1980 deaths
People educated at Gresham's School
Alumni of Oriel College, Oxford
Alumni of the Medical College of St Bartholomew's Hospital
20th-century English medical doctors
Civil servants in the Ministry of Health (United Kingdom)
Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians
Baronets in the Baronetage of the United Kingdom
Companions of the Order of the Bath
Presidents of the History of Medicine Society