William Macmichael FRS (30 November 1783 – 10 January 1839) was an English physician and medical biographer, remembered as the author of ''The Gold-Headed Cane'' (1827).

Life and career

William Macmichael was born on 30 November 1783 in

Bridgnorth Bridgnorth is a town in Shropshire, England. The River Severn splits it into High Town and Low Town, the upper town on the right bank and the lower on the left bank of the River Severn. The population at the 2011 Census was 12,079. History B ...

Shropshire Shropshire (; alternatively Salop; abbreviated in print only as Shrops; demonym Salopian ) is a landlocked historic county in the West Midlands region of England. It is bordered by Wales to the west and the English counties of Cheshire to th ...

. He was educated at

Bridgnorth Grammar School Bridgnorth Endowed School is a coeducational secondary school with academy status, located in the market town of Bridgnorth in the rural county of Shropshire, England. Founded in 1503, The Endowed School is a state school and is a specialist ...

. In 1800 he went up to

Christ Church, Oxford Christ Church ( la, Ædes Christi, the temple or house, '' ædēs'', of Christ, and thus sometimes known as "The House") is a constituent college of the University of Oxford in England. Founded in 1546 by King Henry VIII, the college is uniqu ...

, with a scholarship. Macmichael spent the years from 1811 to 1817 visiting Bulgaria, Greece, Palestine, Romania, Russia and Turkey after gaining a Radcliffe traveling fellowship. Macmichael gained an MD from

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

, and became a fellow of both the

Royal Society The Royal Society, formally The Royal Society of London for Improving Natural Knowledge, is a learned society and the United Kingdom's national academy of sciences. The society fulfils a number of roles: promoting science and its benefits, re ...

and of the

Royal College of Physicians The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...

. Macmaichael served as censor for the

, as a physician to the

Middlesex Hospital Middlesex Hospital was a teaching hospital located in the Fitzrovia area of London, England. First opened as the Middlesex Infirmary in 1745 on Windmill Street, it was moved in 1757 to Mortimer Street where it remained until it was finally clos ...

, registrar at the

, and adviser to the President of the

. In 1829 Macmichael was appointed physician extraordinary to King

George IV George IV (George Augustus Frederick; 12 August 1762 – 26 June 1830) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from the death of his father, King George III, on 29 January 1820, until his own death ten y ...

, became librarian to the King in 1830, and became physician in ordinary to King

William IV William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded h ...

in 1831. Between 1833 and 1835 Macmichael was an Inspector General of Lunatic Asylums. Macmichael died aged 55 in 1839 following his retirement through ill-health. Macmichael's ''A Journey from Moscow to Constantinople in the Years 1817, 1818'' was published in 1819. Macmichael's ''A New View of the Infection of Scarlet Fever: Illustrated by Remarks on other Contagious Disorders'' was published in 1822. Macmichael's ''The Gold-Headed Cane'' was published anonymously in 1827 with biographies of the owners of a cane carried by John Radcliffe,

Richard Mead Richard is a male given name. It originates, via Old French, from Old Frankish and is a compound of the words descending from Proto-Germanic ''*rīk-'' 'ruler, leader, king' and ''*hardu-'' 'strong, brave, hardy', and it therefore means 'strong ...

Anthony Askew Anthony Askew (1722–1774) was an English physician and is best known for having been a book collector Book collecting is the collecting of books, including seeking, locating, acquiring, organizing, cataloging, displaying, storing, and maint ...

, William Pitcairn and

Matthew Baillie Matthew Baillie FRS (27 October 1761 – 23 September 1823) was a British physician and pathologist, credited with first identifying transposition of the great vessels (TGV) and situs inversus. Early life and education He was born in the mans ...

. Macmichael's ''The Lives of British Physicians'' was published anonymously in 1830 including biographies of

William Harvey William Harvey (1 April 1578 – 3 June 1657) was an English physician who made influential contributions in anatomy and physiology. He was the first known physician to describe completely, and in detail, the systemic circulation and proper ...

Thomas Linacre Thomas Linacre or Lynaker ( ; 20 October 1524) was an English humanist scholar and physician, after whom Linacre College, Oxford, and Linacre House, a boys' boarding house at The King's School, Canterbury, are named. Linacre was more of a schola ...

and

John Caius John Caius (born John Kays ; 6 October 1510 – 29 July 1573), also known as Johannes Caius and Ioannes Caius, was an English physician, and second founder of the present Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge. Biography Early years Caius was ...

.MACMICHAEL, William (1783–1839)
Royal College of Physicians

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Macmichael, William 1783 births 1839 deaths Fellows of the Royal Society 19th-century English medical doctors Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians Alumni of Christ Church, Oxford People educated at Bridgnorth Endowed School People from Bridgnorth Physicians-in-Ordinary