Benjamin Hobson (1816–1873) (Chinese：合信) was a

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

medical missionary Medical missions is the term used for Christian missionary endeavors that involve the administration of medical treatment. As has been common among missionary efforts from the 18th to 20th centuries, medical missions often involves residents of th ...

who served with the

London Missionary Society The London Missionary Society was an interdenominational evangelical missionary society formed in England in 1795 at the instigation of Welsh Congregationalist minister Edward Williams. It was largely Reformed in outlook, with Congregational miss ...

imperial China The earliest known written records of the history of China date from as early as 1250 BC, from the Shang dynasty (c. 1600–1046 BC), during the reign of king Wu Ding. Ancient historical texts such as the '' Book of Documents'' (early chapte ...

during its

Qing The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speaki ...

dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family,''Oxford English Dictionary'', "dynasty, ''n''." Oxford University Press (Oxford), 1897. usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A ...

. His ''Treatise on Physiology'', reproducing and elaborating on work by

William Cheselden William Cheselden (; 19 October 168810 April 1752) was an English surgeon and teacher of anatomy and surgery, who was influential in establishing surgery as a scientific medical profession. Via the medical missionary Benjamin Hobson, his work ...

, helped revolutionize Chinese and later

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

medical understanding and treatment.

Life

Hobson was born in 1816 in Welford,

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire (; abbreviated Northants.) is a county in the East Midlands of England. In 2015, it had a population of 723,000. The county is administered by two unitary authorities: North Northamptonshire and West Northamptonshire. It is ...

, in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

. He graduated from

London University The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree- ...

with a MB and passed an examination as a MRCS.. Joining the

as a

to the

Qing Empire The Qing dynasty ( ), officially the Great Qing,, was a Manchu-led imperial dynasty of China and the last orthodox dynasty in Chinese history. It emerged from the Later Jin dynasty founded by the Jianzhou Jurchens, a Tungusic-speak ...

, he departed with his wife Jane Abbey Hobson and Messrs Legge and Milne on . It left London on 28 July 1839, and reached

Anyer Anyer, also known as Anjer or Angier, is a coastal town in Banten, formerly West Java, Indonesia, west of Jakarta and south of Merak. A significant coastal town late 18th-century, Anyer faces the Sunda Strait. History The town was a consider ...

on 12 November 12 and

Macao Macau or Macao (; ; ; ), officially the Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China (MSAR), is a city and special administrative region of China in the western Pearl River Delta by the South China Sea. With a pop ...

on 18 December. Assisted by Elijah Bridgman, Hobson found a residence and joined the local

Medical Missionary Society The Medical Missionary Society in China was a Protestant medical missionary society established in Canton, China, in 1838. The first work of the society was to support the ophthalmic hospital in Canton run by Dr. Peter Parker, a medical missionar ...

. Its hospital reopened on August 1, 1840. When

William Lockhart William Lockhart may refer to: * William Lockhart of Lee (1621–1675), Oliver Cromwell's ambassador at Paris * William Lockhart (surgeon) (1811–1896), medical missionary and fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons * William Lockhart (priest) (18 ...

left for

Zhoushan Zhoushan , formerly romanized as Chusan, is an urbanized archipelago with the administrative status of a prefecture-level city in the eastern Chinese province of Zhejiang. It consists of an archipelago of islands at the southern mouth of H ...

at the end of the month and Dr Diver retired from poor health soon afterwards, Hobson was left in sole charge of its operation. In early 1843, he left to establish the

Medical Missionary Hospital Hong Kong Medical Missionary Hospital Hong Kong was an early hospital in colonial Hong Kong that operated from 1843 to 1853 at Morrison Hill. It provided Western medical care to Chinese residents of Hong Kong. History Founded by the London Missionary Socie ...

. This opened to patients on June 1 and the demand for its services so outstripped both expectations and capacity that he relied heavily on help from Chinese assistants. This led him to consider how to explain western medical training to the Chinese, then reliant on often

pseudoscientific Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that claim to be both scientific and factual but are incompatible with the scientific method. Pseudoscience is often characterized by contradictory, exaggerated or unfalsifiable claim ...

traditional medicine Traditional medicine (also known as indigenous medicine or folk medicine) comprises medical aspects of traditional knowledge that developed over generations within the folk beliefs of various societies, including indigenous peoples, before the ...

. In 1845, his wife's health was so poor that they left for Britain in July but she died while at anchor off Dungeness on December 22. Left with a young son and daughter, he married Rebecca Morrison, the daughter of his fellow Chinese missionary

Robert The name Robert is an ancient Germanic given name, from Proto-Germanic "fame" and "bright" (''Hrōþiberhtaz''). Compare Old Dutch ''Robrecht'' and Old High German ''Hrodebert'' (a compound of '' Hruod'' ( non, Hróðr) "fame, glory, honou ...

, while in England. He returned with her and Mr Hirschberg on the ''Hugh Walker''. This left Britain on March 11, 1847, and reached Hong Kong on July 27, whereupon he resumed direction of its hospital. He visited

Guangzhou Guangzhou (, ; ; or ; ), also known as Canton () and alternatively romanized as Kwongchow or Kwangchow, is the capital and largest city of Guangdong province in southern China. Located on the Pearl River about north-northwest of Hong Kon ...

( then known as "Canton") with Mr Gillespie in October 1847 and moved there the next February, operating a clinic out of his residence. In April, he opened a pharmacy and, in June, purchased the house on Kum-Le-Fo. (, ''Jīnlì Bù'', . "Golden Benefit Wharf") in the western suburbs for use as the Missionary Hospital or Clinic ''Huìài Yīguǎn'').. While there, he was assisted by the Chinese ministers and missionaries

Liang Fa Liang Fa (1789–1855), also known by other names, was the second Chinese Protestant convert and the first Chinese Protestant minister and evangelist. He was ordained by Robert Morrison, the first Protestant missionary in the Qing Empire. ...

and Zhou Xue. At the end of 1854, he traveled to

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

for a five-week rest for health reasons. He and his family were forced to evacuate to Hong Kong in October 1856 on account of the onset of the

Second Opium War The Second Opium War (), also known as the Second Anglo-Sino War, the Second China War, the Arrow War, or the Anglo-French expedition to China, was a colonial war lasting from 1856 to 1860, which pitted the British Empire and the French Emp ...

. The missionary community of Shanghai prevailed upon him to return in February 1857 and he took Dr Lockhart's place at their hospital when Lockhart returned to England at the end of that year. His eldest son took work with a merchant house, but the rest of the family returned with him to Europe, reaching England in March 1859. His health not permitting his return to China, he then resided at Clifton and

Cheltenham Cheltenham (), also known as Cheltenham Spa, is a spa town and borough on the edge of the Cotswolds in the county of Gloucestershire, England. Cheltenham became known as a health and holiday spa town resort, following the discovery of mineral s ...

. He died at Forest Hill near

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

in 1873.

Works

Benjamin Hobson published the following works: * . & * . * . * . * . * , revised ed. 1865. * , reprinted at Shanghai 1857. * . * . * . * . * . * . * . * . * , including translations of some New Testament chapters * . * . * . & * . * . * . Five of the medical works were published with assistance from Kuan Mao-tsai. The illustrations of his ''Treatise on Physiology'' were derived from

's 1730 ''Anatomical Tables'' and 1733 ''Osteographia''. Hobson's work has been called "instrumental" in introducing Western anatomical knowledge to China and

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

, beginning their shift away from traditional understandings based on the flow of '' qi'' and other

pseudoscience Pseudoscience consists of statements, beliefs, or practices that claim to be both scientific and factual but are incompatible with the scientific method. Pseudoscience is often characterized by contradictory, exaggerated or falsifiability, unfa ...

Notes

References

Citations

Bibliography