The Hunterian Oration is a lecture of the

Royal College of Surgeons of England The Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS England) is an independent professional body and registered charity that promotes and advances standards of surgical care for patients, and regulates surgery and dentistry in England and Wales. The ...

. The oration was founded in 1813 by the executors of the will of pioneering surgeon John Hunter, his nephew Dr

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 ...

and his brother-in-law Sir

Everard Home Sir Everard Home, 1st Baronet, FRS (6 May 1756, in Kingston upon Hull – 31 August 1832, in London) was a British surgeon. Home was born in Kingston-upon-Hull and educated at Westminster School. He gained a scholarship to Trinity College, Ca ...

, who made a gift to the College to provide an annual oration and a dinner for Members of the Court of Assistants and others. In 1853, the oration and dinner became biennial; it is held on alternate years in rotation with the

Bradshaw Lecture The Bradshaw Lectures are prestigious lectureships given at the invitation of the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of Surgeons of England. List of past lecturers at Royal College of Physicians List of past lecturers at Royal C ...

. It is delivered by a Fellow or Member of the college on 14 Feb, Hunter's birthday, ''"such oration to be expressive of the merits in comparative anatomy, physiology, and surgery, not only of John Hunter, but also of all persons, as should be from time to time deceased, whose labours have contributed to the improvement or extension of surgical science"''. The RCS Oration is not to be confused with the Hunterian Society Oration given at the Hunterian Society.

Orators

19th century

*1813 Sir

William Blizard Sir William Blizard FRS FRSE PRCS FSA (1 March 1743 – 27 August 1835) was an English surgeon. Life He was born in Barn Elms, Surrey, the fourth child of auctioneer William Blizard. After an apprenticeship to a surgeon and apothecary in Mortl ...

*1814

*1815 John Percival Pott *1816

Henry Cline Henry Cline (1750–1827) was an English surgeon and president of the Royal College of Surgeons. He was also a political radical, associated with leading supporters of the French Revolution, a farmer, and a Fellow of the Royal Society. Life ...

*1817 William Norris *1818 Sir David Dundas, 1st Baronet *1819

John Abernethy John Abernethy may refer to: * John Abernethy (bishop), Scottish bishop, died 1639 * John Abernethy (judge) (born 1947), Australian judge *John Abernethy (minister) (1680–1740), Presbyterian minister in Ireland *John Abernethy (surgeon) (1764–18 ...

*1820 Sir

Anthony Carlisle Sir Anthony Carlisle FRCS, FRS (15 February 1768 in Stillington, County Durham, England – 2 November 1840 in London) was an English surgeon. Life He was born in Stillington, County Durham, the third son of Thomas Carlisle and his first wife, a ...

*1821 Thomas Chevalier *1822

In Honour of Surgery *1823 Sir

*1824

*1825 William Norris *1826 Sir

on Oysters *1827

Honoratus Leigh Thomas Honoratus Leigh Thomas (1769–1846) was a Welsh surgeon. Life The son of John Thomas of Hawarden, Flintshire, by his wife Maria, sister of John Boydell, was born on 26 March 1769. Going to London as a very young man with a letter of introducti ...

*1828 Sir

*1829

John Painter Vincent John Painter Vincent (1776–1852) was an English surgeon. Life Born at Newbury, Berkshire, he was the son of Osman Vincent, silk merchant and banker, who lived at Donnington; Richard Budd Vincent was his brother. John was apprenticed to Mr. ...

, ''Observations on Some Parts of Surgical Practice'' *1830 George James Guthrie *1831 Anthony White *1832

Samuel Cooper Samuel or Sam Cooper may refer to: *Samuel Cooper (painter) (1609–1672), English miniature painter *Samuel Cooper (clergyman) (1725–1783), Congregationalist minister in Boston, Massachusetts * Samuel Cooper (surgeon) (1780–1848), English surge ...

*1833

John Howship John Howship FRS (1781 – 22 January 1841) was an English surgeon remembered for describing the Howship–Romberg sign. He was an assistant surgeon at St. George's Infirmary, London and lecturer at St. George's Hospital Medical School. ...

*1834 Sir William Lawrence *1835 *1837 Sir Benjamin Collins Brodie *1838

Benjamin Travers Benjamin Travers, FRS (3 April 1783 – 6 March 1858) was a British surgeon, known for his expertise in the physiology and morbidity of the eye. From 1857 to his death, he was the Serjeant Surgeon, a member of the Medical Household (part of t ...

*1839 Edward Stanley *1840

Joseph Henry Green Joseph Henry Green (1 November 1791 – 13 December 1863) (72 years) was an English surgeon who became the literary executor of Samuel Taylor Coleridge. Life Green was the only son of Joseph Green, a prosperous merchant, and was born at the ...

, ''Vital Dynamics'' *1841

Richard Dugard Grainger Richard Dugard Grainger FRCS FRS (1801 – 1 February 1865) was an English surgeon, anatomist and physiologist. Grainger was born in Birmingham, the son of a surgeon, and educated at a grammar school. He was the brother of Edward Grainger, ...

*1842

George Gisborne Babington George may refer to: People * George (given name) * George (surname) * George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George * George Washington, First President of the United States * George W. Bush, 43rd Presiden ...

*1843

James Moncrieff Arnott James is a common English language surname and given name: *James (name), the typically masculine first name James * James (surname), various people with the last name James James or James City may also refer to: People * King James (disambiguat ...

*1844

John Flint South John Flint South (1797–1882) was an English surgeon. Life The eldest son by his second wife of James South, a druggist in Southwark, he was born on 5 July 1797; Sir James South, the astronomer, was his half-brother. He was put to school in ...

on the ''History of Medicine'' *1845 Jordan Roche Lynch *1846 Sir William Lawrence *1847

, ''Mental Dynamics, or Groundwork of a professional education'' *1848

, ''The Cultivation of Organic Science'' *1849 Caesar Hawkins *1850

Frederic Carpenter Skey Frederic Carpenter Skey FRS (1 December 1798 – 15 August 1872) was an English surgeon.Skey ...

*1851 Richard Anthony Stafford ''(not delivered due to illness)'' *1852 James Luke *1853 Bransby Blake Cooper *1855

Joseph Hodgson Joseph Hodgson (1788–1869) was a British physician and a well-known Religious Society of Friends, Quaker. He was born in Penrith, Cumbria, Penrith, Cumberland, the son of a Birmingham merchant and educated at King Edward's School, Birmingham, ...

*1857 Thomas Wormald *1859

John Bishop John Marcus Bishop (born 30 November 1966) is an English comedian, presenter, actor and former footballer. Bishop formerly played football as a midfielder for Winsford United F.C., Crewe Alexandra F.C., Runcorn F.C., Rhyl F.C., Witton Al ...

*1861

William Coulson William Coulson (1802 – 1877) was an English surgeon. Life The younger son of Thomas Coulson, master painter in Devonport dockyard, he was born at Penzance; Walter Coulson was an elder brother. His father was a close friend of Sir Humphry D ...

*1863

George Gulliver George Gulliver (4 June 1804 – 17 November 1882), was an English anatomist and physiologist. Life and work Gulliver was born at Banbury, Oxfordshire, on 4 June 1804, and after an apprenticeship with local surgeons entered at St. Bartholomew' ...

on William Hewson and John Quekett as discoverers. *1865

Richard Partridge Richard Partridge FRS, FRCS (19 January 1805, in Ross-on-Wye, Herefordshire – 25 March 1873, in London) was a British surgeon. Although he became President of both the Royal College of Surgeons and the Royal Medical and Chirurgical Society, ...

*1867 John Hilton *1869 Richard Quain, ''On some Defects in General Education'' *1871 Sir William Fergusson *1873

Henry Hancock Henry Hancock (April 11, 1822January 9, 1883) was a Harvard trained lawyer and a land surveyor working in California in the 1850s. He was the owner of Rancho La Brea, which included the La Brea Tar Pits. Early life Henry Hancock was born in Ba ...

*1875 Frederick Le Gros Clark *1877 Sir

James Paget Sir James Paget, 1st Baronet FRS HFRSE (11 January 1814 – 30 December 1899) (, rhymes with "gadget") was an English surgeon and pathologist who is best remembered for naming Paget's disease and who is considered, together with Rudolf Virc ...

, ''Science in Surgery'' *1879 Sir

George Murray Humphry Sir George Murray Humphry, FRS (18 July 1820 – 24 September 1896) was a professor of physiology and anatomy at Cambridge, surgeon, gerontologist and medical writer. Life He was born at Sudbury in Suffolk on 18 July 1820, the third son of Wi ...

*1881 Luther Holden *1883

Thomas Spencer Wells Sir Thomas Spencer Wells, 1st Baronet (3 February 181831 January 1897) was surgeon to Queen Victoria, a medical professor and president of the Royal College of Surgeons of England. Early life He was born at St Albans, Hertfordshire and receive ...

*1885

John Marshall John Marshall (September 24, 1755July 6, 1835) was an American politician and lawyer who served as the fourth Chief Justice of the United States from 1801 until his death in 1835. He remains the longest-serving chief justice and fourth-longes ...

*1887 William Scovell Savory, ''Surgery in its Relation to Science'' *1889

Henry Power Henry Power (1623–1668) was an English physician and experimenter, one of the first elected fellows of the Royal Society. Life Power matriculated as a pensioner of Christ's College, Cambridge, in 1641 and graduated a Bachelor of Arts in 1644 ...

*1891 Sir

Jonathan Hutchinson Sir Jonathan Hutchinson (23 July 1828 – 23 June 1913), was an English surgeon, ophthalmologist, dermatologist, venereologist, and pathologist. Life He was born in Selby, Yorkshire, of Quaker parents and educated in the local school. Then he ...

*1893 Thomas Bryant, ''100th Anniversary of John Hunter's Death'' *1895

John Whitaker Hulke John Whitaker Hulke FRCS FRS FGS (6 November 1830 – 19 February 1895) was a British surgeon, geologist and fossil collector. He was the son of a physician in Deal, who became a Huxleyite despite being deeply religious. Hulke became Huxley's ...

. ''John Hunter, The Biologist'' *1897

Christopher Heath Christopher Heath may refer to: * Christopher Heath (minister) (1802–1876), minister in the Catholic Apostolic Church * Christopher Heath (surgeon) (1835–1905), son of the above, surgeon {{hndis, Heath, Christopher ...

, ''John Hunter Considered as a Great Surgeon'' *1899 Sir William MacCormac

20th century

*1901 Nottidge Charles MacNamara, ''The Human Skull in Relation to Brain Growth'' *1903 Sir Henry Howse *1905 Sir

John Tweedy Sir John Tweedy (21 May 1849 – 1924) was a surgeon and a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons. He was born at Stockton-on-Tees, the son of John Tweedy, a wholesale fruiterer.Father's obituary in ''Yorkshire Gazette'' - York, Yorkshire, Engla ...

*1907 Sir Henry T. Butlin, ''Objects of Hunter's Life and the Manner in which he Accomplished them'' *1909 Sir Henry Morris, ''John Hunter as a Philosopher'' *1911 Edmund Owen, ''John Hunter and his Museum'' *1913 Sir Rickman Godlee, ''On Hunter and Lister, and on the Museum of the Royal College of Surgeons of England'' *1915 Sir William Watson Cheyne, ''The Treatment of Wounds in War'' *1917 Sir George Henry Makins, ''The Influence Exerted by the Military Experience of John Hunter on himself and the Military Surgeon of Today'' *1919 Sir

Anthony Bowlby Sir Anthony Alfred Bowlby, 1st Baronet (10 May 1855 – 7 April 1929) was a British Army officer, surgeon and pathologist. Early life Anthony Bowlby was born in Namur, Belgium, the third son of Thomas William Bowlby (1818–1860) and Frances M ...

, ''British Military Surgery in the time of Hunter and in the Great War'' *1921 Sir Charters J. Symonds, ''On Astley Cooper and Hunterian Principles'' *1923 Sir

John Bland-Sutton Sir John Bland-Sutton, 1st Baronet (21 April 1855 – 20 December 1936), was a British surgeon. Biography He was the son of Enfield Highway farmer Charles William Sutton and was educated at the local school. From there, he entered a private an ...

, ''John Hunter, his affairs, habits and opinions'' *1925

D'Arcy Power Sir D'Arcy Power, (11 November 1855 in Pimlico, London - 18 May 1941) was a British surgeon, medical historian, and contributor of some 200 articles on famous surgeons and other related figures to the ''Dictionary of National Biography''. Med ...

, ''John Hunter as a Man'' *1927 Berkeley Moynihan, ''Hunter’s ideals and Lister’s practice'' *1928 Sir Holburt Waring, ''The Progress of Surgery from Hunter's day to ours'' *1929 A. W. Sheen, ''Some Aspects of the Surgery of the Spleen'' *1930 Ernest W. Hey Groves, ''Hero Worship in Surgery'' *1932

Wilfred Trotter Wilfred Batten Lewis Trotter, FRS (3 November 1872 – 25 November 1939) was an English surgeon, a pioneer in neurosurgery. He was also known for his studies on social psychology, most notably for his concept of the herd instinct, which he fi ...

, ''The Commemoration of Great Men'' *1934 Cuthert Sidney Wallace, ''Medical Education, 1760-1934'' *1936 Charles Herbert Fagge, ''John Hunter to John Hilton'' *1938 Eric Riches *1939

Sampson Handley William Sampson Handley MD, MS, FRCS (12 April 1872 – 1962) was an English surgeon who influenced the development of cancer surgery. He was born in Loughborough, Leicestershire, England, he was the son of a Chemist Thomas Handley. He was e ...

, ''Makers of John Hunter'' *1941 Arthur Henry Burgess, ''Development of Provincial Medical Education Illustrated in the Life and Work of Charles White of Manchester'' *1942 Eric Riches *1943 William Francis Victor Bonney, ''The Forces behind Specialism in Surgery'' *1945

George Grey Turner George Grey Turner (8 September 1877 – 24 August 1951) was an English surgeon. He was born in North Shields and received his medical degree from Newcastle Medical School (then a part of the University of Durham). He received a Fellowship fr ...

, ''The Hunterian Museum, yesterday and to-morrow'' *1949 Henry S. Souttar, ''John Hunter the Observer'' *1951 Sir Max Page,'' The Hunterian Heritage'' *1953 Lionel E. C. Norbury, ''The Hunterian Era: Its Influence on the Art and Science of Surgery'' *1956 Sir

Henry Cohen Henry Cohen may refer to: * Henry Cohen (numismatist) (1806–1880), French numismatist, bibliographer and composer *Henry Cohen (rabbi) (1863–1952), Jewish Texan rabbi in Galveston, Texas, 1888–1952 *Henry Cohen (politician) (1872–1942), Aus ...

, ''Reflections on the Hunterian Method'' *1957 Ernest Finch, ''The influence of the Hunters on medical education'' *1959 Sir Reginald Watson-Jones, ''Surgery is Destined to the Practice of Medicine'' *1961

Russell Brock, Baron Brock Russell Claude Brock, Baron Brock (24 October 1903 – 3 September 1980) was a leading British chest and heart surgeon and one of the pioneers of modern open-heart surgery. His achievements were recognised by a Knighthood in 1954, a Life Peera ...

on the Museum, Research and Inspiration of Hunter *1963 Sir

Stanford Cade Sir Stanford Cade (formerly Kadinsky), (22 March 1895 – 19 September 1973) was a British surgeon of Russian origin, who pioneered the combined use of surgery and radiotherapy in the treatment of cancer in England. He was born in what was the ...

, ''The Lasting Dynamism of John Hunter'' *1965 A. Dickson Wright, ''John Hunter's Private Practice'' *1967

Arthur Porritt, Baron Porritt Colonel Arthur Espie Porritt, Baron Porritt, (10 August 1900 – 1 January 1994) was a New Zealand physician, military surgeon, statesman and athlete. He won a bronze medal at the 1924 Summer Olympics in the 100 m sprint. He served as the ...

, ''John Hunter, Distant Echoes'' *1969 Leslie Norman Pyrah, ''John Hunter and After'' *1971 Sir

Hedley Atkins Sir Hedley John Barnard Atkins (30 December 1905 – 26 November 1983) was the first professor of surgery at Guy's Hospital and President of the Royal College of Surgeons of England, Royal College of Surgeons. He was the son of Guy's Hospital ...

, ''The Attributes of Genius from Newton to Darwin'' *1973 Sir

Thomas Holmes Sellors Sir Thomas Holmes Sellors (7 April 1902 – 13 September 1987) was a British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependenci ...

, ''Some Pupils of John Hunter'' *1975 Sir Rodney Smith, ''The Hunters and the Arts'' *1977 Richard Harrington Franklin, ''John Hunter and his relevance in 1977'' *1978 (250th anniversary):

John Wolfenden, Baron Wolfenden John Frederick Wolfenden, Baron Wolfenden, CBE (26 June 1906, Swindon, Wiltshire – 18 January 1985, Guildford, Surrey) was a British educationalist probably best remembered for chairing the Wolfenden Committee whose report, recommending the d ...

, ''Hunter, Hippocrates and Humanity'' *1979 George Qvist, ''Some controversial aspects of John Hunter's life and work.'' *1981 Sir Reginald Sydney Murley, ''Peace and strife in Hunter's time'' *1983 ''Not given due to death of speaker'' (Sir

Alan Parks Sir Alan Guyatt Parks (19 December 1920 – 3 November 1982) was a British colorectal surgeon, who served as president of the Royal College of Surgeons. Early life and education Parks attended Sutton High School and later Epsom College (1935 ...

) *1984 Anthony John Harding Rains, ''The continuing message'' *1985

Donald Campbell Donald is a masculine given name derived from the Gaelic name ''Dòmhnall''.. This comes from the Proto-Celtic *''Dumno-ualos'' ("world-ruler" or "world-wielder"). The final -''d'' in ''Donald'' is partly derived from a misinterpretation of the ...

*1986

Peter John Ryan Peter John Ryan (25 November 1925 – 3 June 2002) was a consultant surgeon at St Vincent's Hospital in Melbourne, Australia. Early life and education Ryan was born in Dookie, Victoria in 1925, and attended Assumption College, Kilmore. He q ...

, ''Two Kinds of Diverticular Disease'' *1987 Sir

Geoffrey Slaney Sir Geoffrey Slaney, (19 September 1922 – 29 January 2016) was a British surgeon and academic, specialising in vascular and gastrointestinal surgery. He held the Barling Chair of Surgery at the University of Birmingham from 1971 to 1986, and w ...

*1989 Sir

Roy Calne Sir Roy Yorke Calne, FRCP, FRCS, FRS (born 30 December 1930) is a British surgeon and pioneer in organ transplantation. Career His most notable achievements are the world's first liver, heart, and lung transplant together with John Wallwor ...

*1991 John Blandy *1993 Sir

Miles Irving Sir Miles Irving CIE, OBE (1 August 1876 - 24 June 1962) was an English Indian Civil Service officer. As Deputy Commissioner of Amritsar, the senior government official in charge, he transferred the city's administration to Colonel (temp. Brig ...

*1995 John Alexander-Williams *1997 H. Brendan Devlin *1999 Jack Hardcastle

21st century

*2001 Bill Heald *2003 Charles S. B. Galasko, ''Hunter's Legacy and Surgical Training and Competence in the 21st Century'' *2005 Sir Peter Morris *2007

Anthony Mundy Anthony Munday (or Monday) (1560?10 August 1633) was an English playwright and miscellaneous writer. He was baptized on 13 October 1560 in St Gregory by St Paul's, London, and was the son of Christopher Munday, a stationer, and Jane Munday. He ...

*2009 Linda de Cossart *2010 Simon Chaplin *2011 Norman Stanley Williams *2013 Sir Bruce E. Keogh *2015 Martin Elliott

References

{{authority control Annual events in the United Kingdom British lecture series Medical lecture series Recurring events established in 1813 Royal College of Surgeons of England