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Arthur Thomson (military surgeon)

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Arthur Saunders Thomson
Born(1816-12-09)9 December 1816
Arbroath, Angus, Scotland
Died4 November 1860(1860-11-04) (aged 43)
Pekin, China[1]
Cause of deathRupture of an abscess of the liver into the abdominal cavity[2]
Buried
Russian Cemetery, Pekin, China[2]
Allegiance United Kingdom
BranchUnited Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland British Army
Years of service1838–1860
RankSurgeon Major
Service number4525[3]
Unit17th (Leicestershire) Regiment of Foot, 1838–
14th (The King's) Regiment of Light Dragoons, 1842–
58th (Rutlandshire) Regiment of Foot, 1847–
Staff, 1859–60[3]
CommandsPMO, 2nd Division, British Expeditionary Force, China, 1860[1]
AwardsGold Medal prize for MD thesis, Medical Faculty, University of Edinburgh, 1837[2]
MemorialsCenotaph, Saint John Episcopal Graveyard, Edinburgh, Scotland
Alma materUniversity of Edinburgh
Spouse(s)Ngāhiraka Wood[4]
Children3

Surgeon Major Arthur Saunders Thomson (29 December 1816 – 4 November 1860) was a notable Scottish military surgeon, medical scientist, writer and historian.[2] He was born in Arbroath, Angus, Scotland in 1816.[5]

He joined the British Army on 19 October 1838 as an assistant surgeon to the 17th (Leicestershire) Regiment of Foot[6][7] and was stationed in India with the 14th (The King's) Regiment of Light Dragoons until 1847.[8] There, he wrote about the epidemic of fever among his regiment during the monsoon season. Upon his return to England, he was appointed surgeon to the 58th (Rutlandshire) Regiment of Foot[9] and sent to New Zealand. In New Zealand he wrote extensively about disease statistics among Māori and European populations and climatology.[5]

Thomson's book, The Story of New Zealand: Past and Present, Savage and Civilized (1859), is generally considered to be the first scholarly history of the island country.[10]

He was promoted to surgeon major in 1858[11] and was sent back to England. A year later, he was placed in charge of the hospital steamship Mauritius and sent to China where he was in medical charge of the 2nd Division, British Expeditionary Force. He died there on 4 November 1860 and was buried in the Russian cemetery, Pekin.[5]

Publications

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References

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  1. ^ a b Stationers' Hall (1861). The Monthly Record of Births, Deaths & Marriages A–Z for the Month Ending January 1, 1861. London: Alfred Knowler and Mrs. Janet Taylor. p. 121.
  2. ^ a b c d "Obituary. The Late Dr. Arthur S. Thomson". The Medical Times and Gazette. Journal of Medical Science, Literature, Criticism, and News. 1. London: John Churchill: 103. 26 January 1861.
  3. ^ a b Johnston, William (1917). Howell, Harry Arthur Leonard (ed.). Roll of Commissioned Officers of the Medical Service of the British Army. Aberdeen: The University Press. p. 304.
  4. ^ Kemp, Jill (2023), Tilley, Dion; WiRepa, Silvana (eds.), South to the Left of Venus: Part 2 (PDF), Opotiki: Jill Kemp, pp. 13–49
  5. ^ a b c Belgrave, Michael. "Arthur Saunders Thomson". Dictionary of New Zealand Biography. Ministry for Culture and Heritage. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
  6. ^ Hart, Henry George (1839). The New Army List for 1839. London: Smith, Elder & Co. p. 68.
  7. ^ Hart, Henry George (1842). The New Army List for 1842. London: John Murray. p. 168.
  8. ^ Hart, Henry George (1847). The New Army List for 1847. Vol. 8. London: John Murray. p. 140.
  9. ^ Hart, Henry George (1848). The New Army List for 1848. Vol. 9. London: John Murray. p. 209.
  10. ^ Boyd, Kelly (1999). Encyclopedia of Historians and Historical Writing. Chicago: Taylor & Francis. p. 870. ISBN 978-1-884964-33-6.
  11. ^ "Hospital Staff". The London Gazette. No. 22208. 10 December 1858. p. 5386.
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