Dr Alexander Tweedie FRS (29 August 1794 – 30 May 1884) was a Scottish physician and writer.

Life

He was born in

Edinburgh Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. The city is located in southeast Scotland and is bounded to the north by the Firth of Forth and to the south by the Pentland Hills. Edinburgh ...

on 29 August 1794, and received his early education at the Royal High School there. In 1809 he began medical studies at the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a Public university, public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the City of Edinburgh Council, town council under th ...

, and at about the same time became a pupil of a surgeon to the

Edinburgh Royal Infirmary The Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh (RIE) was established in 1729, and is the oldest voluntary hospital in Scotland. The new buildings of 1879 were claimed to be the largest voluntary hospital in the United Kingdom, and later on, the Empire."In Comi ...

, John Henry Wishart. On 1 August 1815 Tweedie took the degree of M.D., and in 1817 became a fellow of the

Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh The Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (RCSEd) is a professional organisation of surgeons. The RCSEd has five faculties, covering a broad spectrum of surgical, dental, and other medical and healthcare specialities. Its main campus is locate ...

. He was then living at 16 Nicolson Street in Edinburgh's South Side.Edinburgh Post Office Directory 1817 Tweedie was elected one of the two house-surgeons to the Royal Infirmary, Robert Liston being the other. In 1818 Tweedie went into practice in Edinburgh, with the intention of becoming a specialist in ophthalmic surgery; but in 1820 he moved to London, took a residence in Ely Place, and on 25 June 1822 was admitted a licentiate of the

College of Physicians A college (Latin: ''collegium'') may be a tertiary educational institution (sometimes awarding degrees), part of a collegiate university, an institution offering vocational education, a further education institution, or a secondary school ...

. He became a fellow of the college on 4 July 1838, was conciliarius in 1853, 1854, and 1855, and Lumleian Lecturer in 1858 and 1859. In 1866 he was elected an honorary fellow of the King's and Queen's College of Physicians in Ireland. In 1822 Tweedie was appointed assistant physician to the

London Fever Hospital The London Fever Hospital was a voluntary hospital financed from public donations in Liverpool Road in Islington, London. It was one of the first fever hospitals in the country. History Originally established with 15 beds in 1802 in Gray's Inn R ...

, and in 1824, on the retirement of John Armstrong, filled the post of physician to the hospital, which he held for 38 years. He resigned it in 1861, when he was appointed consulting physician and one of the vice-presidents. In 1836 he was elected physician to the

Foundling Hospital The Foundling Hospital (formally the Hospital for the Maintenance and Education of Exposed and Deserted Young Children) was a children's home in London, England, founded in 1739 by the philanthropy, philanthropic Captain (nautical), sea captain ...

; he was also physician to the Standard Assurance Company, examiner in medicine at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in Post-nominal letters, post-nominals) is a collegiate university, federal Public university, public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The ...

, and was an honorary member of the Medical Psychological Association. Tweedie was elected a

Fellow of the Royal Society Fellowship of the Royal Society (FRS, ForMemRS and HonFRS) is an award granted by the Fellows of the Royal Society of London to individuals who have made a "substantial contribution to the improvement of natural science, natural knowledge, incl ...

on 8 February 1838. He died at his residence, Bute Lodge,

Twickenham Twickenham ( ) is a suburban district of London, England, on the River Thames southwest of Charing Cross. Historic counties of England, Historically in Middlesex, since 1965 it has formed part of the London Borough of Richmond upon Thames, who ...

, on 30 May 1884, continuing to practise at the age of 89 years.

Works

Tweedie was a voluminous writer. He was joint-author with Charles Gaselee of ''A Practical Treatise on Cholera'' (1832), and was the original planner of the '' Cyclopædia of Practical Medicine'' (London, 1831–5, 4 vols.), of which he was one of the editors. He planned and edited the ''Library of Medicine'', in eight volumes, which appeared in 1840–42; and was the author of ''Clinical Illustrations of Fever'' (London, 1828), and of ''Lectures on the Distinctive Characters, Pathology, and Treatment of Continued Fevers'' (1862).

References

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TWEEDIE, Alexander (1794–1884)
Royal College of Physicians ;Attribution {{DEFAULTSORT:Tweedie, Alexander 1794 births 1884 deaths People educated at the Royal High School, Edinburgh 19th-century Scottish medical doctors 19th-century Scottish writers Fellows of the Royal Society Alumni of the University of Edinburgh