William Cormick (1822 in

Tabriz Tabriz (; ) is a city in the Central District (Tabriz County), Central District of Tabriz County, in the East Azerbaijan province, East Azerbaijan province of northwestern Iran. It serves as capital of the province, the county, and the distric ...

– 30 December 1877), was an Iranian

physician A physician, medical practitioner (British English), medical doctor, or simply doctor is a health professional who practices medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring health through the Medical education, study, Med ...

Qajar Iran The Guarded Domains of Iran, alternatively the Sublime State of Iran and commonly called Qajar Iran, Qajar Persia or the Qajar Empire, was the Iranian state under the rule of the Qajar dynasty, which was of Turkic peoples, Turkic origin,Cyrus G ...

during the reigns of

Mohammad Shah Qajar Mohammad Shah (; born Mohammad Mirza; 5 January 1808 – 5 September 1848) was the third Qajar ''shah'' of Iran from 1834 to 1848, inheriting the throne from his grandfather, Fath-Ali Shah. From a young age, Mohammad Mirza was under the tutela ...

(1834–1848) and

Naser al-Din Shah Qajar Naser al-Din Shah Qajar (; ; 17 July 1831 – 1 May 1896) was the fourth Shah of Qajar Iran from 5 September 1848 to 1 May 1896 when he was assassinated. During his rule there was internal pressure from the people of Iran, as well as external ...

(1848–1896). He is noted for having played an important role in the diffusion of Western medicine into Iranian society. He is also noted as the only westerner to have met the

Báb The Báb (born ʻAlí-Muḥammad; ; ; 20 October 1819 – 9 July 1850) was an Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbai ...

Biography

Education

William Cormick was born in Tabriz to the British physician of Irish origin John Cormick and a local

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian diaspora, Armenian communities around the ...

woman. Having been sent to England at the age of ten in order to gain an education, he was subsequently enrolled into the medical faculty of the

University College of London University College London (Trade name, branded as UCL) is a Public university, public research university in London, England. It is a Member institutions of the University of London, member institution of the Federal university, federal Uni ...

. He received his qualification as a member of the

Royal College of Surgeons The Royal College of Surgeons is an ancient college (a form of corporation) established in England to regulate the activity of surgeons. Derivative organisations survive in many present and former members of the Commonwealth. These organisations ...

on 17July 1840. A year later he was admitted into membership of the

Society of Apothecaries The Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of London is one of the livery companies of the City of London. It is one of the largest livery companies (with over 1,600 members in 2012) and ranks 58th in their order of precedence. The society is a me ...

, as well as being awarded a doctors degree in

medicine Medicine is the science and Praxis (process), practice of caring for patients, managing the Medical diagnosis, diagnosis, prognosis, Preventive medicine, prevention, therapy, treatment, Palliative care, palliation of their injury or disease, ...

from St. Andrew's in London.

Career

From 1844 to 1855 Cormick worked as a physician in London and in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

. He was summoned to Iran, by the then incumbent king

, as the second physician to the British mission and to become the personal physician to the king. In 1846 he was appointed as the second physician to the family of

Abbas Mirza Abbas Mirza (; 26 August 1789 – 25 October 1833) was the Qajar dynasty, Qajar crown prince of Qajar Iran, Iran during the reign of his father Fath-Ali Shah Qajar (). As governor of the vulnerable Azerbaijan (Iran), Azerbaijan province, he played ...

. Later he became the personal physician to the crown prince and the future king

, when the latter was given the governorship of

Azerbaijan Azerbaijan, officially the Republic of Azerbaijan, is a Boundaries between the continents, transcontinental and landlocked country at the boundary of West Asia and Eastern Europe. It is a part of the South Caucasus region and is bounded by ...

province, which he held for seven months. Upon the ascension of Naser al-din Shah Qajar to the throne in 1848, Cormick travelled with him to

Tehran Tehran (; , ''Tehrân'') is the capital and largest city of Iran. It is the capital of Tehran province, and the administrative center for Tehran County and its Central District (Tehran County), Central District. With a population of around 9. ...

. However, on the decision of the prime minister,

Amir Kabir Mirza Taghi Khan-e Farahani (), better known as Amir Kabir (Persian: ‎; 9 January 1807 – 10 January 1852), was chief minister to Naser al-Din Shah Qajar for the first three years of his reign. He is widely considered to be "Iran's first re ...

, he was replaced by the

French French may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to France ** French language, which originated in France ** French people, a nation and ethnic group ** French cuisine, cooking traditions and practices Arts and media * The French (band), ...

physician Ernest Cloquet. This was part of Iran's policy of avoiding becoming over-dependent on either

Russia Russia, or the Russian Federation, is a country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia. It is the list of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the world, and extends across Time in Russia, eleven time zones, sharing Borders ...

Great Britain Great Britain is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean off the north-west coast of continental Europe, consisting of the countries England, Scotland, and Wales. With an area of , it is the largest of the British Isles, the List of European ...

. Cormick returned to Tabriz, where he lived for the rest of his life, continuing to practice medicine and becoming rich.

The Báb

During the

trial In law, a trial is a coming together of parties to a dispute, to present information (in the form of evidence) in a tribunal, a formal setting with the authority to adjudicate claims or disputes. One form of tribunal is a court. The tribunal, w ...

of the

in Tabriz in July 1848, William Cormick and two Iranian physicians were given the task of certifying whether the former could be classified as

mentally incompetent In United States and Canadian law, competence concerns the mental capacity of an individual to participate in legal proceedings or transactions, and the mental condition a person must have to be responsible for his or her decisions or acts. Comp ...

. The governing authorities were reported to be "reluctant" to give the Báb the death sentence. Cormick, at the request of the Báb, visited him several times as part of the medical treatment for his having been '' bastinadoed'' following his trial. This made Cormick the only Westerner recorded as having personally met the Báb. He presented an account of his meetings with the Báb in a letter to an American missionary friend named J. H. Shedd.Cormick, William.
Dr. Cormick's Accounts of his Personal Impressions of Mirza 'Ali Muhammad, The Báb
', in
Materials for the Study of the Babi Religion
', compiled and by

E. G. Browne Edward Granville Browne FBA (7 February 1862 – 5 January 1926) was a British Iranologist. He published numerous articles and books, mainly in the areas of history and literature. Life Browne was born in Stouts Hill, Uley, Gloucestershire, ...

Awards

He was awarded the

Order of the Lion and the Sun The Imperial Order of the Lion and the Sun (Persian language, Persian: نشان سلطنتی شیر و خورشید) was instituted by Fat′h Ali Shah Qajar, Fat’h Ali Shah of the Qajar dynasty in 1808 to honour foreign officials (later extend ...

(2nd class). On 19October 1876 Cormick became a

fellow A fellow is a title and form of address for distinguished, learned, or skilled individuals in academia, medicine, research, and industry. The exact meaning of the term differs in each field. In learned society, learned or professional society, p ...

of the British Royal College of Surgeons.

Personal life

Cormick was married to an Armenian woman named Tamar, who was the younger sister of Anna, the Armenian wife of Edward Burgess (merchant). Cormick died on 30December 1877, and was buried in

in the same cemetery as his father, brother and nine other Cormick family members.

References

Sources

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