Sir William Guyer Hunter, (1829 – 14 March 1902) was a British surgeon-general in India, principal of medical colleges and

Conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy that seeks to promote and to preserve traditional institutions, practices, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civilization in ...

politician. He took part in official enquiries into vaccination and cholera.

Life

Hunter was born at

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

, India and was educated at King's College London and

Aberdeen University , mottoeng = The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom , established = , type = Public research universityAncient university , endowment = £58.4 million (2021) , budget ...

. He began his training at

Charing Cross Hospital Charing Cross Hospital is an acute general teaching hospital located in Hammersmith, London, United Kingdom. The present hospital was opened in 1973, although it was originally established in 1818, approximately five miles east, in central L ...

in 1844 at the same time as

Thomas Henry Huxley Thomas Henry Huxley (4 May 1825 – 29 June 1895) was an English biologist and anthropologist specialising in comparative anatomy. He has become known as "Darwin's Bulldog" for his advocacy of Charles Darwin's theory of evolution. The stori ...

and

Joseph Fayrer Sir Joseph Fayrer, 1st Baronet FRS FRSE FRCS FRCP KCSI LLD (6 December 1824 – 21 May 1907) was a British physician who served as Surgeon General in India. He is noted for his writings on medicine, work on public health and his studies p ...

, and passed, in 1850, into the Bombay medical department as an assistant-surgeon. He became Principal of

Grant Medical College The Grant Government Medical College, Mumbai, is a public medical college, affiliated to the Maharashtra University of Health Sciences. Founded in 1845, it is one of the oldest institutions teaching medicine in South Asia. Its clinical affil ...

in 1866, a post he held for ten years. He was appointed Vice Chancellor of Bombay University in 1880 by Sir Richard Temple. He returned to London and was a member of the Royal Commission on Vaccination which was initiated in 1879 and sat for seven years. Hunter was surgeon to the Queen in 1881. In 1883 there was an outbreak of cholera in

Egypt Egypt ( ar, مصر , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a transcontinental country spanning the northeast corner of Africa and southwest corner of Asia via a land bridge formed by the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Medit ...

which had fallen under British jurisdiction in the previous year. There was an international dispute as to whether the disease was brought from Calcutta and hence should be dealt with by

quarantine A quarantine is a restriction on the movement of people, animals and goods which is intended to prevent the spread of disease or pests. It is often used in connection to disease and illness, preventing the movement of those who may have been ...

or whether it was indigenous. Hunter was sent as a medical commissioner and concluded "Facts…lead to the conclusion that cholera, be it called by whatever name it may…has existed in Egypt for some time past…In order to obtain as much information as possible on the subject above referred to, instructions have been issued to the medical officers recently arrived from England to institute cautious and careful inquiry". The following year he was appointed a Knight Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George (KCMG) for his services in Egypt. In the 1885 general election, Hunter was elected MP for

Hackney Central Hackney Central is a sub-district of Hackney in the London Borough of Hackney in London, England and is four miles (6.4 km) northeast of Charing Cross. The Hackney Central area is focused on Mare Street and the retail areas to the north o ...

and held the seat until the 1892 general election. Hunter married first, in 1856, a daughter of Rev. C. Packe, Vicar of

Ruislip Ruislip ( ) is an area in the London Borough of Hillingdon in West London, and in the historic county of Middlesex. Ruislip lies west-north-west of Charing Cross, London. The manor of Ruislip appears in the Domesday Book, and some of the ear ...

; and second, in 1871, Mary Louisa, daughter of Joseph Stainburn. His elder daughter Lilian Mary Hunter married in 1902 Charles Hunter Ward, son of Commander C. T. Ward. He died at Anerley Hill, Upper Norwood, on 14 March 1902.

References

External links

* 1829 births 1902 deaths People educated at King's College School, London British surgeons Conservative Party (UK) MPs for English constituencies UK MPs 1885–1886 UK MPs 1886–1892 Hackney Members of Parliament Knights Commander of the Order of St Michael and St George University of Mumbai Members of the London School Board {{England-Conservative-UK-MP-1820s-stub