Edward Rigby (1804–1860) was an English

obstetrician Obstetrics is the field of study concentrated on pregnancy, childbirth and the postpartum period. As a medical specialty, obstetrics is combined with gynecology under the discipline known as obstetrics and gynecology (OB/GYN), which is a surgi ...

and medical writer, the first President of the Obstetrical Society of London.

Life

The son of the physician

Edward Rigby Edward Coke MC (5 February 1879 – 5 April 1951), known professionally as Edward Rigby, was a British character actor. Early life Rigby was born at Ashford, Kent, England, the second son of Dr William Harriott Coke and his wife, Mary Elizabe ...

(1747–1821), he was born with a twin-sister on 1 August 1804. Educated at

Norwich grammar school Norwich School (formally King Edward VI Grammar School, Norwich) is a Private schools in the United Kingdom, private selective day school in the cathedral close, close of Norwich Cathedral, Norwich. Among the List of the oldest schools in the ...

under

Edward Valpy Edward Valpy (1764–1832) was an English cleric, classical scholar and schoolteacher. Life Valpy, the fourth son of Richard Valpy of St. John's, Jersey, by his wife Catherine, daughter of John Chevalier, was born at Reading. He was educated at T ...

, he was a schoolfellow of Sir James Brooke and Sir Archdale Wilson. In 1821 he attended

Norfolk and Norwich Hospital The Norfolk and Norwich Hospital stood on a site in St Stephen's Road, Norwich, Norfolk, England. Founded in 1771, it closed in 2003 after its services had been transferred to the new Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital. Many of the buildings ...

, and next year matriculated at

Edinburgh University The University of Edinburgh (, ; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Founded by the town council under the authority of a royal charter from King James VI in 1582 and offi ...

. He graduated M.D. 1 August 1825, on his twenty-first birthday which was the earliest age then possible. After graduation Rigby spent some time in

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

, and in 1826 went to

Berlin University The Humboldt University of Berlin (, abbreviated HU Berlin) is a public research university in the central borough of Mitte in Berlin, Germany. The university was established by Frederick William III on the initiative of Wilhelm von Humboldt ...

to study

midwifery Midwifery is the health science and health profession that deals with pregnancy, childbirth, and the postpartum period (including care of the newborn), in addition to the sexual and reproductive health of women throughout their lives. In many cou ...

. From Berlin he moved on to

Heidelberg University Heidelberg University, officially the Ruprecht Karl University of Heidelberg (; ), is a public research university in Heidelberg, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. Founded in 1386 on instruction of Pope Urban VI, Heidelberg is Germany's oldest unive ...

and

Franz Naegele Franz Karl Naegele (7 December 1778 – 21 January 1851) was a German obstetrician born in Düsseldorf. His son, Hermann Franz Naegele (1801–1851), was also a noted obstetrician. He earned his medical degree from the University of Bamberg, ...

. In 1830 he became a house pupil at the

General Lying-In Hospital The General Lying-In Hospital was one of the first maternity hospitals in Great Britain. It opened in 1767 on Westminster Bridge Road, London and closed in 1971. Lying-in is an archaic term for childbirth (referring to the month-long bed rest ...

Lambeth Lambeth () is a district in South London, England, which today also gives its name to the (much larger) London Borough of Lambeth. Lambeth itself was an ancient parish in the county of Surrey. It is situated 1 mile (1.6 km) south of Charin ...

in South London, where he went on to hold the appointments of junior and senior physician. In 1831 Rigby was admitted a licentiate of the

London College of Physicians The Royal College of Physicians of London, commonly referred to simply as the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of p ...

, and in 1843 became a fellow. In 1831 he began to lecture on midwifery at St. Thomas's Hospital, and from 1838 to 1848 he lectured on the same subject at

St. Bartholomew's Hospital St Bartholomew's Hospital, commonly known as Barts, is a teaching hospital located in the City of London. It was founded in 1123 by Rahere, and is currently run by Barts Health NHS Trust. History Early history Barts was founded in 1123 by Ra ...

. He was examiner in midwifery in

London University The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degr ...

from 1841 to 1860. Rigby became regarded as the leading obstetric physician in London, when

Sir Charles Locock Sir Charles Locock, 1st Baronet (21 April 1799 – 23 July 1875) was an obstetrician to Queen Victoria. He is also credited with the introduction of potassium bromide as a treatment for epilepsy. Biography Charles Locock was born to Henry Loco ...

retired from practice. When the Obstetrical Society was founded in 1859 he was elected its first president. He was a fellow of the

Linnean Society The Linnean Society of London is a learned society dedicated to the study and dissemination of information concerning natural history, evolution, and taxonomy. It possesses several important biological specimen, manuscript and literature collec ...

, and a member of foreign medical societies. He died on 27 December 1860 at 35

Berkeley Square Berkeley Square is a garden square in the West End of London. It is one of the best known of the many squares in London, located in Mayfair in the City of Westminster. It was laid out in the mid 18th century by the architect William Kent, ...

, London.

Works

Rigby wrote: * ''Memoranda for Young Practitioners in Midwifery'', London, 1837; 4th edit. 1868. * ''A System of Midwifery'', forming vol. vi. of

Alexander Tweedie Dr Alexander Tweedie FRS (29 August 1794 – 30 May 1884) was a Scottish physician and writer. Life He was born in Edinburgh on 29 August 1794, and received his early education at the Royal High School there. In 1809 he began medical studies ...

's ''Library of Medicine'', London, 1841. * ''On Dysmenorrhœa'', London, 1844. * ''On the Constitutional Treatment of Female Diseases'', London, 1857. In 1830 Rigby translated Naegele's work ''On the Mechanism of Parturition''. He also contributed "Midwifery Hospital Reports" to the ''

Medical Gazette Medicine is the science and practice of caring for patients, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care practice ...

'', and "Reports on Uterine Affections" to the '' Medical Times'', and brought out the second edition (1843) of William Hunter's ''Anatomical Description of the Gravid Uterus''.

Family

Rigby married, in September 1838, Susan, second daughter of

John Taylor John Taylor, Johnny Taylor or similar is the name of: Academics *John Taylor (Oxford), Vice-Chancellor of Oxford University, 1486–1487 * John Taylor (classical scholar) (1704–1766), English classical scholar *John Taylor (English publisher) ...

. She died in 1841, leaving a daughter. He married secondly, in 1851, Marianne, eldest daughter of S. D. Darbishire of Pendyffrin, North Wales. She died in 1853, leaving two daughters.

Notes

;Attribution

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rigby, Edward 1804 births 1860 deaths English obstetricians English medical writers Medical doctors from Norwich Writers from Norwich Presidents of the Obstetrical Society of London