Sir German Sims Woodhead,

KBE KBE may refer to: * Knight Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire, post-nominal letters * Knowledge-based engineering Knowledge-based engineering (KBE) is the application of knowledge-based systems technology to the domain o ...

FRSE Fellowship of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (FRSE) is an award granted to individuals that the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Scotland's national academy of science and Literature, letters, judged to be "eminently distinguished in their subject". ...

PRMS LLD (29 April 1855 – 29 December 1921) was an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

pathologist Pathology is the study of disease. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in the context of modern medical treatme ...

Life

He was born at Woodland Mount, a large country house near

Huddersfield Huddersfield is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Kirklees in West Yorkshire, England. It is the administrative centre and largest settlement in the Kirklees district. The town is in the foothills of the Pennines. The River Holme's confl ...

, on 29 April 1855 the son of

Joseph Woodhead Joseph Woodhead (1824 - 21 May 1913) was an English newspaper proprietor and editor and a Liberal Party politician. Woodhead was the youngest son of Godfrey Woodhead, a currier and leather merchant of Holmfirth. He was educated at private schools ...

, a newspaper owner (and later politician), and his wife Catherine Woodhead. He was educated at Huddersfield College. He then studied Medicine 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 ...

, graduating MB ChB in 1878. From 1885 to 1890 he worked as a lab assistant in Edinburgh University, living then at 6 Marchhall Crescent. During his time in Edinburgh, in 1886, he was elected a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Edinburgh The Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) is Scotland's national academy of science and letters. It is a registered charity that operates on a wholly independent and non-partisan basis and provides public benefit throughout Scotland. It was establis ...

. His proposers were Sir William Turner,

Alexander Crum Brown Alexander Crum Brown Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, FRSE Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS (26 March 1838 – 28 October 1922) was a Scottish Organic chemistry, organic chemist. Alexander Crum Brown Road in Edinburgh's King's Buildi ...

, Robert Gray and Sir John Murray. In 1890, aged only 35, he became Director of the Conjoint Laboratories of the Royal Colleges of Physicians and of Surgeons in

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. In 1899 he was made

Professor Professor (commonly abbreviated as Prof.) is an Academy, academic rank at university, universities and other tertiary education, post-secondary education and research institutions in most countries. Literally, ''professor'' derives from Latin ...

Pathology Pathology is the study of disease. The word ''pathology'' also refers to the study of disease in general, incorporating a wide range of biology research fields and medical practices. However, when used in the context of modern medical treatme ...

Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209, the University of Cambridge is the List of oldest universities in continuous operation, wo ...

. He was the first Editor of the Journal of Pathology. In the

First World War World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

he was the Inspector of Government Laboratories serving all military hospitals. He was attached to the

RAMC The Royal Army Medical Corps (RAMC) was a specialist corps in the British Army which provided medical services to all Army personnel and their families, in war and in peace. On 15 November 2024, the corps was amalgamated with the Royal Army De ...

at the rank of Lt Colonel. Largely as a result of this service he was knighted (KBE) by King

George V George V (George Frederick Ernest Albert; 3 June 1865 – 20 January 1936) was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 until Death and state funeral of George V, his death in 1936. George w ...

in 1919. He died at

Aisthorpe __NOTOC__ Aisthorpe is a small village and civil parish in the West Lindsey district of Lincolnshire, England. Aisthorpe is recorded as Æstorp in 1086, probably meaning "the secondary settlement to the east" from the Old English east and Old Da ...

Hall in

Lincolnshire Lincolnshire (), abbreviated ''Lincs'', is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands and Yorkshire and the Humber regions of England. It is bordered by the East Riding of Yorkshire across the Humber estuary to th ...

on 29 December 1921 and is buried in Cambridge City Cemetery.

Family

In 1881, he married Harriet Elizabeth St Clair Erskine Yates.

Published work

*''Practical Pathology'' (1883) *''Pathological Mycology'' (1885), with A. W. Hare *''Bacteria and Their Products'' (1891) *''Report to the Royal Commission on

Tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

'' (1895)

References

External links

* *
Sir German Sims Woodhead
*Michael Worboys
'Woodhead, Sir German Sims (1855–1921)'
''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography'', Oxford University Press, 2004 * English pathologists English medical writers English tax resisters 1855 births 1921 deaths People educated at Huddersfield New College Medical doctors from Yorkshire Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Medical School Fellows of the Royal Microscopical Society Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh {{England-writer-stub