Nathaniel St André (–March 1776) was a Swiss

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 ...

who practised in England.

Life

Born in Switzerland, St André moved to England in his youth, as a

page Page most commonly refers to: * Page (paper), one side of a leaf of paper, as in a book Page, PAGE, pages, or paging may also refer to: Roles * Page (assistance occupation), a professional occupation * Page (servant), traditionally a young m ...

to a

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

family. On arrival, he made his living teaching French, German,

dancing Dance is an art form, consisting of sequences of body movements with aesthetic and often symbolic value, either improvised or purposefully selected. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire of movements or ...

and

fencing Fencing is a combat sport that features sword fighting. It consists of three primary disciplines: Foil (fencing), foil, épée, and Sabre (fencing), sabre (also spelled ''saber''), each with its own blade and set of rules. Most competitive fe ...

. However, his fencing was poor, and he was soon injured by a pupil, requiring medical attention. He was impressed by the surgeon's wealth, and decided to take up medicine, taking up an apprenticeship with a surgeon in London. This enabled him to set up his own practice, based at Northumberland Court, and was then appointed surgeon at the Westminster Infirmary. He also gave public lectures in

anatomy Anatomy () is the branch of morphology concerned with the study of the internal structure of organisms and their parts. Anatomy is a branch of natural science that deals with the structural organization of living things. It is an old scien ...

and surgery, translated René-Jacques Garengeot's ''A Treatise of Chirurgical Operations'' into English and introduced some new approaches to using wax to prepare anatomical specimens. In May 1723, St André was appointed as surgeon and anatomist to the royal household by

George I George I or 1 may refer to: People * Patriarch George I of Alexandria (fl. 621–631) * George I of Constantinople (d. 686) * George of Beltan (d. 790) * George I of Abkhazia (ruled 872/3–878/9) * George I of Georgia (d. 1027) * Yuri Dolgoruk ...

, his fluent German finding favour with those courtiers who had not learnt English. In 1725, he claimed that he had been poisoned by drinking a cordial offered when he visited a woman with venereal disease. He wrote a detailed account of the supposed effects of the poisoning, which also detailed his position at court. The Privy Council offered a £200 reward if the poisoner was found, but none of the individuals involved was ever identified.

Alexander Pope Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 Old Style and New Style dates, O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early ...

was successfully treated by St André in 1726, and the two struck up a lifelong friendship. In the same year, St André examined the king personally for the first time. Treatment was successful, and the king gave him his own sword in thanks. In November, St André travelled to

Godalming Godalming ( ) is a market town and civil parish in southwest Surrey, England, around southwest of central London. It is in the Borough of Waverley, at the confluence of the Rivers Wey and Ock. The civil parish covers and includes the settl ...

to examine

Mary Toft Mary Toft (née Denyer; baptised 21 February 1703 – January 1763), also spelled Tofts, was an English woman from Godalming, Surrey, who in 1726 became the subject of considerable controversy when she tricked doctors into believing that she ha ...

, a woman who claimed to have given birth to fourteen rabbits. He was convinced, and stated that he had helped with the delivery of a fifteenth. He then staged a demonstration in London which purported to show how this would be possible, and subsequently brought Toft to the city, arranging public viewings of her. In December, he published ''A Short Narrative of an Extraordinary Delivery of Rabbets'' but, a couple of days afterwards, Toft confessed to the event being a fraud. While St André was suspected of involvement in the hoax, both Toft and independent investigators claimed that he had been duped. Following this, St André was refused audience with the king, and his royal duties and salary were removed, although he did retain the title of court anatomist. In 1728, St André treated

Samuel Molyneux Samuel Molyneux FRS (16 July 1689 – 13 April 1728) was an amateur astronomer and politician who sat in the British House of Commons between 1715 and 1728 and in the Irish House of Commons from 1727 to 1728. His work with James Bradley attempt ...

, a member of parliament who had suffered a fit while in the House of Commons. The treatment did not prove successful, and Molyneux died in April. On the night of the death, St André eloped with Molyneux's wife, Elizabeth, the two marrying in 1730. Samuel Madden, a relative of Molyneux's, claimed that St André had poisoned the MP. Although St André won an action for

defamation Defamation is a communication that injures a third party's reputation and causes a legally redressable injury. The precise legal definition of defamation varies from country to country. It is not necessarily restricted to making assertions ...

, he found himself unable to secure regular work. He and Elizabeth retired to the countryside, then moved to

Southampton Southampton is a port City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Hampshire, England. It is located approximately southwest of London, west of Portsmouth, and southeast of Salisbury. Southampton had a population of 253, ...

in the early 1750s, devoting their time to charitable works,

botany Botany, also called plant science, is the branch of natural science and biology studying plants, especially Plant anatomy, their anatomy, Plant taxonomy, taxonomy, and Plant ecology, ecology. A botanist or plant scientist is a scientist who s ...

, gardening and architecture. On Elizabeth's death, St André lost her considerable inherited income, while he also lost money on investments and most of his possessions in a fire, living his last years within an

almshouse An almshouse (also known as a bede-house, poorhouse, or hospital) is charitable housing provided to people in a particular community, especially during the Middle Ages. They were often built for the poor of a locality, for those who had held ce ...

. He died at the age of 96, in 1776, having refused to eat

rabbit Rabbits are small mammals in the family Leporidae (which also includes the hares), which is in the order Lagomorpha (which also includes pikas). They are familiar throughout the world as a small herbivore, a prey animal, a domesticated ...

for the past fifty years.

Publications

* ''A short narrative of an extraordinary delivery of rabbets perform’d by Mr. John Howard, Surgeon at Guilford.'' 2. Auflage. London 1726.
Digitalisat
at the

Internet Archive The Internet Archive is an American 501(c)(3) organization, non-profit organization founded in 1996 by Brewster Kahle that runs a digital library website, archive.org. It provides free access to collections of digitized media including web ...

) * Rene Jacques Croissant de Garengeot: ''A treatise of chirurgical operations. According to the mechanism of the parts of the humane body.'' 1723. (Translated by Nathaniel St. André; Original French title: ''Traité des opérations de chirurgie. Suivant la méchanique des parties du corps humain.'')

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Saint Andre, Nathaniel 1680s births 1776 deaths 18th-century British medical doctors Medical scandals in the United Kingdom Physicians-in-Ordinary Swiss emigrants Immigrants to England 18th-century Swiss physicians English surgeons