Annals of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (I979) vol 6i The Hunterian Professors and Arris and Gale Lecturers

Harold Ellis DM Mch FRCS Professor of Surgery, Westminster Hospital Medical School; Member of Council and Chair- man of Examinations and Lectureships Committee, Royal College of Surgeons of England

The honour of delivering a Hunterian or an of the Corporation of Surgeons in 1799 that Arris and Gale Lecture is regarded, quite Hunter's museum would probably be pur- rightly, as an accolade awarded in recognition chased by Parliament and be entrusted to the of a significant contribution to surgical, anaes- care of the Corporation. This occurred only a thetic, or dental science. Readers might be in- few months before the granting of the new terested to know a little more about these Charter which would change the Company of events, which play such important parts in the Surgeons into the Royal College of Surgeons College calendar. of London (in turn to become the Royal Col- On 27th October I645 Mr Edward Arris lege of Surgeons of England in I843). The donated £250 to the Company of Barber Sur- first meeting of the Trustees of the Hunterian geons 'upon condition that a human body be Collection took place on 13th June i8o5, and once in every year hereafter publicly dissected among the terms laid down Clause 2 states and six lectures thereupon read in this hall'. 'That one course of lectures, not less than 24 After his death in I676 the Company was in- in number, on comparative anatomy and other volved in a Chancery suit with his son, Dr subjects, illustrated by the preparations, should Thomas Arris MP, who endeavoured unsuc- be given every year by some Member of the cessfully to recover possession of the donation! Company'. This clause was altered by the On I 3th August i655 Mr John Gale, of Bush- Lords of the Treasury in 1894 to the following: ey, a surgeon of this Company, left to the 'That one course of lectures, not less than I2 Barber Surgeons £i6 per annum payable out in number, on comparative anatomy and other of the income from certain houses on Snow subjects, illustrated by preparations from the Hill in the parish of St Sepulchre for the Hunterian Collection and the other contents founding of an anatomy lecture in the name of the Museum, shall be given every year by of 'Gale's Anatomy'. At the time of separation Fellows or Members of the College.' In I96I of the Companies in I745 the new Company the terms were modified yet again, adding, of Surgeons took with it both the Arris and 'Additional lectures, not exceeding three in the Gale lecture funds and the two series were number, on medical or dental subjects, may combined in I8I0, the first Arris and Gale be given every year by Fellows or Members lecture being given by Sir William Blizard, of of the College, Fellows in Dental Surgery or The London Hospital, in that year. Four years Fellows in the Faculty of Anaesthetists'. later he became President of the College. Dis- Appropriately enough, the first Professor of tinguished lecturers since that time have in- Comparative Anatomy in I8I0 was Everard cluded Benjamin Brodie, James Guthrie, Home and in surgery it was Sir William Bliz- Berkeley Moynihan, Stanford Cade, and no ard. The list of Hunterian Professors since that less than four men who are present or immedi- time reads like a veritable catalogue of British ately past Members of Council. surgery and includes such names as Abernethy, The history of the Hunterian Professorships Brodie, Treves, Spencer Wells, Bland Sutton, is somewhat shorter but no less interesting. Hutchinson, Trotter, and Moynihan. No less John Hunter died on i6th October 1793 and than 36 present or past Members of Council his executors were Dr Matthew Baillie, his still living have been Hunterian Professors. nephew, and Everard Home, his brother-in- The procedure for the election of the Pro- law and surgeon at St George's Hospital. They fessors and Lecturers is as follows. Applications informed the Master and Court of Assistants are invited by advertisements in the medical 72 Harold Ellis journals at the beginning of March each year Looking through the titles and texts of prev- and a closing date given towards the end of ious Hunterian Lectures one is impressed by April. Candidates are requested to submit with how many important advances in clinical sur- their application 35 copies of a synopsis of gery and its allied subjects have first become approximately 500 words describing the sub- well known by having been thus presented at ject matter of their proposed lecture. Each this Royal College. It is a pity that today more copy of the synopsis must have the name of established surgeons with wide clinical experi- the applicant and must state his present ap- ence, at district hospitals as well as specialist pointments, the place where the work was centres, do not submit their work-often rep- carried out, and the extent to which the work resenting a lifetime of practice-for consider- submitted is original. Lectures should include ation. Council would welcome applications a reasonable proportion of original, previously from this rich source of surgical research just unpublished work, and work carried out under as much as from aspiring young men at an a superior must be shown to have the latter's early stage in their career. approval before being submitted. As already noted, the Hunterian Lectures are confined to Fellows or Members of the College, but ad- Dating back to the time when the Hunter- ditional Hunterian Lectures, not exceeding ian Lecturer was appointed to give a course of three in number, on medical or dental subjects lectures during a one-year period and was thus may be given, in addition to these candidates, appointed the Hunterian Professor, Fellows or by Fellows either in Dental Surgery or of the Members of the College awarded a lecture are Faculty of Anaesthetists of the College. There styled 'Hunterian Professors' during their year are no such restrictions on the qualifications of office. of the Arris and Gale Lecturers. The applications are then carefully consid- Hunterian Professorships and Arris and Gale ered by an expert committee set up by Council Lectureships are high honours indeed and and this committee in turn may well call upon their award is jealously guarded by Council, experts in particular fields to referee specialist who must carefully consider and approve the applications. It should be noted that Members proposals of its appointing sub-committee at of Council may not themselves be applicants! its quarterly meeting in July of each year. Ap- By tradition the Hunterian Lectures have a plications arrive from surgeons, anaesthetists, strong flavour of clinical investigation, backed and dentists from throughout the English- up in many cases by laboratory research in the speaking world. The wide range of subjects best Hunterian tradition. The Arris and Gale and their high quality are a fitting tribute to Lectures, in some contrast, have rather more the 'generality of surgery' and maintain one of leaning towards laboratory investigation. the proudest traditions of the College.