Irish surgeons and the Victoria Cross

Conclusion

Of the seven men outlined in these short biographies, all were born in Ireland and 6 were graduates of Irish Medical Schools. Many more Irish Medical School graduates joined the British Army during the reign of Queen Victoria. The reasons for this ranged from those of tradition to the more practical one of the security of regular pay and a pension. Army life was never easy for medical personnel and India in particular was a very unattractive posting. Though conditions improved greatly during the nineteenth century, at the beginning of the century army personnel only had a 50 per cent chance of surviving 5 years service in India. In spite of the hardships many young doctors joined the British Army. In 1875 of a total of 938 Army Medical Officers 300 were Licentiates of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. Pay and conditions did gradually improve over the years but it was not until the foundation of the Royal Army Medical Corps in 1898 that Medical Officers received the professional recognition they deserved.