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Auction: 22003 - Orders, Decorations and Medals
Lot: 425

A Naval Surgeon's C.B. pair awarded to Inspector General W. MacLeod, Royal Navy, Inspector General of Hospitals and Fleets and active researcher in the discovery of Yellow Fever; he was awarded the Gilbert Blane Gold Medal for his services and report following a devastating outbreak at Rio de Janeiro in 1859

The Most Honourable Order of the Bath, Civil Division, C.B., Companion's breast Badge, silver-gilt; Baltic 1854-55, unnamed as issued; Gilbert Blane Gold Medal (William Macleod. M.D. H.M.S. Madagascar" 1859.), first two good very fine, last with traces of brooch mounting to rim, with loop for wear (3)

C.B. London Gazette 16 November 1880.

William MacLeod was educated at Edinburgh University, where he received the degree of M.D. in 1841 and in the same year his L.R.C.S.. He joined the Royal Navy in 1842 as an Assistant Surgeon and was appointed to Wolverine a sloop on the East Indies station. In 1845 he was appointed to the flagship of Admiral Sir Thomas Cochrane, the Commander-in-Chief of the East Indies station, Agincourt.

Whilst in the Agincourt he was landed in medical charge of the detachment of Royal Marines and took part in the capture of the forts on the River Borneo and the city of Brunei, carried out by the Commander-in-Chief in person, and was present in the boats of the Agincourt during the expedition under Captain Mundy up the rivers in pursuit of the Sultan of Borneo.

In 1847 he was appointed to Prince Regent, on the Mediterranean station and, in August 1853, was promoted Surgeon. After a short period on Racehorse, a sloop stationed at Devonport (Plymouth), he was appointed, in 1854, to Driver, in which he served in the Baltic during the Crimean War (Medal).

He then served on Melville, a hospital ship on the East Indies and China station, following which he was appointed to Madagascar, a store ship at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. In 1859 he was Surgeon of the Madagascar during a severe epidemic of yellow fever at Rio de Janeiro. For his journal and report of that year he was awarded the Sir Gilbert Blane Gold Medal.

The following extract is taken from Medicine and the Navy 1200-1900 by Christopher Lloyd and Jack L. S. Coulter:

'Thus the Surgeon of H.M.S. Madagascar at Rio in 1859 writes 'I have entered all cases under Remittent fever, As to whether Yellow Fever is a form of Remittent Fever, I do not pretend to say, as I have not seen sufficient of it to enable me to determine, but evidence is good'.

The journal is one of the very few to mention mosquitoes. When the Assistant Surgeon a lanky youth straight from England, joined the ship he had nightmares that he would be attacked by the disease. The Staff Surgeon, MacLeod, identified spots on his body as mosquito bites. Soon afterwards the youth was 'taken all as suddenly as if he had been shot' and died four days later.

A survey of the ship found the bilge to be full of black stinking mud, which caused five negroes to faint when they began to remove it. No wonder Macleod concludes 'I believe that the fever was generated in the ship', especially as other ships alongside did not suffer; but he could not make the deduction that mosquitoes were breeding in the well of the ship...'

MacLeod was appointed to St.George, on coastguard service at Falmouth in 1863, promoted to Staff Surgeon in 1865 and to Deputy Inspector General of Hospitals and Fleets in 1866, being appointed to the Royal Naval Hospital Haslar, and lent to the Royal Naval Hospital Yarmouth. In 1875 he was promoted to Inspector General of Hospitals and Fleets. He continued at Yarmouth in this capacity until 1880 when he retired, in the same year was recognised with a C.B. and being awarded a Greenwich Hospital pension eight years later. He was the author of several papers on medical subjects, in addition to his 'Yellow Fever' journal including: 'Remarks on Insanity' 1866, 'Observations with Clinical Thermometer in Paralysis of Insane' 1868, 'Action of Hydrate of Chloral in Paralysis of Insane' 1870.

He died at West Kensington in February 1904, aged 84; sold together with a picture of him attending the sick and a good file of research including a photocopy of extract from the journal of Surgeon William MacLeod, R.N. H.M.S. Madagascar, at Rio de Janeiro, giving 14 pages of his study and the complete photocopied journal of Madagascar for the whole of 1859 written by him, ADM101/286 refers.

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Sold for
£3,200

Starting price
£1800