Name/TitleThe Strange Story of Dr. James Barry
MakerRae, Isobel
Maker RoleAuthor
About this objectHardback book titled 'The Strange Story of Dr. James Barry: Army Surgeon, Inspector General of Hospitals, discovered on death to be a woman' by Isobel Rae. The preface begins: "For close on a hundred years writers have been intrigued by the mystery of Inspector-General Dr James Barry. Was Barry, as rumour said, in fact a woman? And, if a woman, is it possible that she could have concealed her sex successfully through more than forty years of devoted service as an army surgeon? Was she then, also, the first woman M.D. in Britain? These questions have been raised, but never answered. ... This gap I have now been able to fill, and in the light of facts the old romantic figure of James Barry disappears. The temperamental, hysterical girl of high degree, who joined the Army Medical Service for love of an army surgeon, and who was protected in all her escapades by powerful, but unknown, authorities in high places, becomes instead the brilliant student, the dedicated doctor, the dauntless reformer of abuses; a different, but no less interesting character."
Medium and MaterialsOrganic, board and paper
MeasurementsH: 222 x W: 138 x D: 16 mm
Date Made1958
Period19th century
Place MadeEngland, London
Place NotesLongmans, Green and Co., 6-7 Clifford Street, London W1
PublisherLongmans, Green and Co. Ltd
Publication Date1958
Publication PlaceEngland, London
Subject and Association Descriptionhttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Barry_(surgeon):
James Barry (born Margaret Anne Bulkley, or Bulkeley; c. 1789 – 25 July 1865) was a military surgeon in the British Army. Originally from the city of Cork in Ireland, Barry obtained a medical degree from the University of Edinburgh Medical School, then served first in Cape Town, South Africa, and subsequently in many parts of the British Empire. Before retirement, Barry had risen to the rank of Inspector General (equivalent to Brigadier) in charge of military hospitals, the second-highest medical office in the British Army. He[c] improved conditions not only for wounded soldiers, but also those of the native inhabitants. Barry performed the first recorded caesarean section by a European in Africa in which both the mother and child survived the surgery. Barry, who lived his entire adult life as a man, was named Margaret Anne at birth and was known as female in childhood. Barry lived as a man in both public and private life, at least in part, in order to be accepted as a university student, and to pursue a career as a surgeon. His anatomy became known to the public and to military colleagues only after his death [continues].
[c] This article uses he/him pronouns to refer to Barry because they are the pronouns he used at the time of his death.
Subject and Association Keywordswomen's history
Subject and Association Keywordswomen's work & labour
Subject and Association Keywordsmedicine & medical treatment
Subject and Association KeywordsTrans histories
Subject and Association Keywords(auto) biography
Named CollectionGlasgow Women's Library
Object TypeBook
Object numberGWL-2025-85-5
Spine LabelThe Strange Story of Dr. JAMES BARRY ~ ISOBEL RAE ~ LONGMANS
Copyright LicenceAll rights reserved