
Advancing with the Army
Medicine, the Professions and Social Mobility in the British Isles 1790-1850
Oxford University Press
Published on 4. January 2007
Book
Hardback
424 pages
978-0-19-926706-4 (ISBN)
Description
Providing the first ever statistical study of a professional cohort in the era of the industrial revolution, this prosopographical study of some 450 surgeons who joined the army medical service during the Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars, charts the background, education, military and civilian career, marriage, sons' occupations, wealth at death, and broader social and cultural interests of the members of the cohort. It reveals the role that could be played by the nascent professions in this period in promoting rapid social mobility.
The group of medical practitioners selected for this analysis did not come from affluent or professional families but profited from their years in the army to build up a solid and sometimes spectacular fortune, marry into the professions, and place their sons in professional careers. The study contributes to our understanding of Britishness in the period, since the majority of the cohort came from small-town and rural Scotland and Ireland but seldom found their wives in the native country and frequently settled in London and other English cities, where they often became pillars of the community.
The group of medical practitioners selected for this analysis did not come from affluent or professional families but profited from their years in the army to build up a solid and sometimes spectacular fortune, marry into the professions, and place their sons in professional careers. The study contributes to our understanding of Britishness in the period, since the majority of the cohort came from small-town and rural Scotland and Ireland but seldom found their wives in the native country and frequently settled in London and other English cities, where they often became pillars of the community.
Reviews / Votes
incorporates the rich variety of individual lives, and these vessels float easily on the ever flowing tide of date. * J. E. Cookson, Social History of Medicine * Rich in illustration, clear in analysis and solid in conclusion... a testament to team-work, seamless prose, and historical modesty. * Roger Cooter, English Historical Review *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Target group
Professional and scholarly
Illustrations
numerous tables, 8pp, 1 frontispiece and numerous graphs
Dimensions
Height: 240 mm
Width: 161 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
790 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-926706-4 (9780199267064)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Persons
Dr Kate Retford - Author - Lecturer in History of Art, Birkbeck, University of London
Dr John Stevenson - Author - Reader in Modern History, Worcester College Oxford
Dr John Stevenson - Author - Reader in Modern History, Worcester College Oxford
Author
Freelance Researcher
Tutor in History, Magdalen College Oxford
Professor of History, University of Glasgow
Lecturer in History of Art, Birkbeck, University of London
Reader in Modern History, Worcester College Oxford
Content
Introduction: The French Wars, Industrialisation and the Professions ; 1. Army medical service ; 2. Background ; 3. Education ; 4. Army Careers ; 5. Professional Life Outside the Service ; 6. Fortunes and Families ; 7. Enquiring Minds ; 8. Reflection