John Weir
Encyclopedia
Sir John Weir, GCVO, Royal Victorian Chain
(19 October 1879–17 April 1971), MB ChB Glasgow
1907, FFHom 1943, Physician Royal to several twentieth century monarch
s.
Born in Paisley
Renfrewshire
Scotland
, Dr Weir was to become Physician Royal to King George V
(reigned 1910–36; Weir his physician from 1918), King Edward VIII
(reigned 1936), King George VI
(reigned 1936–52), Queen Elizabeth II
(physician 1952-68), and King Haakon VII (1872–1957) of Norway
, whose wife Maud (1869–1938) was the youngest daughter of King Edward VII
(1841–1910).
Weir received his medical education first at Glasgow University MB ChB 1907, and then on a sabbatical year in Chicago
under the tutelage of Dr James Tyler Kent
of Hering Medical College during 1908-9, along with Drs Harold Fergie Woods (1883–1961) and Douglas Borland (1885–1961).
Weir returned to the London Homeopathic Hospital as Consultant Physician in 1910, and was appointed the Compton-Burnett Professor of Materia Medica in 1911. He rose to become President of the Faculty of Homeopathy in 1923.
Weir reputedly first learned of homeopathy through his contact with Dr Robert Gibson Miller (1862–1919) head of the Glasgow
Homeopathic Hospital, who had an important influence on the future Physician Royal, who he treated for boils and converted to homeopathy [Bodman, 1971]. "It was Dr Gibson Miller who advised Sir John Weir to go to the USA." [Stewart, 1967, p. 260] This influence tended to get passed on: Dr Douglas Gibson (1888–1977) “became interested in homeopathy in 1936 through a meeting with Sir John Weir,” [Gibson obit, 1977, 225].
Weir spoke on homeopathy before the Royal Society of Medicine
in 1932, and was knighted by King George V that same year. The renovated Manchester
Homoeopathic Institute and Dispensary was opened in Oxford Street by Sir John Weir in May 1939. Weir said in an “address: homeopathy…is no religion, no sect, no fad, no humbug…remedies do not act directly on disease; they merely stimulate the vital reactions of the patient, and this causes him to cure himself.” [Sir John Weir, 1931, 200-201] Having advanced through all levels of the Royal Victorian Order
he was, as a rare distinction, awarded the Royal Victorian Chain
in 1947, possibly as a mark of the medical care he gave to the ailing King George VI.
Royal Victorian Chain
The Royal Victorian Chain is an award, instituted in 1902 by King Edward VII as a personal award of the Monarch...
(19 October 1879–17 April 1971), MB ChB Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
1907, FFHom 1943, Physician Royal to several twentieth century monarch
Monarch
A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
s.
Born in Paisley
Paisley
Paisley is the largest town in the historic county of Renfrewshire in the west central Lowlands of Scotland and serves as the administrative centre for the Renfrewshire council area...
Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire
Renfrewshire is one of 32 council areas used for local government in Scotland. Located in the west central Lowlands, it is one of three council areas contained within the boundaries of the historic county of Renfrewshire, the others being Inverclyde to the west and East Renfrewshire to the east...
Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, Dr Weir was to become Physician Royal to King George V
George V of the United Kingdom
George V was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Emperor of India, from 6 May 1910 through the First World War until his death in 1936....
(reigned 1910–36; Weir his physician from 1918), King Edward VIII
Edward VIII of the United Kingdom
Edward VIII was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth, and Emperor of India, from 20 January to 11 December 1936.Before his accession to the throne, Edward was Prince of Wales and Duke of Cornwall and Rothesay...
(reigned 1936), King George VI
George VI of the United Kingdom
George VI was King of the United Kingdom and the Dominions of the British Commonwealth from 11 December 1936 until his death...
(reigned 1936–52), Queen Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom
Elizabeth II is the constitutional monarch of 16 sovereign states known as the Commonwealth realms: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Jamaica, Barbados, the Bahamas, Grenada, Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, Tuvalu, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Belize,...
(physician 1952-68), and King Haakon VII (1872–1957) of Norway
Norway
Norway , officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic unitary constitutional monarchy whose territory comprises the western portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula, Jan Mayen, and the Arctic archipelago of Svalbard and Bouvet Island. Norway has a total area of and a population of about 4.9 million...
, whose wife Maud (1869–1938) was the youngest daughter of King Edward VII
Edward VII of the United Kingdom
Edward VII was King of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India from 22 January 1901 until his death in 1910...
(1841–1910).
Weir received his medical education first at Glasgow University MB ChB 1907, and then on a sabbatical year in Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
under the tutelage of Dr James Tyler Kent
James Tyler Kent
James Tyler Kent, MD was an American physician best remembered as a forefather of the modern homeopathy movement. In 1897 Kent published a massive guidebook on human ailments and their associated homeopathic remedies which has been translated into a number of languages and remains in use by...
of Hering Medical College during 1908-9, along with Drs Harold Fergie Woods (1883–1961) and Douglas Borland (1885–1961).
Weir returned to the London Homeopathic Hospital as Consultant Physician in 1910, and was appointed the Compton-Burnett Professor of Materia Medica in 1911. He rose to become President of the Faculty of Homeopathy in 1923.
Weir reputedly first learned of homeopathy through his contact with Dr Robert Gibson Miller (1862–1919) head of the Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
Homeopathic Hospital, who had an important influence on the future Physician Royal, who he treated for boils and converted to homeopathy [Bodman, 1971]. "It was Dr Gibson Miller who advised Sir John Weir to go to the USA." [Stewart, 1967, p. 260] This influence tended to get passed on: Dr Douglas Gibson (1888–1977) “became interested in homeopathy in 1936 through a meeting with Sir John Weir,” [Gibson obit, 1977, 225].
Weir spoke on homeopathy before the Royal Society of Medicine
Royal Society of Medicine
The Royal Society of Medicine is a British charitable organisation whose main purpose is as a provider of medical education, running over 350 meetings and conferences each year.- History and overview :...
in 1932, and was knighted by King George V that same year. The renovated Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
Homoeopathic Institute and Dispensary was opened in Oxford Street by Sir John Weir in May 1939. Weir said in an “address: homeopathy…is no religion, no sect, no fad, no humbug…remedies do not act directly on disease; they merely stimulate the vital reactions of the patient, and this causes him to cure himself.” [Sir John Weir, 1931, 200-201] Having advanced through all levels of the Royal Victorian Order
Royal Victorian Order
The Royal Victorian Order is a dynastic order of knighthood and a house order of chivalry recognising distinguished personal service to the order's Sovereign, the reigning monarch of the Commonwealth realms, any members of her family, or any of her viceroys...
he was, as a rare distinction, awarded the Royal Victorian Chain
Royal Victorian Chain
The Royal Victorian Chain is an award, instituted in 1902 by King Edward VII as a personal award of the Monarch...
in 1947, possibly as a mark of the medical care he gave to the ailing King George VI.
Publications
- Homeopathy and its Importance in Treatment of Chronic Disease, (1915)
- The Trend of Modern Medicine, (1922)
- The Science and Art of Homeopathy, Brit Homeo Jnl (1925)
- The Present Day Attitude of the Medical Profession Towards Homeopathy, Brit Homeo Jnl XVI, 1926, p. 212ff
- Homeopathy: a System of Therapeutics (1928)
- Sir John Weir, The Hahnemann Convalescent Home, Bournemouth, Brit Homeo Jnl 20, 1931, 200-201
- Homeopathy an Explanation of its Principles (1932)
- British Homeopathy During the Last 100 Years, Brit Homeo Jnl 23, 1932: II, pp. 603–5
- Samuel Hahnemann and his Influence on Medical Thought, Trans. Roy. Soc. Med., (1933)
- Hahnemann on Homeopathic Philosophy (1935)
- Sir John Weir, Dr Margaret Tyler Obituary, Brit. Homeo. Jnl 33, 1943, 92-93
- Presidential Address, Brit Homeo Jnl 34 1944, p. 8
- Presidential Report Brit Homeo Jnl 34, 1944, p. 194
- Examination Results Brit Homeo Jnl 34, 1944, p. 195
Sources
- The Medical Directory 1948
- Nisbet's Medical Directory, 1913
- T Fergus Stewart, Dr Tom Paterson, Brit Homeo Jnl, 56, 1967, pp. 257–60
- Obituary, The Times 19-4-1971
- Dr Margery Blackie, Obituary to Sir John Weir, Brit Homeo Jnl 60, 1971, pp. 103–4
- Dr Frank Bodman, Obituary to Sir John Weir, Brit Homeo Jnl 60:1, 1971, pp. 224–8
- Anonymous, Obituary to Dr Douglas Gibson, Brit. Homeo. Jnl 66, 1977, p. 225
- Weir's entry in the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography