Kenelm Hutchinson Digby
Encyclopedia
This article is about Kenelm Digby, the surgeon. For other people with the same name, see Kenelm Digby (disambiguation)
Kenelm Hutchinson Digby OBE FRCS (4 August 1884 - 23 February 1954) was a British surgeon who lived and worked for many years in Hong Kong, where he held various Professorships at Hong Kong University from 1913 - 1949. The K. H. Digby Memorial Scholarship was established in his honour at the University.
, the proposer of the notorious 1933 "King and Country" debate
in the Oxford Union
, and later Attorney General and judge in Sarawak
.
Digby was educated at Quernmore School, Bromley, and undertook his medical studies at Guy's Hospital
, London, where he was a prize-winning student (holding the Michael Harris, Hilton and Beaney Prizes) and where he gained his MB, BS in 1907 and became a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in 1910. He was House Surgeon and Resident Obstetric Attendant at the hospital. In 1913 he first went to work in Hong Kong. He worked at the University of Hong Kong, holding various Professorships, for many years. In 1939 he was awarded the OBE.
Digby was interned in Stanley internment camp
, Hong Kong during the war. He retired from Hong Kong to England in 1949.
Digby married Selina Dorothy Law in 1913, and the couple had two daughters.
In 1955, the year after his death, the K. H. Digby Memorial Fund was set up at the University of Hong Kong.
Kenelm Digby (disambiguation)
Kenelm Digby may refer to:*Kenelm Digby , English MP and High Sheriff*Sir Kenelm Digby , English courtier, diplomat, natural philosopher, Roman Catholic intellectual and Blackloist....
Kenelm Hutchinson Digby OBE FRCS (4 August 1884 - 23 February 1954) was a British surgeon who lived and worked for many years in Hong Kong, where he held various Professorships at Hong Kong University from 1913 - 1949. The K. H. Digby Memorial Scholarship was established in his honour at the University.
Life and career
Digby was born in Ealing, London, the son of William Digby, who was in the Indian Civil Service. He was the cousin of Kenelm Hubert DigbyKenelm Hubert Digby
Kenelm Hubert Digby MBE was the proposer of the notorious 1933 "King and Country" debate in the Oxford Union, and later Attorney General and judge in Sarawak.-Biography:...
, the proposer of the notorious 1933 "King and Country" debate
The King and Country debate
The King and Country debate was a discussion at the Oxford Union debating society on 9 February 1933 of the resolution: "That this House will in no circumstances fight for its King and Country". It was passed by 275 votes to 153, and became one of the most well-known and notorious debates...
in the Oxford Union
Oxford Union
The Oxford Union Society, commonly referred to simply as the Oxford Union, is a debating society in the city of Oxford, Britain, whose membership is drawn primarily but not exclusively from the University of Oxford...
, and later Attorney General and judge in Sarawak
Sarawak
Sarawak is one of two Malaysian states on the island of Borneo. Known as Bumi Kenyalang , Sarawak is situated on the north-west of the island. It is the largest state in Malaysia followed by Sabah, the second largest state located to the North- East.The administrative capital is Kuching, which...
.
Digby was educated at Quernmore School, Bromley, and undertook his medical studies at Guy's Hospital
Guy's Hospital
Guy's Hospital is a large NHS hospital in the borough of Southwark in south east London, England. It is administratively a part of Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust. It is a large teaching hospital and is home to the King's College London School of Medicine...
, London, where he was a prize-winning student (holding the Michael Harris, Hilton and Beaney Prizes) and where he gained his MB, BS in 1907 and became a Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons in 1910. He was House Surgeon and Resident Obstetric Attendant at the hospital. In 1913 he first went to work in Hong Kong. He worked at the University of Hong Kong, holding various Professorships, for many years. In 1939 he was awarded the OBE.
Posts held
- Surgical Registrar and Anæsthetist to Guy’s Hospital, 1909–11
- Principal Medical Officer, Great Central Railway, 1912
- Professor of Anatomy, University of Hong Kong, 1913–23
- Professor of Surgery, University of Hong Kong, 1923–45
- Ho Tung Professor of Clinical Surgery, University of Hong Kong, 1915–45
- Honorary Consultant in Surgery to Government of Hong Kong, 1915–48
- Surgeon, Queen Mary Hospital, 1930–48
- engaged in research work, at Royal College of Surgeons of England, 1949 onwards
- Emeritus Professor of Surgery, University of Hong Kong, 1950
Digby was interned in Stanley internment camp
Stanley Internment Camp
Stanley Internment Camp was a civilian internment camp in Hong Kong during World War II. Located in Stanley, on the southern end of Hong Kong Island, it was used by the Japanese imperial forces to hold non-Chinese enemy nationals after their victory in the Battle of Hong Kong, a battle in the...
, Hong Kong during the war. He retired from Hong Kong to England in 1949.
Digby married Selina Dorothy Law in 1913, and the couple had two daughters.
In 1955, the year after his death, the K. H. Digby Memorial Fund was set up at the University of Hong Kong.
Professor Digby will be remembered for his excellent teaching, his enthusiasm in the wards, his infectious laugh and humour, and his stern discipline in the operation theatre. He was a big man in every sense of the word.
Publications
- 1919 Immunity in Health: The Functions of the Tonsils and the Appendix 1919
- plus many papers in medical journals
Further reading
- Fu, K.-T. L. "William Arbuthnot Lane (1856-1943) and Kenelm Hutchinson Digby (1884-1954): a tale of two universities" Journal of Medical Biography, 16:1 (2008), 7-12. Publisher: Royal Society of Medicine
- Phoon, S. W., "Kenelm Hutchinson Digby, O.B.E., F.R.C.S.: An Appreciation" Bulletin of the Hong Kong Chinese Medical Association, date and volume uncertain, 26-8. Online at http://www.sunzi1.lib.hku.hk/hkjo/view/19/1900099.pdf