Alexander Hamilton

As Professor of Midwifery, Alexander Hamilton was instrumental in the establishment of a lying-in hospital in Edinburgh and published several important textbooks on midwifery. In 1776 he had became Deacon of the Incorporation of Surgeons, and during his term of office the Incorporation was granted a Royal Charter from George III on 14th March 1778. Under the terms of this charter the Incorporation became the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh, giving all Members the status of Fellowship.

Alexander Hamilton was born in Kincardineshire where his father, a retired army surgeon, was in practice. He became apprentice to John Straiton, surgeon in Edinburgh, and was admitted as Member of the Incorporation of Surgeons in 1764. He went on to obtain MD from St Andrews University. It was Hamilton who made the case to the Senate and town council that surgery should be taught by a separate Professor in the University, but this proposal was opposed successfully by Monro Secundus. In 1780 he was appointed Joint Professor of Midwifery with Thomas Young and on Young’s death in 1783, he became sole Professor of Midwifery. He was to make a major contribution in this area and was almost certainly the first Edinburgh Professor of Midwifery whose name was known to the outside world. Hamilton held strong views and was not afraid of promoting these. The saga of the 1792 pamphlet “A Guide for Gentlemen Studying Medicine at the University of Edinburgh” described in detail and was complementary about the course of instruction in midwifery whilst criticising most of the other Professors. Although anonymous, it was widely believed that it had been written by Alexander Hamilton or his son, James Hamilton (q.v.) who followed him in the Chair. This story is recounted in more detail in James Hamilton’s entry in this book.

His two greatest contributions to midwifery were production of successful textbooks of midwifery and the establishment of the lying-in hospital. The lying-in ward had been established by Dr Thomas Young but it was Alexander Hamilton who planned and established the lying-in hospital which was partially funded from his own pocket. He also published several important works on midwifery. His “Elements of the Practice of Midwifery” ran to several editions. He went on to write “A Treatise of Midwifery” and “Outlines of the Theory and Practice of Midwifery”, the latter two being translated into German.

Hamilton had decided when his son James was very young that he should succeed him in the Chair of Midwifery, and this he duly did in 1800.