A Gruesome Tale of Self-Surgery

Major General Claude Martin (Lyon, France, 5th January 1735 – Lucknow, India, 13th September 1800)

General Claude Martin by Renaldi, 1794

For those of us who adore telling historical tales, the medicine of ages past is always a fertile ground for material. Regular visitors to the salon will have heard me tell of the estimable Doctor Dillingham before, known to the Hanoverian court and the denizens Versailles alike for his surgical skills,  and once again he has shard with me a story from Georgian medicine. I will warn at this point that it is possibly not suitable for the faint of heart!

Major General Claude Martin, who died on this day in 1800, was a man who knew no obstacles, only challenges. From humble origins he rose to the highest ranks of the British East India Company's Bengal Army, leaving behind a rich philanthropic legacy. Adventurer, educationalist, scientist and architect, this remarkable man lived a colourful and exciting life and when ill health threatened to slow him down, he was not about to surrender.

Martin suffered from bladder stones that blocked his urinary tract and, whilst trekking in the tropics in 1782, the pain grew so unbearable that he decided to take drastic action. Martin performed a self-lithotripsy, using a thin, sharpened metal file break the stones up. Half a dozen times a day for a number of months he inserted the device into his urethra and filed away at the stone until it was small enough to pass out of his body. When the treatment proved successful, he sent a report on the procedure to London for the attention of the Company of Surgeons.

Martin lived on for many years following this stomach-churning treatment and died a rich and celebrated man, larger than life to the very end.

The Naval Life of Admiral Philip Affleck

Philip Affleck (Dalham, Suffolk, England, 1726 – Bath, Somerset, England, 21st December 1799)

I have always liked a nice naval uniform and so a British Navy Admiral is very welcome here in the salon, especially one with a tale worth telling. Born to a wealthy family and with a brother who was also a naval hero, it is a pleasure to look at the life of Admiral Philip Affleck.

One of 18 children born to Anna Dolben and politician Gilbert Affleck, Philip enjoyed a privileged childhood in Dalham Hall, Suffolk. From an early age he was determined to go to sea and began his career working for the East India Company before moving on to serve in the British Navy. An acting-Lieutenant by the age of 29, Affleck distinguished himself at the Siege of Louisbourg in 1759 under Boscawen and by reward was promoted to command, from here rising rapidly through the ranks to captain HMS Panther in India.

Affleck was known as a brave, cool-headed captain and one who inspired trust and loyalty in his men. He remained in the Navy for more than three decades though was not always on active service until, in 1790, he was appointed Commander-in-Chief of the Jamaica station. Here he would remain for two years until his return to England, where he was appointed as one of the Lords of the Admiralty under our old friend, John Pitt, Earl of Chatham. He rose once more though the ranks and became Admiral of the White in 1799, the pinnacle of a long career.

Affleck retired at the age of 70 and enjoyed a quiet retirement in Bath, where he died peacefully  on 21st December 1799.

Commodore Sir William James, Foiler of Pirates

Commodore Sir William James, 1st Baronet, FRS (Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire, Wales, c.1721 – Eltham, London, England, 16th December 1783)

Commodore Sir William James by Sir Joshua Reynolds, 1784

I hope you've got your sealegs on because today we make the acquaintance of a man who rose from humble beginnings to the heights of naval success. A true tale of rags to riches, William James travelled the oceans to make his name in business and seafaring circles!

The man who would become a Baronet was born into poverty, the son of a miller in Haverfordwest, Pembrokeshire. With no appetite to follow his father into his trade he ran away to sea before he entered his teenage years and his dedication saw him rise swiftly through the ranks. By the age of 17 the young man was in charge of his own vessel in the West Indies. Captured by the Spanish, he was left to drift at sea until he made landfall in Cuba, only to be captured again.

Undaunted by these experiences, James joined the East India Company in 1747 and by 1751 he was Commander of the the Bombay Marine Forces, chiefly concerning himself with the pirates who plagued the company's dealings. His particular target was Toolaji Angria, a pirate leader  of some renown who operated out of the fortress of Severndroog, a stronghold that had been undefeated for decades. James was not concerned by previous failed efforts to bring down the pirates, confident that his own knowledge of the sea as well as the might of his ship, The Protector, would secure him the victory.

In fact James was proven right; his expert navigational skills around the Indian coastline led to a successful attack on the fortress in 1755 and the fortress fell. He also supported Colonel Robert Clive on occasion and was instrumental in securing British dominance over French forces in India.

In 1759 James returned to England and took up a role as chairman of the East India Company, settling with his wife, Anne Goddard, in Soho. He served as MP for West Looe in Cornwall and into 1774 moved to Eltham, his many successes crowned with a a baronetcy in 1778. 

James died at the age of 62 after suffering a massive stroke at his daughter's wedding. Today he is commemorated by Richard Jupp's Severndroog Castle, the building commissioned by the grief-stricken Lady Anne James.

The Vellore Mutiny

Over fifty years before the Indian Rebellion, Indian sepoys rose up against the British East India Company in Vellore. Hopelessly outnumbered by the mutineers, over 200 British troops were killed or wounded in the twenty four hours that followed and reprisals against those who had taken part were widespread and merciless.

The fort at Vellore

In 1806 the British introduced a new dress code for Indian soldiers that forbade the wearing of caste-marks, earrings and beards; in addition, they were required to trim their moustaches and replace the traditional turban with a British-approved, partially leather version. A number of sepoys protested about these changes, which had been made without consultation, and were imprisoned, lashed and dismissed from the army as a result. At this, resentment amongst the sepoys reached boiling point, the conditions set for mutiny.

Following the death of Tipu Sultan in 1799, his family were detained at the fort in Vellore by the British and one of his daughters was set to marry on 9th July 1806. Using this as cover, the mutineers were able to assemble en masse without arousing suspicion. In the very early hours of 10th July they moved through the barracks killing 115 members of the 69th Regiment including all senior officer and a number of Indian officers. As dawn broke the fort was in the hands of the mutineers, the flag of the Mysore Sultanate raised as Tipu's son, Fateh Hyder, was crowned King.

Their victory was to be short lived as those who fled the fort raised the alarm at the military garrison in Arcot. By mid-morning the mutineers were surrounded by the British 19th Light Dragoons and members of the Madras cavalry led by renowned officer, Sir Rollo Gillespie. Blasting open the gates that the sepoys had carelessly failed to secure, the surviving men of the 69th Regiment charged the fort with the relief force following. The sepoys who challenged them were killed where they stood, with a hundred more lined up outside the fort and shot dead. Hundreds of mutineers and British were killed at Vellore and many more sepoys would be imprisoned or executed following trials.

The Vellore mutiny had failed. With no long-term strategy or organisation beyond the seizing of the fort, the mutineers were effectively left to sit and wait for the British relief to arrive in force. Following the uprising the British officers who had pushed through the inflammatory new dress codes were recalled to England and disciplined, whilst Lord William Bentinck, the Governor of Madras, was also recalled. As a result of the mutiny the British were forbidden from further involvement in matters of religion and tradition of the sepoys was abolished and flogging was outlawed across all Indian regiments.

Lord William Bentinck by Sir Thomas Lawrence, 1804

Just over fifty years later there would be another rebellion in India and this one would not be put down in the space of twenty four hours. There would be more lessons to learn and many, many more lives lost, but that is a story for another era.

The Vellore Memorial Pillar