Thomas Peel Dunhill GCVO CMG (1876 - 1957)

Born 3 Dec 1876 in Kerang, Victoria (Australia)

Ancestors

Husband of Edith Florence (Affleck) Dunhill — married 12 Feb 1914 in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia

Died 22 Dec 1957 at age 81 in Hampstead, London, England, United Kingdom

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Biography

Thomas Dunhill GCVO CMG is Notable.

Brigadier Doctor Sir Thomas Dunhill GCVO CMG FRACS FRCS MD was an Australian thyroid surgeon and honorary surgeon to the monarchs of the United Kingdom. He served as a medical officer in the Australian Imperial Force and Second Australian Imperial force during both world wars.

Thomas Dunhill GCVO CMG was born in the Colony of Victoria (1851-1900)

Thomas Dunhill GCVO CMG has English ancestors.

Thomas Peel Dunhill was born on 3rd December 1876 on a cattle grazing property, Tragowel, near Kerang, Victoria (Australia). He was the older of two sons of John Dunhill, an overseer on Tragowel, and Mary Peel. ^[1] His father, then aged just 26 years, died from typhoid fever when Thomas was sixteen months of age ^[2] and the family moved to his mother's home town of Inverleigh, Victoria, where his younger brother was born. The boys later attended Inverleigh State School. In May 1888 his mother married William Lawry, ^[3] a gold mine manager, and the family moved to Daylesford, Victoria. There, Thomas and John completed their secondary education at Daylesford Grammar School.

After matriculating at the University of Melbourne, Thomas studied pharmacy and was registered in June 1898, but he never practised. Instead, in 1899 he began to study medicine, graduating with a Bachelor of Medicine (MB) degree in 1903 and a Doctor of Medicine (MD) degree in 1906. The tragic death in 1907 of his younger brother, John, also a doctor of exceptional ability, spurred him to a single-minded application of his studies. He joined the resident staff at the (Royal) Melbourne Hospital, commencing his lifelong interest in the thyroid gland and in particular exophthalmic goitre. He worked as a surgeon to out-patients at St Vincent's Hospital, Melbourne, from 1905 to 1914. He was also commissioned in the infant Australian Army Medical Corps in 1906.

By 1911 he was the leading surgeon in his field in Australasia and in that year visited surgical centres in England and the United States of America. His paper delivered to the Royal Society of Medicine in London in 1912, describing his results in the surgical treatment of exophthalmic goitre, produced a sensation. On returning to Australia in 1912 Thomas was made surgeon to in-patients at St Vincent's Hospital and chairman of the medical staff.

Thomas married widow Edith McKellar née Affleck on 12th February 1914 in Scots Church, St Kilda, Victoria. ^[4] By so doing, he became step-father to her son and daughter. They had no children together.

Thomas Dunhill GCVO CMG is a Military Veteran.
Served in the Australian Imperial Force 1914-1919
1st Australian General Hospital

Upon the outbreak of The Great War Thomas was commissioned on 19th October 1914 as a medical officer in the Australian Imperial Force (AIF), his young nation's all-volunteer expeditionary force for the war. ^[5] He embarked for the Middle East on 5th December 1915 in Melbourne aboard HMAT Kyarra A55. ^[6] He served in Egypt and on the Western Front with the 1st Australian General Hospital. In July 1918 he was appointed consulting surgeon to the Rouen area in France. During the war he was asked to operate on a number of desperately ill thyroid patients in London (the English surgeons had refused to do so) and all recovered; thus laying firm foundations for his future successes in England. Three times he was Mentioned in Despatches, equivalent to today's Commendation for Gallantry, ^[7][8][9] and was appointed Companion of the Order of St Michael and St George (CMG) in the King's Birthday Honours 1919. ^[10][11] Thomas returned to Australia in May 1919 with the rank of Colonel ^[5] and rejoined the staff of St Vincent's. For his war service he was awarded the British War Medal and the Victory Medal.

The following year, however, he accepted an invitation to join the professional surgical unit at St Bartholomew's Hospital, London. Within a few years he had established himself as the leading thyroid surgeon in England and the best general surgeon at 'Barts'. Eminent overseas surgeons flocked to his operating theatre to witness his technique. He was elected a Fellow of the Royal Australasian College of Surgeons (FRACS) in 1930 and an Honorary Fellow of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (FRCS) in 1939. He retired from St Bartholomew's in 1935, but continued his private practice at 54 Harley Street.

Thomas was appointed Serjeant Surgeon to the Royal Household in April 1928 ^[12] and in May 1930 he became honorary surgeon to King George V. ^[13] He subsequently became honorary surgeon to King Edward VIII in July 1936, ^[14] King George VI in March 1937 ^[15] and honorary extra surgeon to Queen Elizabeth II in August 1952. ^[16] He was created Knight Commander of the Royal Victorian Order (KCVO) in the King's Birthday Honours 1933 for this personal service to King George V. ^[17][18][19]

On 1st January 1940, during the Second World War, he was appointed a part-time consulting surgeon to the Second AIF, with the rank of Brigadier. He was elevated to Knight Grand Cross of the Royal Victorian Order (GCVO) on 3rd May 1949. ^[20] He was in attendance when King George VI died in 1952.

Edith passed away on 31st July 1942, aged 68 years. ^[21] Thomas' mother came to live with him in 1929 after being widowed a second time. She passed away on 28th June 1946, aged 89 years. ^[22] Thomas subsequently sold the house at 54 Harley Street and bought a country house in Hampstead that he called Tragowel'. He was an expert gardener and collected antique furniture. He visited Australia for the last time in 1950. Aged 81 years, he passed away on 22nd December 1957 at Tragowel. ^[23] He left an estate valued for probate at £138,461.

His portrait by James Gunn hangs in the College of Surgeons, Spring Street, Melbourne.

Sources

1. ↑ Victoria Birth Index #3400/1877
2. ↑ Victoria Death Index #5669/1878
3. ↑ Victoria Marriage Index #3862/1888
4. ↑ Victoria Marriage Index #2105/1914
5. ↑ ^{5.0 5.1} Australian War Memorial nominal roll: Colonel Thomas Peel Dunhill; accessed 14 Dec 2023
6. ↑ Australian War Memorial embarkation roll: Major Thomas Peel Dunhill; accessed 14 Dec 2023
7. ↑ [https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1520963 Australian War Memorial honours and awards: Mention in Despatches, gazetted 28 May 1918; accessed 14 Dec 2023
8. ↑ [https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1520964 Australian War Memorial honours and awards: Mention in Despatches, gazetted 31 Dec 1918; accessed 14 Dec 2023
9. ↑ [https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1520965 Australian War Memorial honours and awards: Mention in Despatches, gazetted 11 Jul 1919; accessed 14 Dec 2023
10. ↑ Australian Honours: CMG; accessed 14 Dec 2023
11. ↑ [https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1520966 Australian War Memorial honours and awards: CMG; accessed 14 Dec 2023
12. ↑ London Gazette 3 Apr 1928, issue 33372, page 2442; accessed 14 Dec 2023
13. ↑ London Gazette 9 May 1930, issue 33604, page 2865; accessed 14 Dec 2023
14. ↑ London Gazette 20 Jul 1936, issue 34306, page 4666; accessed 14 Dec 2023
15. ↑ London Gazette 2 Mar 1937, issue 34376, page 1408; accessed 14 Dec 2023
16. ↑ London Gazette 1 Aug 1952, issue 39616, page 4200; accessed 14 Dec 2023
17. ↑ Australian Honours: KCVO; accessed 14 Dec 2023
18. ↑ [https://www.awm.gov.au/collection/R1550949 Australian War Memorial honours and awards: KCVO; accessed 14 Dec 2023
19. ↑ London Gazette 2 Jun 1933, issue 33946, page 3805; accessed 14 Dec 2023
20. ↑ London Gazette 3 May 1949, issue 38601, page 2178; accessed 14 Dec 2023
21. ↑ UK FreeBMD Death Index Sep qtr 1942, vol 1a, page 394; registered at Marylebone
22. ↑ UK FreeBMD Death Index Sep qtr 1946, vol 5d, page 207; registered at Marylebone
23. ↑ UK FreeBMD Death Index Dec qtr 1957, vol 5c, page 988

See also

• Vellar, Ivo D. 'Dunhill, Sir Thomas Peel (1876–1957)', Australian Dictionary of Biography, National Centre of Biography, Australian National University, published first in hardcopy 1981; accessed online 14 Dec 2023.
• Wikipedia: Thomas Peel Dunhill; accessed 14 Dec 2023.