William Sturge
William Allen Sturge (1850-1919) was an English physician
and archaeologist
Best known for his early clinical description of Sturge-Weber syndrome, a neurocutaneous disorder that now bears his name. A thoughtful clinician with a keen interest in neurological disease, Sturge also contributed to the understanding of muscular atrophy and was recognised with the Silver Medal of the Medical Society of London.
Educated at Bristol Medical School and University College London, Sturge further honed his neurological expertise under Jean-Martin Charcot (1825-1893) and Jean–Alfred Fournier (1832-1914) in Paris. He and his first wife, Dr Emily Bovell (1841–1885)—one of the pioneering “Edinburgh Seven” women medical graduates—established a prominent medical practice in Wimpole Street, London, where Sturge combined clinical work with teaching and research.
Sturge’s career took an unexpected turn when Emily’s declining health prompted a move to Nice, where he practised for 27 years. His reputation grew on the French Riviera, where he cared for British and American elites, including Queen Victoria and her family, for which he was awarded the MVO (Member of the Royal Victorian Order). In later life, he became a passionate archaeologist, assembling renowned collections of prehistoric flints and Greek antiquities now housed in major public museums.
Sturge’s legacy in medicine endures through the eponymous syndrome that reflects his prescient clinical insights into vascular malformations and neurological disease. His parallel achievements in archaeology further underscore the breadth of his intellectual pursuits and lasting cultural contributions
Biography
- 1850 – Born in Bristol, England; eldest son of William Sturge (land surveyor) and Charlotte Allen.
- 1865 – Attended a Quaker school in London; injured his knees playing soccer and developed an interest in medicine during recuperation with his physician uncle.
- 1868 – Entered Bristol Medical School; undertook practical work at Bristol General Hospital.
- 1870 – Passed Primary Examination of the College of Surgeons.
- 1871 – Continued medical studies at University College, London.
- 1873 – Travelled to Egypt as medical attendant; qualified MB (London) on return.
- 1875 – Completed MD (London).
- 1875 onwards – Appointed Physician’s Assistant, later Resident Medical Officer, and Registrar at the National Hospital for Paralysis and Epilepsy, Queen Square; laid foundation for extensive work in neurology.
- 1876–1877 – Studied in Paris: neurology with Charcotat the Salpêtrière and pathology with Fournier at Hôpital Saint-Louis.
- 1877 – Married Dr Emily Bovell; returned to London and established a joint medical practice in Wimpole Street.
- Late 1870s – Appointed Assistant Physician and Pathologist at the Royal Free Hospital; Physician to the Royal Infirmary for Women and Children; held junior appointments at University College Hospital and Hospital for Sick Children; Lecturer in pathology at the London School of Medicine for Women.
- 1879 (April) – Presented first clinical description of Sturge-Weber syndrome to the Clinical Society of London. Awarded Silver Medal of the Medical Society of London for dissertation on progressive muscular atrophy.
- 1880 – Moved to Nice, France, due to Emily Bovell’s tuberculosis; established a successful practice serving English and American visitors on the Riviera.
- 1880–1907 – Practised in Nice for 27 years; personal physician to Queen Victoria and her family during four visits to Cimiez; awarded MVO (Member of the Royal Victorian Order).
- 1885 – Death of Emily Bovell.
- 1886 – Married Julia Sherriff, a former nurse and daughter of a wealthy ironmaster.
- 1907 – Retired to Icklingham Hall, Suffolk; established a private museum of more than 100,000 prehistoric flint implements; bequeathed collection to the British Museum.
- Founded and served as first president of the Society of Prehistoric Archaeology of East Anglia (exact date not provided). Assembled a notable collection of Greek vases (now housed as the Sturge Collection in the Toronto Museum, Canada).
- 1918 (Winter) – Contracted Spanish influenza, which progressed to nephritis.
- Died Mrch 27, 1919 at Icklingham, Suffolk
Medical Eponyms
Sturge-Weber syndrome
First described by Sturge in 1879: a neurocutaneous disorder characterised by a port-wine nevus in the trigeminal nerve distribution, congenital glaucoma, and intracranial vascular abnormalities.
Pathological proof provided by S. Kalischer in 1901; radiographic features later documented by Frederick Parkes Weber (1863–1962) in 1922 and V. Dimitri in 1923.
Major Publications
- Sturge WA. A case of partial epilepsy, apparently due to a lesion of one of the vasomotor centres of the brain. Transactions of the Clinical Society of London. 1879; 12: 162.
References
Biography
- Barlow T. William Allen Sturge. MVO, MD. BMJ 1919;1:468–9.
- Pearce JMS. Historical vignette: The Sturge–Weber syndrome. Eur Neurol. 2003;49(2):59–61.
- Pearce JM. Sturge-Weber syndrome (encephalotrigeminal or leptomeningeal angiomatosis). J Neurol Neurosurg Psychiatry. 2006 Nov;77(11):1291-2.
- William Allen Sturge. Royal College of Physicians
Eponymous terms
- Kalischer S. Ein Fall von Telangiektasie (Angiom) des Gesichts und der weichen Hirnhäute. Archiv für Psychiatrie und Nervenkrankheiten. 1901, 34: 171-180.
- Lassman LP. William Allen Sturge (1850–1919) and the Sturge-Weber syndrome. Arch Dis Child. 1964;39:292–298.
- Comi AM, Hunt P, Vawter MP, Pardo CA, Becker KG, Pevsner J. Increased fibronectin expression in sturge-weber syndrome fibroblasts and brain tissue. Pediatr Res. 2003 May;53(5):762-9.
- Thomas-Sohl KA, Vaslow DF, Maria BL. Sturge-Weber syndrome: a review. Pediatr Neurol. 2004 May;30(5):303-10.
- Comi AM. Sturge-Weber syndrome. Handb Clin Neurol. 2015;132:157-68.
Eponym
the person behind the name
