William Purdon

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William Purdon
Birth nameWilliam Brooke Purdon
Date of birth(1881-12-28)28 December 1881
Place of birthBelfast, Ireland
Date of death1 December 1950(1950-12-01) (aged 68)
Place of deathKensington, England
SchoolRoyal Belfast Academical Institution
Methodist College Belfast
UniversityQueen's College, Belfast
Rugby union career
Position(s)
Scrum-half
Amateur team(s)
Years Team Apps (Points)
  Queen's College
North of Ireland F.C.
Collegians
Army		 ()
International career
Years Team Apps (Points)
1906 Ireland 3 (3)

Major-General William Brooke Purdon

OBE MC (28 November 1881 – 1 December 1950[1]) was an Irish soldier, physician and medical administrator. Towards the end of his life he was a representative of the Northern Ireland Government in London and for four years was an Honorary Surgeon to the King. In his youth Purdon was a rugby footballer of some note, representing several Irish clubs and was selected to play international rugby for Ireland
on three occasions in 1906.

Personal career

William Purdon was born in Belfast in 1881. He was educated at Royal Belfast Academical Institution and Methodist College Belfast before matriculating to Queen's College, Belfast where he studied medicine.[2][3][4] He graduated as Bachelor of Medicine in 1906 and joined the Royal Army Medical Corps.[4] In 1913 he took the Doctor of Public Health, and it was his specialisation in hygiene that he made his name after the war. During the First World War Purdon served the British Army with distinction. He was awarded the Distinguished Service Order and the Military Cross and was mentioned in dispatches three times during the conflict.

In 1923 he was appointed

King George VI. In 1940 he was awarded the post of Deputy Director Medical Services Western Command.[5] After retiring from the British Army he took up the role of Agent in London of the Northern Ireland Government.[4]

Rugby career

Purdon first played rugby union as a schoolboy, before playing for the

Ernie Caddell broke his leg and Purdon was forced to withdraw with torn knee ligaments.[6] As well as Queen's, Purdon also played for North of Ireland F.C. and Collegians and was selected for the Army
rugby team.

In 1949, Purdon was made President of London Irish, a post he held until his death in 1950.

Notes

  1. ^ William Brooke Purdon Find A Grave
  2. ^ "RAMC: Royal Army Medical Corps WW1". ramc-ww1.com.
  3. ^ Owen, O.L., ed. (1952). Playfair Rugby Football Annual 1951-52. London: Playfair Books Ltd. p. 203.
  4. ^
    PMID 14792052
    .
  5. ^ a b "Purdon, William Brooke; Major-General (1881–1950)". generals.dk. 23 December 1950. Retrieved 11 January 2011.
  6. ^ Godwin (1984) p. 83

References

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