{{Short description|Scottish physician and surgeon}} {{Use dmy dates|date=May 2021}} {{Infobox person | honorific_prefix = Sir | name = George Ballingall | honorific_suffix = | image = George Ballingall.jpg | image_size = | alt = | caption = | birth_name = | birth_date = 2 May 1780 | birth_place = Forglen, by Bogton, Banffshire, Scotland | death_date = 4 December 1855 (aged 75) | death_place = Blairgowrie, Perthshire, Scotland | death_cause = | body_discovered = | resting_place = | resting_place_coordinates = <!-- {{Coord|LAT|LONG|display=inline}} --> | monuments = | other_names = | citizenship = Great Britain | education = | alma_mater = University of St Andrews<br />University of Edinburgh | occupation = Physician<br />Surgeon | years_active = | employer = Army Surgeon (1806)<br />Army Surgeon in India (1815–1818)<br />Surgeon, 33rd Foot (1818–1823)<br />Practicing Physician and Surgeon, Edinburgh<br />Lecturer in Military Surgery, Edinburgh University (1823)<br />Professor of Military Surgery, Edinburgh University (1823–1855) }}
thumb|Ballingall in later life thumb|13 Heriot Row, Edinburgh Sir '''George Ballingall''' {{Post-nominals|post-noms= FRSE FRCPE FRCSE FSAScot}} (2 May 1780 – 4 December 1855) was a Scottish medical doctor and surgeon. He was regius professor of military surgery at the University of Edinburgh.
==Life== Ballingall was son of the Reverend Robert Ballingall, minister of Forglen, Banffshire, where he was born. He studied at the University of St Andrews, going on to the University of Edinburgh where he passed his MD in 1803.<ref name="Waterston">{{cite book |last1 = Waterston |first1 = Charles D |last2 = Macmillan Shearer |first2 = A |title = Former Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 1783–2002: Biographical Index |url = http://www.rse.org.uk/fellowship/fells_indexp1.pdf |accessdate = 2 February 2011 |volume = I |date = July 2006 |publisher = The Royal Society of Edinburgh |location = Edinburgh |isbn = 978-0-902198-84-5 |url-status = dead |archiveurl = https://web.archive.org/web/20061004113545/http://www.rse.org.uk/fellowship/fells_indexp1.pdf |archivedate = 4 October 2006 }}</ref> While at the university, he was an assistant to John Barclay, lecturer on anatomy.
He was appointed assistant-surgeon of the 2nd battalion 1st Royals in 1806, with which he served some years in India; in November 1815 he became surgeon of the 33rd foot, and retired on half-pay in 1818.
In 1823 he was chosen, in preference to David Maclagan,<ref name="doyle">{{cite journal |last1=Doyle |first1=D |title=The Maclagan family: six generations of service |journal=J R Coll Physicians Edinb |date=2010 |volume=40 |issue=2 |pages=178–184 |doi=10.4997/JRCPE.2010.217 |pmid=20695175 |url=https://www.rcpe.ac.uk/sites/default/files/doyle.pdf}}</ref> as lecturer on Military Surgery at the University of Edinburgh, which then, and for some years afterwards, was the only place in the United Kingdom where special instruction was given in a department of surgical science, the importance of which had too plainly been demonstrated during the long war just ended. In 1821 he was elected to the Aesculapian Club.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Minute Books of the Aesculapian Club|url=http://archives.rcpe.ac.uk/calmView/Record.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog&id=DEP%2fAEC%2f1&pos=2|location= Library of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh}}</ref> In 1821 Ballingall was also elected a member of the Harveian Society of Edinburgh and served as president in 1824 and 1830.<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://wellcomecollection.org/works/ww4e59xv|title= A Record of the Edinburgh Harveian Society|last=Watson Wemyss|first=Herbert Lindesay|publisher=T&A Constable, Edinburgh|year=1933|language=en}}</ref>
In 1825 Ballingall succeeded to the Chair of military surgery, the duties of which he discharged with untiring zeal for 30 years until his death.
He was knighted in 1830 on the occasion of the accession of King William IV.
In 1832-3 his address is recorded as 13 Heriot Row in Edinburgh.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://digital.nls.uk/83399739|title=Edinburgh Post Office annual directory, 1832-1833|website=National Library of Scotland|access-date=2018-01-24}}</ref>
In 1836 he was elected President of the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh.
In 1840 he was living at 13 Heriot Row in Edinburgh's Second New Town.<ref>Edinburgh Post Office Directory 1840-41</ref>
He died at his estate at Blairgowrie on 4 December 1855.<ref name="heriot">{{cite web |title=Military and Royal Surgeon |url=http://www.heriotrow.org/Sir-George-Ballingall/ |website=Heriot Row History |access-date=6 November 2021}}</ref>
==Publications== Ballingall, who was a fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and corresponding member of the French Institute, was author of various professional works, the most important being: *''Observations on the Diseases of European Troops in India'' *''Observations on the Site and Construction of Hospitals'' *''Outlines of Military Surgery''
The last, which is still regarded as an instructive work, went through five editions, the fifth appearing at the time of the Russian war, shortly before the Ballingall's death.
==References== {{reflist}} {{DNB|wstitle=Ballingall, George}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Ballingall, George}} Category:1780 births Category:1855 deaths Category:Academics of the University of Edinburgh Category:People from Banffshire Category:Alumni of the University of St Andrews Category:Scottish knights Category:Fellows of the Royal Society of Edinburgh Category:Scottish medical writers Category:Alumni of the University of Edinburgh Category:Scottish antiquarians Category:33rd Regiment of Foot officers Category:Royal Scots officers Category:Académie Nationale de Médecine Category:British Army regimental surgeons Category:Fellows of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh Category:Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh Category:19th-century British Army personnel Category:Presidents of the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh Category:Office bearers of the Harveian Society of Edinburgh Category:Members of the Harveian Society of Edinburgh Category:Military personnel from Aberdeenshire Category:Fellows of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland Category:19th-century Scottish surgeons