Erinensis facts for kids

Peter Hennis Green (1803–1870) was an Irish doctor who wrote for medical magazines. He often used a secret writing name, called a pseudonym, which was Erinensis. He wrote many articles for a famous medical magazine called The Lancet from the 1820s to the 1840s.

Who Was Erinensis?

Early Life and Education

Peter Hennis Green was born around 1803 in County Cork, Ireland. His father was a farmer. In 1820, Peter started studying at Trinity College in Dublin. He earned his medical degree (M.D.) in 1827. He became a specialist in diseases that affect children.

Writing for The Lancet

From about 1824 to 1836, Peter Green wrote for The Lancet magazine from Dublin. He used his secret name, Erinensis. He was known for writing "brilliant" articles and letters about the medical world in Ireland. He was very good at noticing when people were being overly proud or silly. The founder of The Lancet, Thomas Wakley, who started the magazine in 1823, encouraged Green's writing.

James Fernandez Clarke, another medical writer who worked at The Lancet when it was new, believed that Erinensis's writing made The Lancet very powerful in the 1820s and 1830s. Later, in the late 1830s, Green went to Paris to study childhood diseases. After that, he wrote articles about these diseases for The Lancet using his real name.

Starting a New Journal

In 1840, Peter Green started his own weekly medical magazine called the Provincial Medical and Surgical Journal. He worked as its main editor in London. At the same time, he taught about childhood diseases at the Hunterian School of Medicine. There were some disagreements between The Lancet and the Provincial Medical and Surgical Association at this time. Green likely wanted to use this situation to help his new magazine. He smartly asked a member of the Association's council to be a co-editor with him. However, disagreements grew between the staff and the Association during the 1840s. Green left the journal in 1849.

His Secret Identity

For a long time, no one knew who Erinensis really was. His identity remained a secret until Sir Charles Cameron published his book, History of the Royal College of Surgeons in Ireland. In this book, Sir Charles Cameron wrote that he learned Erinensis's true identity from James Wakley, who owned The Lancet.

See also

• Medical Press and Circular