William Pym facts for kids

Sir William Pym (born 1772 – died 18 March 1861) was an important British military doctor. He was honored with the KCH title, which recognized his great service.

William Pym was born in Edinburgh in 1772. His father was Joseph Pym from Pinley, near Henley-in-Arden, Warwickshire. William was also the older brother of Sir Samuel Pym, who was a famous naval officer. William studied medicine at the University of Edinburgh.

After a short time working in the Royal Navy, he joined the army's medical team. Soon after, he was sent to the West Indies.

Early Career and Yellow Fever

In 1794, William Pym joined a special army group led by Sir Eyre Coote. This group was part of an expedition led by Sir Charles Grey (who later became Earl Grey). They landed in Martinique that year.

Pym was there when the British took control of Martinique, Saint Lucia, and Guadeloupe. His army group faced many challenges. They stayed healthy until they captured Fort Matilda in Guadeloupe. After this victory, a terrible disease called yellow fever broke out. It affected the 35th and 70th regiments, which were stationed in Saint-Pierre, Martinique.

Pym was put in charge of medical care during this outbreak. The disease lasted from 1794 to 1796. It's believed that almost 16,000 soldiers died during this time. This difficult experience gave Pym a unique and deep understanding of yellow fever.

Work in the Mediterranean

After returning from the West Indies, Pym served in Sicily. In 1806, he was in a shipwreck on the Athénienne between Sicily and Africa. Out of 476 people on board, 349 died. The few who survived owed their lives greatly to Pym's quick thinking and efforts.

He then moved from Sicily to Malta, and later to Gibraltar. In Gibraltar, he became a trusted medical advisor to the governor, the Duke of Kent. He was also put in charge of quarantine, which meant controlling how people entered and left to prevent diseases from spreading.

On 20 December 1810, he became a deputy inspector-general of army hospitals. The next year, the Prime Minister, Earl of Liverpool, sent him back to Malta. There, Pym became the President of the Board of Health, a role he performed very successfully.

He returned to England in 1812 and lived in London. However, in 1813, he volunteered to go back to Malta again because the plague was spreading rapidly there. On 25 September 1816, he was promoted to Inspector-General of Army Hospitals.

Understanding Yellow Fever

In 1815, Pym published a book about yellow fever called Observations upon Bulam Fever. In this book, he argued that yellow fever was a highly contagious disease. This was the first clear description of what we now know as yellow fever.

In his book, Pym explained several key points:

• He said it was a unique disease, also known as African, yellow, or bulam fever. He believed it was the same as the "vómito prieto" (black vomit) that Spaniards described, which caused a special and often deadly symptom: black vomit.
• He stated that the disease was very infectious, meaning it could easily spread from person to person.
• He noted that its ability to spread increased in hot weather but was stopped by cold.
• He observed that people from warm climates often got a milder form of the disease.
• He also believed it had a unique characteristic, similar to smallpox: a person would only get it once in their lifetime.

At the time, Pym's ideas caused a lot of disagreement. However, today, most experts agree that his views were largely correct. In a later book, Observations upon Bulam, Vómito-negro, or Yellow Fever (1848), Pym continued to argue his points. He explained that the main question was no longer whether the disease was contagious. Instead, he focused on whether there were two different types of fever: one that was common in Africa and not contagious, and another, the bulam or vómito-negro fever, which appeared sometimes and was highly contagious.

Later Life and Honors

In 1826, Pym was made Superintendent-General of Quarantine. In this role, he worked hard to make the strict quarantine laws less severe. His important work was officially recognized in December 1855. In 1828, he went to Gibraltar to manage the quarantine efforts during another outbreak of yellow fever.

When he returned to England, King William IV honored him. Pym was made a Knight Bachelor in 1830 and a Knight Commander of the Royal Guelphic Order in 1831.

During the cholera outbreak in the United Kingdom in 1832, Pym served as the chairman of the Central Board of Health. For his excellent service, he received a letter of thanks from the lords of the council.

Sir William Pym passed away on 18 March 1861, at his home in Upper Harley Street, London. He was 89 years old.