The Harveian Society of London, named after the physician William Harvey, is a medical society and registered charity, founded in 1831. Doctors assemble regularly at the Medical Society of London, Chandos Street, Cavendish Square to converse and discuss medical matters through the medium of lectures and conferences. The Society’s council rotate annually and comprises the president, two vice-presidents, the treasurer, the executive and two honorary secretaries, the archivist and nine councillors.
Origins
, had opened a dispensary in London in 1770, following which, in 1773, he founded the Medical Society of London. Over the next 50 years, the expansion of dispensaries, particularly around Marylebone, created a platform for a group of doctors to get together and create The West London Medical Society, the intention of which was to cultivate a medium to better their knowledge and advance medical science. By October 1831, the Society’s name had changed to 'The Harveian Society of London' and it had held its first meeting at the Western General Dispensary. From 1951, the meetings have been held at the Medical Society of London’s home, Lettsom House. Anthony Todd Thompson and Marshall Hall, both physicians, were the first two presidents. Subsequently, presidents have frequently been high-profile medical professionals, including Thomas Hodgkin, D'Arcy Power, Lord Horder, Cecil Wakeley and Sir Zachary Cope. Society rules were first printed in 1832. The Society remained exclusively male until 1956, when women were permissible to join in only as guests, eventually being allowed full membership from 1964 under the Presidency of Dr. D. Geraint James.
Buckston Brown also endowed an annual dinner for Harveian members, which is also celebrated with the Buckston Browne cup. In 1944, Lt–Colonel Sir Norman Gray Hill was killed in the second world war. In honour of his endowment and memory, the annual dinner was renamed the Buckston Browne Gray Hill Dinner.
Annual tribute
Every year, in June, the president and associates make a particular call to Harvey’s birthplace in Folkestone and lay flowers at Harvey’s statue. In 1973, in the presence of the Society and on behalf of the British Medical Association, an honorary plaque was added.
William Harvey Memorial Prize
Established in 1954, the William Harvey Memorial prize was initially open only to students from the William Harvey Grammar School.
Harveian Library
A selection of Harvey's works, biographies and portraits are kept in a small library. Some portraits were removed from the Royal College of Physicians and returned to the Society.
Anniversaries
In 1975, the Society requested sculptor Nigel Boonham to create a head of William Harvey for his 400th anniversary. A total of fifty were to be cast in a resin bronze limited edition and sold to members.
Other notable medical associations named after William Harvey
