In 1812, a young student of delicate build and high-pitched voice obtained a medical doctorate at the University of Edinburgh. The university senate attempted to block this student’s final exams, suspecting they were dealing with a boy before puberty. No one suspected that behind the facade of James Barry was Margaret Ann Bulkley, who had just accomplished something impossible for women of that era.
Margaret Ann Bulkley
Margaret was born around 1789 in Cork, Ireland, as the daughter of Jeremiah and Mary Anne Bulkley. The family had seen better days before her father lost his position at the municipal weigh house. Anti-Catholic sentiment that swept through Ireland at the time caused him to lose his job, and subsequent business failures led to his imprisonment for debt in Dublin’s Marshalsea.
Mother and daughter found themselves in dire financial straits. In 1804, both set off to London, hoping for help from Mary Anne’s brother, James Barry, a respected painter and professor at the Royal Academy of Arts.
The artist refused to support his sister, with whom he had not been in contact for over three decades. Ironically, his death in 1806 opened new opportunities for the teenage girl. An inheritance and the protection of influential friends of her late uncle enabled a plan that would transform her life.
The artist’s liberally minded friends, including Venezuelan General Francisco de Miranda and lawyer Daniel Reardon, helped the young woman begin medical studies. In November 1809, it was no longer Margaret Bulkley, but James Barry—the supposed nephew of the late painter—who boarded a ship for Leith. In a letter to Reardon written soon after arriving in Scotland, there is a telling note about how useful it was for Mrs. Bulkley to have a gentleman to look after her during the sea journey and in a foreign country.
The Surgeon Who Changed Medical History
After graduating in Edinburgh, Barry continued his education at London’s Guy’s and St Thomas’ hospitals, studying under the renowned surgeon Astley Cooper. In July 1813, he passed the exam before the Royal College of Surgeons of England and joined the army. From that moment, a career spanning over four decades and nearly the entire British Empire began.
The first groundbreaking achievement was performing a cesarean section in Cape Town during which both mother and child survived. This was the first documented case of such an operation performed by a European doctor in Africa with successful outcomes for both patients. The grateful family named the boy James Barry Munnik, unaware of whom they truly owed his life.
Service in the far reaches of the empire brought further challenges and successes. On the island of Saint Helena, Barry even treated the son of Napoleon Bonaparte’s secretary, summoned by the exiled Emperor himself. In Jamaica and other colonies, he campaigned to improve sanitary conditions in prisons and army barracks, far ahead of his time in understanding the link between hygiene and public health.
The Art of Concealing the Truth
Keeping a secret for almost fifty years required constant vigilance and calculated measures. Barry wore coats that concealed his figure, and padded his uniform with towels to broaden his shoulders. Barely 150 centimeters tall, he wore shoes with raised heels and thick soles. He explained his smooth face and high voice as youthful features, systematically lowering his age in official documents.
Barry’s character was also a form of protection. He was known for his hot temper and penchant for dueling, which effectively discouraged others from getting too close.
He also led an ascetic lifestyle, abstaining from alcohol and sticking to a vegetarian diet. When serving in the tropics, he traveled with a goat, whose milk was his dietary staple. These eccentric habits reinforced his image as an oddity whose peculiarities were best left unexplored.
Not everyone was fooled. Florence Nightingale, who met Barry during the Crimean War, described him as the most hardened creature she ever encountered in the army. Their clash in Scutari concerned field hospital organization, but their sharp exchange of words might also have stemmed from an intuitive sense that both were crossing gender lines in similar yet different ways.
The Truth Revealed
Barry ended his career as Inspector General of Military Hospitals—a rank equivalent to brigadier general, and the second-highest medical post in the British Army. His appointment bore Queen Victoria’s signature. Retirement was forced by health problems, but even then, the former surgeon maintained caution.
Before his death in July 1865, Barry left explicit instructions: he was to be buried in the clothes he died in, with no examination of the body. The woman hired to prepare the corpse either did not know these instructions or ignored them. She discovered the truth, which soon leaked to the press—first in Dublin, then in London, and quickly spread across the empire.
Reactions varied. Some were shocked; others admitted they had always suspected something. The British Army and the Royal College of Surgeons tried to suppress the matter for almost a hundred years.
Both institutions struggled to accept that a woman had successfully performed a job considered an exclusively male domain for half a century. The College officially admitted women only in 1911, nearly a century after Margaret Ann Bulkley passed their exam.
Autor
Marcus Renfell
Marcus Renfell is a historian driven by curiosity and passion. He refuses to accept the “safe,” polished versions of the past. Instead, he brings forgotten, overlooked, and distorted stories back to life. His work blends scholarly precision with the art of storytelling, turning historical narratives into vivid, page-turning experiences.
His mission is simple: to prove that history can be gripping, alive, and deeply personal.
His debut book: Women of Science. Stories You Were Never Told
In his first publication, Marcus Renfell shines a light on the remarkable women who shaped the world of science — both the pioneers whose names we know and the brilliant minds history forgot. It’s an inspiring journey through untold stories, groundbreaking achievements, and the resilience of women who changed our understanding of the world.
? Discover Women of Science. Stories You Were Never Toldon Amazon.com.