John Moore (Scottish physician)

John Moore
Portrait of Douglas, 8th Duke of Hamilton, on his Grand Tour with his physician Dr John Moore and the latter's son John. A view of Geneva is in the distance where they stayed for two years. Painted by Jean Preudhomme in 1774.
Born	1729 (1729) Stirling, Scotland
Died	21 January 1802 (1802-01-22) London, England
Nationality	Scottish
Occupation	Physician, author
Children	General Sir John Moore Admiral Sir Graham Moore Dr. James Moore James Carrick Moore

File:Dr John Moore (detail) by Sir Thomas Lawrence, 1790.JPG

Dr John Moore (detail) by Sir Thomas Lawrence, 1790

John Moore (1729 – 21 January 1802) was a Scottish physician and writer.

He was born at Stirling, the son of a minister. After taking his medical degree at Glasgow, he served with the army in Flanders during the Seven Years' War, then proceeded to London to continue his studies, and eventually to Paris, where he was attached to the household of the British ambassador. In 1792 he accompanied Lord Lauderdale to Paris, and witnessed some of the principal scenes of the Revolution. His Journal during a Residence in France (1793) is the careful record of an eye-witness, and is frequently referred to by Thomas Carlyle. He died in London on 21 January 1802.

Literary works

File:John Moore (1729–1802).jpg

John Moore

His novel Zeluco (1789), a close analysis of the motives of a selfish profligate, produced a great impression at the time, and indirectly, through the poetry of Byron, has left an abiding mark on literature. Byron said that he intended Childe Harold to be a poetical Zeluco, and the most striking features of the portrait were undoubtedly taken from that character. Moore's other works have a less marked individuality, but his sketches of society and manners in France, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and England ("A View of Society and Manners in France, Switzerland and Germany") were also very popular during his lifetime and furnish valuable materials for the social historian. "Mordaunt. Character Sketches of Life, Characters, and Manners, in Various Countries; including the Memoirs of A French Lady of Quality" was a powerfully written anti-French Revolution novel in three volumes in the form of 34 character sketches of famous politicians, royalty, generals, the wealthy, and the celebrity of the day. It also offers detailed eyewitness accounts of John Moore's observations as he travelled throughout Europe in the last years of the 18th century. There are gripping accounts of the heroic feats of a dashing British Officer included, which were actually accounts of John Moore's son, General Moore. This novel is very difficult to find on the world market today, all three volumes in private collections nearly impossible.

Family

He had five sons, by a daughter of John Simson, of whom the eldest was General Sir John Moore. His other sons included Dr. James Carrick Moore (1763–1834), who wrote The Life of Lieutenant General Sir John Moore, and some important medical works, and Sir Graham Moore (1764–1843), who saw much active naval service and became an admiral. [Comment : Dr James Carrick Moore appears in the DNB, with dates 1762–1860]

References

Attribution

 This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: 

Further reading

• Henry L. Fulton: Dr. John Moore, 1729-1802 : a life in medicine, travel, and revolution, Newark : University of Delaware Press, 2015, ISBN 978-1-61149-493-8

External links

• Works related to Entry in "A Short Biographical Dictionary of English Literature" at Wikisource