In November 1809 a ship sailed from London bound for the Scottish capital Edinburgh, and on board was a red-haired young man traveling with his aunt, and later became the chief military surgeon at the Royal Hospital and the first British surgeon to perform a successful caesarean section, all without anyone discovering It is female.

After studying medicine at the University of Edinburgh, James Barry made a distinguished career for himself, rising to the position of Inspector General of Hospitals and serving throughout the British Empire.

poor upbringing

The beginning of that distinguished scientific journey was in the year 1789 and the birth of Margaret Anne Bolkeley in County Cork in Ireland to a poor family.

Her father, Jeremiah Jeremiah Bolkeley, ran a small grocery, and spent the family's resources on his eldest son "John" to be educated and apprenticed at a senior lawyer's office in Dublin, Ireland.

The family pinned great hopes on the son to lift her out of poverty after employing him, but John drained the entire family's resources into marrying a girl of a higher class, leaving his family mired in debt, and as a result of which the father entered prison, and his mother and only sister remained alone.

Portrait of Dr. James Barry or Mary Ann Bolkeley (Foreign Press)

A dream come true

Luck played a major role in changing Margaret's life when her mother received the news of the death of her brother James Barry, the painter and royal academic in London in 1806, leaving money behind to the heirs.

18-year-old Margaret and her mother moved to London, and met Barry's friends, who admired the young Margaret's intelligence and remarkable interest in education, at a time when women were prevented from most formal education, and they were not allowed to practice medicine, according to the "History" website.

And while they were sure of her passion and scientific potential, they set a plan for Margaret to pursue education, specifically studying medicine, after impersonating her late uncle.

New birth

3 years later, Margaret Bolkeley is no longer around.

Instead, the new James Barry and his mother - who became his aunt - set sail on a ship bound from London to Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland.

With the help of his uncle's friends, Barry chose to go to Edinburgh as the right place for anyone wishing to study medicine, as the university was considered the most prestigious medical school in the UK and one of the best in the world.

Barry started a new life.

According to science history, Barry attended medical school, and after graduating and passing the Royal College of Surgeons exams, he joined the military.

His illustrious 50-year career spanned from Britain to South Africa and then the Caribbean to Canada.

Attempts to hide

Barry was trying to disguise himself by wearing a trench coat at all times regardless of the weather, with tall men's boots and using a distinctive high-pitched token voice.

His petite build and soft skin aroused the suspicion of many, and some believed that he was a very young child and was not allowed to attend college exams, but the intervention of a lord who was related to Barry's original friends, allowed the young man to continue his studies and obtain a medical degree at the age of 22 years.

He joined the army as a surgeon's assistant, where his age was again questioned, but was eventually allowed to serve.

James Barry worked in South Africa 10 years (Foreign Press)

Barry began his military career in 1813 as an assistant in a hospital in the British Army, was soon promoted to assistant staff surgeon, and then served in South Africa for 10 years.

Barry's medical skills were unsurpassed, he was a skilled surgeon.

He performed the first successful caesarean section, in which mother and child survived, at a time when cesarean deliveries were often performed to deliver live babies from deceased mothers, or, more tragically, to stillborn babies from deceased mothers.

Barry has continued to rise as he travels the world.

In 1857, he attained the rank of inspector general in charge of military hospitals.

In that position, his humanity manifested itself as he fought for proper sanitation in the African colonies, and also advocated for better food and proper medical care for prisoners and those afflicted with leprosy.

psychological struggle

There may have been a raging internal conflict between the female Margaret and the ambitious Barry, evident in his sometimes irritating behaviour.

According to the newspaper "The Guardian", Barry was showing a bad temper and a rough way of dealing to distract from his feminine appearance and also to keep fans away.

Barry was famous for yelling at patients, arguing with superiors, throwing medicine bottles at the wall, and scolding his staff that sometimes amounted to humiliation.

Even the authorities were not spared Barry's harsh criticism of the mismanagement of barracks, prisons, and asylums, and on the other hand, he equated the treatment of rich and poor, colonists and slaves alike.

Dr. Barry criticized the poor management of barracks and prisons and equated the treatment of rich and poor (Getty Images)

reveal the secret

James Barry died on July 25, 1865 of dysentery, a contagious intestinal disease, and his last wish was to be buried in the clothes in which he died, but that desire was contrary to the prevailing beliefs at the time.

And when the nurse took off the doctor's clothes to prepare him for burial, she discovered that he was a female, and from the stretch marks on the abdomen, it was found that she had given birth once, according to the Guardian newspaper.

The secret spread and spread, and each interpreted it at will.

But everyone agreed that Margaret O'Barry was a major medical and human freak buried in Kensal Green cemetery northwest of London.