28/05/2026
Today marks the 100th anniversary of the death of Sir James Cantlie, an important figure in the history of our teaching of first aid.
James was born on 17 January 1851 in Dufftown, Banffshire in Scotland, and educated at a local school in Drummuir, before going on to study Natural Science and Medicine at the University of Aberdeen. He had a varied career in the medical field, beginning with an early stint at Charing Cross Hospital as an instructor in anatomy in 1871. He established the Volunteer Medical Staff Corps in the early 1880s, and became a Surgeon with the London Scottish Volunteers, with whom he served in Egypt and developed an interest in tropical diseases and treatment of the urban poor. In 1886, he was appointed as an advisor to the India Office when an epidemic of bubonic plague swept through Bombay [Mumbai], and in the following year he moved to Hong Kong where he practiced medicine and established a medical college for Chinese students, known as the ‘Hong Kong College of Medicine for Chinese’.
After nearly a decade of practicing and teaching in Asia, James’s own poor health forced his return back to London, where he took up the post of Chair of Applied Anatomy at Charing Cross Hospital, and just a few years later co-founded and served as Editor of the Journal of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene, and helped to establish the London School of Tropical Medicine, becoming its first surgeon and lecturer in tropical surgery. Alongside this demanding schedule, James also served as an advisor to the War Office and helped establish the medical section of the Territorial Force, which later became the Territorial Army. During the First World War, James and his wife became Commandants in the British Red Cross Society, and founded a College of Ambulance and a humanitarian corps to aid those in medical need or poverty. For his lifetime’s work, he was appointed a Knight of the British Empire, and received an honorary Doctorate of Law from the University of Aberdeen. James died on 28 May 1926, and he is buried in the cemetery at St John the Baptist Church in Cottered, Hertfordshire.
James’s connection to St John Ambulance comes through his interest and pursuit of education. When the St John Ambulance Association was established in 1877 to provide training in first aid, James became one of the Association’s first instructors. In this role, he would have trained men, women, and young people (separately of course) in the necessities of first aid and lifesaving skills, much like St John Ambulance’s instructors continue to provide first aid training today.
James also played an important part in the publication of the Association’s first manual of first aid. Originally published by Surgeon-Major Peter Shepherd in 1878 as Handbook Describing Aids for Cases of Injuries or Sudden Illness, this manual followed the syllabus taught by James and the Association’s other instructors. When Shepherd died in Africa in 1879, James took over the publishing of the manual, which became known as First Aid to the Injured, a comprehensive pocket-sized manual, and continued publication into the 1950s.
James’s legacy lives on today as his work with St John’s first manuals of first aid continue to be available and accessible in the St John Archive. If you would like to read or have a browse of these publications for yourself, why not check out the digitised copies of Handbook Describing Aids for Cases of Injuries or Sudden Illness and First Aid to the Injured through our online hosting platform here: https://issuu.com/museumoftheorderofstjohn/stacks/9b00a071f1cc41df921d94990b6c1146
