Dr. Joseph Warren: leader in medicine, politics, and revolution.

men of the Enlightenment who defies single labels. He was a man of demonstrated physical and moral courage, an intellectual leader in medicine and political theory, a provocateur, propagandist, administrator, spymaster, governor, and, at the last, a soldier. Dr. Warren’s family had been in Massachusetts for a century and a half at the time of the Revolution (1). The Warren family was a representative New England middle-class colonial family that farmed and played a role in minor local politics. Joseph Warren was raised thinking and feeling as an American. This “American” outlook is seen in his education and practice of medicine. He was educated at Harvard while the French and Indian War raged, graduating in 1759. Harvard alumni provided a fertile group of American radicals: Sam Adams, 1740; James Otis, 1743; Samuel Cooper, 1743; James Bowdoin, 1745; John Hancock, 1754; and John Adams, 1755. Upon graduation, Warren apprenticed with the leading Boston doctor, James Lloyd, who provided him with access to both the most advanced medical practices and to the prominent Boston families (2). Medicine, as practiced at the time in England, was highly segmented and subject to social and class distinctions. A physician was considered to be a gentleman and a professional; however, a surgeon or apothecary was not. This led to exclusiveness and rigid practices at the expense of learning and experimentation. In America, these distinctions were rarely if ever exercised, the emphasis being upon what is practical in a distinctive Yankee “can do” manner. Because of the educational requirements of the profession, physicians became closely aligned with the clergy. Unlike their English counterparts, American physicians saw themselves as having, along with the clergy and government officials, an important role in protecting the public welfare (3). Warren clearly demonstrated that he recognized and accepted his civic role in his work in public clinics and heroic work conducting smallpox vaccinations and administering to its victims in Boston. It was while practicing medicine that Warren met both the Boston aristocracy and the radical colonial leaders who would shape his future path and define his sense of purpose as a political figure. He remained in Boston during the 1763 smallpox epidemic, administering to the ill, and opened an inoculation hospital at Castle William in Boston Harbor. The success of the inoculations in reducing deaths established Dr. Warren’s reputation in Boston, and his practice expanded from the poor end of Boston to include the wealthy and influential. His patients included both future Whig leaders such as John Adams and Tories such as Thomas Hutchinson, the Colony’s lieutenant governor. The names of Paul Revere and William Dawes also appeared on his medical ledgers, along with long lists of the poor and common laborers (4). Dr. Warren learned the value of direct action in providing public service while practicing medicine for a broad spectrum of the citizens of Massachusetts. His political involvement grew as his contact with the Boston leaders expanded. His warmth, charm, and intelligence were widely noted by those who knew him, including his political enemies. His profession provided easy access to all classes of society, and he soon found himself a popular figure throughout Boston. Dr. Warren also became a leader in the Masonic lodges. This leadership became an important factor in his revolutionary activities, providing another secret yet powerful organization with which to expand his political and intelligence network. Warren’s leadership and popularity were recognized in 1769, when, at the age of 28, he was commissioned the “Grand Master of Masons of Boston, New England, and within one hundred miles of same” (5). The Earl of Dumfries, the Grand Master of Dr. Joseph Warren: leader in medicine, politics, and revolution