Physicians from United Kingdom

The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the top 10 most legendary British Physicians of all time. This list of famous British Physicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography's online popularity. Visit the rankings page to view the entire list of British Physicians.

1. #1

   

   Joseph Lister

   1827 - 1912

   HPI 81.4673 langs

   Joseph Lister is most famous for his work in the field of antiseptic surgery. He introduced the use of carbolic acid (phenol) to sterilize...Read moreShow less

   Joseph Lister is most famous for his work in the field of antiseptic surgery. He introduced the use of carbolic acid (phenol) to sterilize surgical instruments and the operating theater, and to clean wounds.

2. #2

   

   Edward Jenner

   1749 - 1823

   HPI 81.13100 langs

   Edward Jenner is most famous for his development of the smallpox vaccine. Jenner's vaccine was the first to use cowpox, a related virus, as...Read moreShow less

   Edward Jenner is most famous for his development of the smallpox vaccine. Jenner's vaccine was the first to use cowpox, a related virus, as an immunization against smallpox.

3. #3

   

   Edgar Adrian

   1889 - 1977

   HPI 80.0560 langs

   Edgar Adrian was a British physiologist who won the 1932 Nobel Prize in Medicine for his work on the physiology of nerve and muscle.

4. #4

   

   William Harvey

   1578 - 1657

   HPI 79.4081 langs

   William Harvey is most famous for his work on the circulatory system. He discovered that blood circulates through the body in a closed loop,...Read moreShow less

   William Harvey is most famous for his work on the circulatory system. He discovered that blood circulates through the body in a closed loop, and he described the function of the heart and the valves in the circulatory system.

5. #5

   

   Alan Hodgkin

   1914 - 1998

   HPI 78.0857 langs

   Alan Hodgkin is most famous for his research on the ionic basis of nerve and muscle action.

6. #6

   

   John Snow

   1813 - 1858

   HPI 76.3339 langs

   John Snow was a British physician and epidemiologist who discovered the cause of an 1854 cholera outbreak in London. Snow's map of the Soho...Read moreShow less

   John Snow was a British physician and epidemiologist who discovered the cause of an 1854 cholera outbreak in London. Snow's map of the Soho neighborhood showed that most of the cholera cases were near the Broad Street water pump. His study convinced authorities to remove the handle from the pump, thus preventing any more cases of cholera.

7. #7

   

   James Black

   1924 - 2010

   HPI 75.7058 langs
8. #8

   

   Niels Kaj Jerne

   1911 - 1994

   HPI 71.4153 langs

   Niels Kaj Jerne is most famous for his work in immunology. He is considered the father of modern immunology. In 1984, he won the Nobel Prize...Read moreShow less

   Niels Kaj Jerne is most famous for his work in immunology. He is considered the father of modern immunology. In 1984, he won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for his work in understanding how the immune system recognizes and responds to foreign invaders.

9. #9

   

   James Parkinson

   1755 - 1824

   HPI 70.8837 langs

   James Parkinson was a British physician who published the first medical description of Parkinson's disease in 1817.

10. #10

    

    Elizabeth Blackwell

    1821 - 1910

    HPI 70.0359 langs

    Elizabeth Blackwell is most famous for being the first woman to graduate from medical school in the United States.