author
Charles S. (Charles Snodgrass) Ryan
1853–1926
An Australian surgeon and soldier, he became famous for serving with the Turkish army during the Russo-Turkish War and later wrote vividly about those experiences in Under the Red Crescent. His life also stretched into major roles in Melbourne medicine and the early Australian military forces.
1 Audiobook
Under the Red Crescent Adventures of an English Surgeon with the Turkish Army at Plevna and Erzeroum 1877-1878
by Charles S. (Charles Snodgrass) Ryan, John Sandes
About the author
Born in Victoria in 1853, Charles Snodgrass Ryan studied medicine in Melbourne and Edinburgh before continuing his training in Europe. As a young doctor he joined the Turkish army during the Russo-Turkish War of 1877–78, serving at Plevna and Erzurum. Those experiences gave him the material for Under the Red Crescent, the memoir by which many readers know him today.
Back in Australia, Ryan built a distinguished career as a surgeon in Melbourne and became a well-known figure in public and military medicine. He served in the Victorian forces, worked as an honorary surgeon at major hospitals, and later took on senior medical responsibilities connected with Australia’s military forces.
During the First World War, he served with the Australian Imperial Force in Egypt and at Gallipoli as a senior medical officer. He was knighted and remained a prominent public figure until his death in 1926, remembered for combining adventurous wartime experience with a long career in medicine and service.