Forbes Winslow

Born in Pentonville in August 1810, Forbes Benignus Winslow trained at University College London and the Middlesex Hospital, later becoming a member of the Royal College of Surgeons in 1835 and earning an M.D. from Aberdeen in 1849. Early in his career he supported himself in practical ways, including reporting for The Times and writing manuals for medical students.

Winslow became widely known for his writing on mental health, suicide, and the law. His books included The Anatomy of Suicide (1840), The Plea of Insanity in Criminal Cases (1843), The Incubation of Insanity (1845), and On the Obscure Diseases of the Brain and Mind (1860). In 1847 he opened two private asylums at Hammersmith and was noted for using more humane treatment methods at a time when such approaches were still gaining acceptance. He also founded the Quarterly Journal of Psychological Medicine in 1848 and edited it for many years.

By the middle of the 19th century, he was a well-known authority on insanity in both medicine and the courts, and he was called to testify in several major legal cases. Oxford awarded him an honorary D.C.L. in 1853. He died at Brighton on March 3, 1874, and was buried at Epping.