Bernard Hart (1879–1966) and his influence on British psychiatry

Abstract

Bernard Hart was among the most eminent 20th-century British psychiatrists. Following medical qualification at University College Hospital, London, he trained in psychiatry, which included two years studying in Paris and Zurich. He was appointed as the first psychiatric consultant at University College Hospital, then spent some time in Liverpool, where he specialized in treating war neurosis. Early in his career, Hart was one of the first to introduce the ideas of Freud and Janet, and the importance of unconscious processes, to the British public. After the First World War, Hart returned to University College Hospital, where he remained until 1947, building up a flourishing department. Hart was appointed to numerous senior offices and directed the psychiatric section of the British Emergency Medical Services in the Second World War. Hart is believed to be the last psychiatrist to certify someone (John Amery) as being of sufficiently sound mind to die for treason.