Pierre Léon Serph (1781-1849) - French Surgeon and Prisoner of War

On 28th March 1806 the French Corvette "Néaque" was one of a convoy of four ships that left Lorient heading towards the waters around Iceland to attack British whaling vessels. Néaque could not keep up with the other ships and the same evening was captured by the British frigate Niobe. There were no casualties and Néarque was taken into Plymouth. Amongst the crew of about 100 was a surgeon, Pierre Léon Serph, aged 25.

He had been born to a medical family in Civray in Vienne, Poitou-Charentes.

Pierre Serph became a prisoner of war and was one of about 280 billeted in Crediton at that time. It was there that he met and married Ann Moore. She was 41 when they married in 1810. She was the daughter of John Moore and his wife Elizabeth (Waldron) who lived in Crediton. It was from the Waldron family that Ann inherited a valuable property, Collihole Farmhouse - a Dartmoor longhouse - near Chagford, that formed part of her marriage settlement.

Pierre and his wife then moved to Welshpool in Montgomeryshire where he established himself as a successful surgeon and apothecary, living at 12 High Street. Between 1812 and 1814 about 150 French paroled naval officers were detained in Welshpool.

In the museum in Powys there is a rather fine model of a guillotine, made in Welshpool from mutton bones by French prisoners of war.

In 1813 Ann's mother died in Welshpool and was buried in St Mary's churchyard. Pierre Serph applied for naturalisation - "denization" - in 1820, stating that he had disposed of all his property in France and intended on investing the proceeds in Britain, and desired to become "a permanent subject of His Brittanic (sic) Majesty". He was succesful although it cost him £50.

In 1827 he described a patient with recurrent bladder stones.

The Serphs had no children; Ann died in 1837 and was buried with her mother. In her will she left everything, including her property in Devon, to her husband. The following year he sold the farm near Chagford for £1,100.



Around 1844 Pierre Serph returned to France to his home town, where he died in April 1849, aged 68.