Charles Lewis Meryon

Charles Lewis Meryon (27 June 1783 – 11 September 1877) was an English physician and biographer.

Life The son of Lewis Meryon of Rye, Sussex, from a Huguenot background, he was born on 27 June 1783. He was educated at Merchant Taylors' School, from 1796 to 1802. Obtaining a Stuart's exhibition to St John's College, Oxford, he matriculated there on 29 March 1803, and graduated B.A. 1806, M.A. 1809, M.B. and M.D. 1817. He studied medicine at St. Thomas's Hospital under Henry Cline.

With Cline's recommendation, Meryon was in 1810 taken on by the eccentric Lady Hester Stanhope, as her medical attendant, on a voyage to Sicily and the Near East. He was with her during her seven years' wanderings, saw her finally settled on Mount Lebanon, and then returned to England to take his medical degrees. Meryon revisited Syria at Lady Hester's request in 1819, and found that she had adopted local customs. A clash with one of her medical men ended his stay. After disagreements, mainly centred on his wife, Meryon left Mount Lebanon in April 1831. He paid Lady Hester a fourth and last visit between July 1837 and August 1838.

Family Meryon had a son with Narcisse Chaspoux, a French ballet dancer, the artist Charles Méryon. Edward Meryon M.D. was a nephew. Charles Meryon had a daughter Eugenia and a son John by his wife, as mentioned in Lady Stanhope's memoirs.