Letter: History backs women riders

Sir: Daniel Rosenthal is incorrect in describing Professor Lesley Regan as the first woman in England to hold a Chair in Obstetrics and Gynaecology ("Birth of a prof", 4 December).

This honour was held by Dame Anne L McIlroy, who was appointed to the Chair of Obstetrics and Gynaecology at London University (tenable at the Royal Free Hospital) in 1921.

Some years later, in 1943, Dame Hilda Lloyd was appointed to the similar Chair at the University of Birmingham, an appointment she held for 11 years. She also became the first, and so far the only, woman to be made President of the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

Miss G M EVANS

Winchester