The true story of military surgeon James Barry takes place in the Victorian era. There are no anesthetics, medical gowns nor ordinary rubber gloves, and operating rooms are akin to butcher shops. Barry builds his medical methods upon a scientific basis and thus is a revelation in these unenlightened times. The medieval practices commonly accepted by the medicine workers of that time compete fiercely with the modern medicine of the young doctor. Thanks to his uncompromising, defiant, hard-working character and service in the military, Barry eventually crosses three continents. He sets out the basic principles of hygiene and quarantine against the epidemics of plague, yellow fever or typhoid, principles which are still valid today. How relevant.
Only after Barry’s death does it become apparent that he was in fact a woman. Her name was Margaret Bulkley, and in order to graduate and become a doctor (which was not possible at the time), she adopted a male disguise. All with the secret support of family and progressive friends. For practical reasons, she accepted a job in the army. It is difficult to imagine a more extreme and demanding environment – the life of military drills, warfields dotted with the dead and wounded, traveling overseas on massive ships through royal colonies and exotic tropical lands full of unknown diseases. The fact that she eventually achieves the highest position equivalent to the rank of brigadier general and become recognised among experts as part of the first-class medical will without exaggeration, surprise and amaze absolutely everyone.