Samuel Tuke

Samuel Tuke
Born	31 July 1784 York, United Kingdom
Died	14 October 1857 York, United Kingdom
Nationality	British
Occupation	Mental Health Reformer
Known for	Founder of the York Retreat,

Samuel Tuke greatly advanced the cause of the amelioration of the condition of the insane, and devoted himself largely to the York Retreat. The methods of treatment pursued there were made more widely known by his Description of the Retreat near York. In this work Samuel Tuke referred to the Retreat's methods as moral treatment, borrowed from the French "traitement moral" being used to describe the work of Pussin and Pinel in France (and in the original French referring more to morale in the sense of the emotions and self-esteem, rather than rights and wrongs). Samuel Tuke also published Practical Hints on the Construction and Economy of Pauper Lunatic Asylums in 1815.

Samuel was part of a Quaker family. He was the son of Henry Tuke and the grandson of William Tuke, who founded the York Retreat. Samuel Tuke's two sons by his wife Priscilla Hack, James Hack Tuke and Daniel Hack Tuke were also active in humanitarian and mental healthcare concerns.

Samuel Tuke can be found buried in the Quaker cemetery within the hospital grounds.

Associated Links

• York Retreat Founding
• The Tuke Institute
• Samuel Tuke's Description of the Retreat
• Samuel Tuke's First Publication on the Treatment of Patients at The Retreat, 1811