Batty Tuke (as he is most often referenced) was born in Beverley, England on 9 January 1835, the son of John Batty Tuke.
Articles about Batty Tuke link him to the famous Tuke family that founded the York Retreat.

In 1845 Tuke was sent to Edinburgh where he began attending Edinburgh Academy as a boarder.
He completed his education there with honours in history and reading in 1851.
Tuke then studied Medicine at the Edinburgh University Medical School where he graduated in 1856 and was registered at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.
Shortly after qualifying, Tuke went to New Zealand as a medical surgeon for seven years in the New Zealand Wars.

Upon his return to Edinburgh in 1863 Tuke was appointed to the Royal Edinburgh Asylum (later renamed the Royal Edinburgh Hospital) as an assistant physician.
Under the tutelage of the then superintendent David Skae Tuke quickly developed a niche in puerperal insanity and published influential articles on the subject.

In 1865 Tuke's reputation was confirmed with an appointment to the newly built Fife & Kinross District Asylum (now Stratheden Hospital) as superintendent.
There he had the ability to hire and train his entire staff and set out an "open-doors" model of care for his patients which gained him further accolades from his peers.
While Tuke was working in this influential position, his publications began especially to promote his ideas for the advancement of humane patient treatment.
In 1871 Dr John Fraser joined the Fife Asylum as his assistant.
He later married his daughter (see below).

As his career progressed Tuke also occupied positions of leadership within the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and wrote an influential article on the "cottage system" of care for insane people where he criticised the traditional Scottish practices of caring for "incurable" insane people by boarding them out with often destitute members of the community in exchange for meager compensation.
In 1873 Tuke returned to Edinburgh to take a joint management position with Dr Smith and Dr Lowe at the private Saughton Hall Asylum.
This move marked a change from public to private care and Tuke also set up a practice in Charlotte Square as a "specialist in mental diseases".
That year, he was appointed to be Morison Lecturer at the RCPE for 1874, and began teaching at the University of Edinburgh.
Another notable achievement during this time was his contribution to the ninth edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica.
 Considered to be the most 'scholarly' edition produced by this publisher Tuke wrote the entries on hysteria and insanity.
Tuke also contributed to a series of "Health Lectures for the People" delivered in Edinburgh during the winter of 1881–2.
 His lectures on "The Brain and its Functions" debunked the science of phrenology and used visual demonstrations to teach the public about the brain.

In 1894 Tuke was again appointed to the Morison Lectureship at the RCPE and chose "The Insanity of Over-exertion of the Brain" as his topic.
 This series would be the culmination of Tuke's theory of physical disease as the cause of mental illness.
Tuke proposed that both the public and profession had been hampered by Hippocratic classifications of insanity that were entirely psychological and led to an ignorance of brain anatomy, physiology and pathology, and a focus on behavioural symptoms.
 He condemned the popular notion the public needed protection from lunatics as well as the idea that insanity was manifested through perversion of the intellect.
 According to Tuke these elements had combined to create communities and medical terminology that regarded insanity as "a disease of the mind".

Tuke directly avoided the task of trying to explain "the dynamics of delusion" and focused on his theory of cell overexertion by injury, parasitism, deficient cell functioning or defective cell growth.
By focusing on cell functioning and cure through rest and nutrition, Tuke rejected attributions of moral infirmity or deficiency in the insane.
 Tuke saw these ideas as slowing the progress of treatment an
Batty Tuke (as he is most often referenced) was born in Beverley, England on 9 January 1835, the son of John Batty Tuke. Articles about Batty Tuke link him to the famous Tuke family that founded the York Retreat.
In 1845 Tuke was sent to Edinburgh where he began attending Edinburgh Academy as a boarder. He completed his education there with honours in history and reading in 1851. Tuke then studied Medicine at the Edinburgh University Medical School where he graduated in 1856 and was registered at the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh. Shortly after qualifying, Tuke went to New Zealand as a medical surgeon for seven years in the New Zealand Wars.
Upon his return to Edinburgh in 1863 Tuke was appointed to the Royal Edinburgh Asylum (later renamed the Royal Edinburgh Hospital) as an assistant physician. Under the tutelage of the then superintendent David Skae Tuke quickly developed a niche in puerperal insanity and published influential articles on the subject. 
In 1865 Tuke's reputation was confirmed with an appointment to the newly built Fife & Kinross District Asylum (now Stratheden Hospital) as superintendent. There he had the ability to hire and train his entire staff and set out an "open-doors" model of care for his patients which gained him further accolades from his peers. While Tuke was working in this influential position, his publications began especially to promote his ideas for the advancement of humane patient treatment. In 1871 Dr John Fraser joined the Fife Asylum as his assistant. He later married his daughter (see below).
As his career progressed Tuke also occupied positions of leadership within the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh and wrote an influential article on the "cottage system" of care for insane people where he criticised the traditional Scottish practices of caring for "incurable" insane people by boarding them out with often destitute members of the community in exchange for meager compensation. In 1873 Tuke returned to Edinburgh to take a joint management position with Dr Smith and Dr Lowe at the private Saughton Hall Asylum. This move marked a change from public to private care and Tuke also set up a practice in Charlotte Square as a "specialist in mental diseases". That year, he was appointed to be Morison Lecturer at the RCPE for 1874, and began teaching at the University of Edinburgh. Another notable achievement during this time was his contribution to the ninth edition of the Encyclopædia Britannica.  Considered to be the most 'scholarly' edition produced by this publisher Tuke wrote the entries on hysteria and insanity. Tuke also contributed to a series of "Health Lectures for the People" delivered in Edinburgh during the winter of 1881–2.  His lectures on "The Brain and its Functions" debunked the science of phrenology and used visual demonstrations to teach the public about the brain.
In 1894 Tuke was again appointed to the Morison Lectureship at the RCPE and chose "The Insanity of Over-exertion of the Brain" as his topic.  This series would be the culmination of Tuke's theory of physical disease as the cause of mental illness. Tuke proposed that both the public and profession had been hampered by Hippocratic classifications of insanity that were entirely psychological and led to an ignorance of brain anatomy, physiology and pathology, and a focus on behavioural symptoms.  He condemned the popular notion the public needed protection from lunatics as well as the idea that insanity was manifested through perversion of the intellect.  According to Tuke these elements had combined to create communities and medical terminology that regarded insanity as "a disease of the mind".
Tuke directly avoided the task of trying to explain "the dynamics of delusion" and focused on his theory of cell overexertion by injury, parasitism, deficient cell functioning or defective cell growth. By focusing on cell functioning and cure through rest and nutrition, Tuke rejected attributions of moral infirmity or deficiency in the insane.  Tuke saw these ideas as slowing the progress of treatment an
John Batty Tuke