Medicine on the Western Front summary notes on Edexcel GCSE History Medicine Through Time, C1250-Present
Notes on Medieval Edexcel GCSE History Medicine Through Time, C1250-Present
Renaissance Medicine summary notes on Edexcel GCSE History Medicine Through Time, C1250-Present
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c1250-1500: Medicine in medieval England
Ideas about cause of disease and illness
People were very religious so the idea of God punishing people for their sins was popular and was used to explain
ideas about disease and illness, its existence also provided evidence for God’s existence as being ill was a way of God
cleansing your soul or to test your faith. Astrology was another supernatural cause as Hippocrates made the impact
of stars and planets on health important.
Individuals:
The Theory of Four Humours: Developed by the Ancient Greeks, Hippocrates believed in studying and treating
symptoms rather than looking for causes of illness so he came up with blood, phlegm, black bile and yellow bile. In
order for you to be well you needed to balance your humours but they could also be influenced by age, star sign and
seasons e.g. if you were a water sign you were more likely to suffer from colds
Galen developed this theory further by inventing the Theory of Opposites e.g. a fever could be treated by eating a
cucumber to cool the attention down, very popular as it explained any type of illness. He also believed the
circulatory system was in the liver.
Hippocrates and Galen were both very popular and monks translated their work into Latin 800 years after they were
written (monks worked for God and God is the cause of disease therefore treatment should come from God)
Why Galen had such a large influence
The influence of the Church Church promoted Galen’s teachings as he believed in the soul as well as
Hippocrates’ theories, they also controlled medical learning in universities
The importance of book learning Most people were illiterate so the best physicians were people who read
lots of Galen and Hippocrates rather than had the most experience
The lack of alternatives Dissections were illegal (as Church said body should be buried whole) so
there was a lack of scientific evidence although sometimes they vivisected
criminals but a physician himself never examined, only barber surgeons did,
but anyway they believed criminals’ bodies were imperfect so theories
stayed intact
Miasma: bad air filled with harmful fumes, supported by Galen and Hippocrates, associated with God as if your home
smelt nice then you would be associated with having a pure spirit
Urine charts: examined urine before making diagnosis and would use it for diagnosis, occasionally tasting the urine
Lack of science and technology: instead of discovering new theories, they tried to fit new information into old ones
so new knowledge was limited. Printing press was invented by Johannes Gutenberg in 1440 which led to much faster
and easier sharing of medical texts which they didn’t have in Medieval period
Attitudes in society: people trusted the Church so didn’t use physicians who didn't believe in Four Humours. They
also believed that medicine had always been done the same way so there was no need to change it.
,Treatment - Individuals, science and technology, religion
Religious and treatments: believed that a cure should involve supernatural as disease was sent by God so this
included: healing prayers and incantations, paying for special mass, fasting and pilgrimages but sometimes the sick
were discouraged from seeking remedies because being punished for sins was part of God’s plan so you should
endure pain
Astrology: physicians consulted star charts for diagnosing treatment as well as they treated each symptom hoping
this would resolve the problem
Treating each humoural imbalance
Humour Method How it removed excess tumour
Blood Phlebotomy (some died) Cutting with sharp instruments,
Cutting a vein usually from vein near elbow
Leeches Collected, washed, starved leeches
Cupping so they'd suck blood from humans
Pierced ski, heated cup placed over
cuts for vacuum to draw blood out
Phlegm Smelling/eating chillies They thought it forced out excess
phlegm (it unblocked sinuses)
Yellow bile Purging Brought up excess yellow bile so
they could carry on eating
Black bile Provide an enema/laxative Cleared out anything left in body
Remedies
Superstitions Got rid of paralysis as bathing in boiled fox water would transfer the quick and nimble
properties of the fox to the patient
Herbals Aloe vera was used to improve digestion as if your digestive system was healthy you
wouldn't have to purge
Theriaca contained up to 70 spices and Galen wrote that the herbs were effective at
treating snake bites
Food Humours were thought to be created from digestion of food, blanc mangier was
recommended for medieval invalids as ingredients were warm and moist
xBathing Warm baths drew in body heat to dissolved blockages in humours, have opportunities
to steam out impurities and ease joints
Prevention
Individuals: Regimen Sanitatis: used to keep humours in balance, miasma away and
Regimen Sanitatis (Hippocrates and great because in line with Church views
Galen) Physicians advised things from Regimen Sanitatis because it was all they
Physicians had e.g. keeping clean (miasma), not operating (to avoid purging)
Institutions: Praying, being moral, going to Church (as God is cause of disease)
Influence of the Church Monarch was laissez-faire so left it to local authorities but there were
Local authorities varying degrees of intervention so it didn’t improve as national government
didn’t accept responsibility which created inconsistencies
Attitudes in society: Encouraged to have hood smells to keep bad smells away and discourage
Miasma disease
Diet Don't overeat, purge between courses as humours produced through
Hygiene digestion so healthy diet was important for preventing disease
Caregiving: Apothecaries gave herbal remedies (not medically trained)
Medieval 'medics’ Physicians couldn't dissect but were more medically trained and could read
Apothecaries but only the wealthy were diagnosed by physicians so most relied on local
Physicians women, physicians looked at urine charts
Barber surgeons Barber surgeons weren't medically trained
, Caring for the sick
Care offered Offered hospitality (shelter and food) to travellers, pilgrims and the sick
rather than medicine or care. Often patients would share beds, whilst nuns
did nursing and priests did healing. Recovery was proof of God’s existence.
Infectious/terminal patients often rejected as they couldn't be healed.
Majority of the sick were still cared for at home. Women grew herbs in
garden to treat sick.
Technology/Lack of Hospitals received lots of money from endowments but didn’t invest in
technology as it was God’s will whether or not a person survived. Hospitals
were kept very clean for benefit of Church but they didn’t know about
germs. Religious men were forbidden from cutting body.
Controlled by 30% of 1,100 hospitals were controlled by Church and run by monks and
nuns
Changes/progress Clean, treated some sick, lots of hospitals, women had experience
Continuation/limited progress People couldn't identify what the effective treatment was if a patient
survived as they believed god caused it, hospitals didn’t treat patients, it
was for hospitality, no dissections, women had no medical training, no
physicians in hospitals
The Black Death
The outbreak of bubonic plague, bacteria were carried in the digestive system of fleas who arrived in England on rats
carried by merchant ships. Approximately a third of the population died.
Supernatural causes Astrology and astronomy: the movement of plants was often thought to spread diseases
God was thought to be cause of disease
Witchcraft thought to cause disease
Natural causes It was observed that there was more illness in places where there were bad smells or dirty
water so it was blamed on miasma
Supernatural Confess sins, ask for forgiveness through prayer as it was God’s will if patient died
treatment
Natural treatment Physicians tried bleeding/purging (people died more quickly), strong smelling herbs were
believed to have cleansing properties, lighting fires (got rid of bad air), boiling vinegar,
lancing buboes (occasionally people survived)
Supernatural Prayers, offerings, pilgrimages, self-flagellation to show remorse
prevention
Natural prevention Escape quickly, carry flowers/fresh herbs to nose to avoid breathing in miasma, avoid
bathing as water opened up pores to miasma
Government Quarantine laws put in place, new people had to stay away for 40 days, quarantined local
prevention breakouts, banned preaching and religious processions to stop large crowds gathering
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