Renaissance England

• What was the Renaissance period? When was it?

  -Meaning 'rebirth', it was time of great artistic and scientific progress. It was a period of transition from the ancient to the modern world.

  -It is generally considered to be around 1400 - 1600
• What were the changes in the Renaissance period, compared to medieval times?

  -The idea of humanism was developed. They believed that high levels of human potential could be achieved through education.

  -Physicians no longer believed The Theory of the Four Humours as they began to understand that disease was something separate from the body.

  -Doctors were able to carry out more human dissections, so the human anatomy became more known

  -Physicians came to rely more on their own observations, studies, and procedures such as dissections.
• What did people continue to believe in the Renaissance period?

  -Ordinary people still held the same beliefs as their medieval ancestors about what caused illness- many believed illness came from God

  -Ordinary people continued to rely on the same treatments for disease, including the need to balance the four humours, and the part played by religion.

  -Miasma theory remained. Both physicians and ordinary people continued to believe disease could be caused by bad air.
• What was the Printing Press? Who invented it? When was it invented?

  -A machine used to reproduce writing and images. It uses ink on paper to make many identical copies.

  -Inventor: Johannes Gutenberg

  -Around 1440
• What was the significance of the Printing Press?

  -New ideas and medical knowledge could be spread more quickly.

  -Publishing lots of copies of a theory meant many people had the chance to understand a theory in detail, and either object to or agree with it.

  -Control over what was published, and therefore which ideas influenced society, was no longer in the hands of the Church. This meant that the influence of Galen's ideas was reduced.
• How was treatment the same as in the Medieval period?

  -People were still superstitious.

  -Doctors still hadn't understood the link between dirt and disease.

  -There was continuity in ideas about what caused disease: for example, miasma.

  -Herbal remedies remained popular.

  -Bloodletting was still used as a treatment.
• How did treatment change since the medieval period?

  -Galen no longer dominated scientific thought.

  -Technology was gradually advancing so that new inventions helped make more discoveries.

  -Alchemy became popular, as people began to look at using chemicals for cures, rather than balancing the humours.

  -The Theory of Transference became popular. This suggested that a disease could be transferred through contact with a plant or animal.
• How did people attempt to prevent illness with religion during the Renaissance?

  People were advised to pray to God and repent their sins
• How did people prevent miasma during the Renaissance?

  People were advised to purify the air by carrying a pomander. This was a ball of sweet smelling herbs.
• How was diet used to prevent illness during the Renaissance?

  Fasting was advised, as well as garlic-heavy diets.
• What did apothecaries do to prevent illness during the Renaissance?

  Apothecaries provided herbal remedies such as chewing dry tobacco to ward off the miasma.
• How did the government try to prevent illness during the Renaissance?

  The government played a much bigger role in public health, through quarantine laws and street cleaning.
• What was the Royal Society?

  . Founded in 1660 in London

  . Supports scientists in carrying out experiments, debating new ideas and sharing new discoveries.

  . Supported by Charles II, which increased the popularity and credibility of the organisation.

  . Published a journal called 'Philosophical Transactions'. It contained experiments and research from scientists. The work was written in English rather than Latin, so that more people could understand it.
• Who was Andreas Versalius?

  Andreas Vesalius was a Belgian physician.

  Most famous Renaissance physician
• What did Vesalius discover?

  Vesalius noticed that Galen had made some incorrect assumptions about the human body, as Galen had been unable to dissect human corpses. By dissecting humans, Vesalius was able to improve on Galen’s previous work. He made the following discoveries:

  • the human jaw has one bone, not two
  • the human breastbone has three parts, not seven
  • blood does not flow into the heart through invisible holes in the septum (the wall dividing the ventricles of the heart) but is ‘diffused’ through it
• Why was Vesalius controversial?

  Vesalius used dissections to show how Galen's understanding of the human body was incorrect. This subsequently lost Vesalius his job at the university.
• Why was Vesalius one of the first people to scientifically disprove Galen's ideas?

  . Dissection had previously been viewed as extremely indecent and blasphemous, but it was no longer banned because the power of the Church was decreasing.

  . Vesalius was able to carry out a large number of dissections because a local magistrate allowed him to use the bodies of executed criminals.

  . This meant that Vesalius was able to closely observe the internal parts of the body by completing various dissection procedures.
• Why was Vesalius significant?

  . His work encouraged other doctors to learn through first-hand experience by performing dissections.

  . His studies of the circulatory system were an important contribution to the understanding that the heart acts as a pump.

  . The illustrations in his book 'On the Fabric of the Human Body' were copied and inserted into other books.

  . Others were able to develop his work into the human anatomy further, because he provided the detailed ground work.
• Who was William Harvey?


  William Harvey was an English doctor who studied medicine at university in Cambridge and Padua. He specialised in physiology, and was physician to both James I and Charles I in England.
• How did Harvey challenge the work of Galen?

  He challenged Galen's understanding that blood was made in the liver and that it was used as fuel. Harvey believed blood circulated around the body. This marked the beginning of the end of Galen's superiority.
• How did Harvey explain blood circulation?

  Harvey demonstrated how the heart was a pump for moving blood around the body. He used valves from a dissected heart to demonstrate that blood could only flow in one direction.

  However:

  • He did not understand why blood needed to circulate around the body.
  • He did not know why blood in the arteries was different from blood in the veins.
• Why did Harvey face resistance from other doctors?

  . Blood transfusions to combat blood loss were now attempted, as Harvey's work demonstrated that this was essential. These attempts failed because there was a lack of understanding of blood groups. Therefore, his work was seen as not having much practical application.

  . After so many years of Church dominance, people were reluctant to accept alternative information.

  . As Harvey did not know why blood needed to circulate, or why the blood in arteries and veins was different, some other doctors rejected his ideas.
• What was the significance of Harvey's work?

  His theory of circulation was the first step towards blood transfusions becoming possible, and therefore saving lives. He was also one of the first to question Galen. However, his impact at the time was small.
• Which factors contributed to Harvey's discovery?As an individual, Harvey was skilled, and was employed by Charles I. This gave him credibility and popularity.

  • ❖Institutions such as the Church were declining in popularity and influence, which meant that more people were challenging Galen's work.
  • ❖Harvey was inspired by new technology, such as the mechanical water pump.
  • ❖Attitudes in society were changing. People were seeking scientific explanations during the Renaissance. This influenced medicine in terms of people's understanding of the body, and the diagnosis and treatment of illness.
• Which factors contributed to Harvey's discovery?

  . As an individual, Harvey was skilled, and was employed by Charles I. This gave him credibility and popularity.

  . The Church were declining in popularity and influence, which meant that more people were challenging Galen's work.

  . Harvey was inspired by new technology, such as the mechanical water pump.

  . Attitudes in society were changing. People were seeking scientific explanations during the Renaissance. This influenced medicine in terms of people's understanding of the body, and the diagnosis and treatment of illness.
• How did people react to Harvey's discovery?

  . Some criticised Harvey and said that he was mad to suggest that blood circulated in the body.

  . His ideas went against Galen, and some doctors refused to support him as a result.

  . Although some opposed him, his theory was accepted by many during his life.
• Who was Thomas Sydenham?


  Thomas Sydenham was an English physician who advanced the use scientific processes in medicine.
• What was humanism?

  . The Renaissance saw an increase in new learning and ways of thinking. The Church had less power to tell people what they should think.

  . Humanism was a new way of thinking. It recognised the importance of the individual in discovering the truth around them.

  . Humanist ideas represented a challenge to the old ideas and encouraged experimentation to find the truth. They rejected the religious idea that God controlled everything.
• What was Thomas Sydenham's main idea?

  Sydenham believed that to diagnose a patient’s illness, a doctor needed to closely observe the symptoms and treat the disease that was causing them. He refused to rely solely on medical books. Contrary to the theory of the four humours, Sydenham did not believe that a disease was different from person to person. He encouraged his students to:

  • observe a patient carefully
  • record a description of their symptoms
  • prescribe a remedy that would treat the disease
• What impact did Sydenham have?

  . Sydenham became known as the ‘English Hippocrates’ because of how important he believed it was for doctors to observe their patients.

  . He believed that each disease was different and that doctors needed to identify the exact disease before recommending a cure.

  . He was able to identify that scarlet fever and measles were different.
• What was Sydenham's book called?

  Sydenham published his ideas about disease in a book called Observationes Medicae (Medical Observations) in 1676. His work led to a more scientific approach to medicine after the 18th century.
• How did the training of physicians make an impact in Renaissance society?

  The training of physicians took a more scientific approach, encouraging observation and experimentation. Doctors had the opportunity to dissect bodies and learn using new technology, such as the microscope.
• How did Hospitals change during the Renaissance?

  . Hospitals were no longer just places where people could rest and pray. Patients were given treatment, and records were kept to show how many people recovered.

  . Physicians visited patients in the hospitals, where they carried out observations and recommended treatments.

  . Hospitals had their own apothecaries

  . As King Henry VIII closed down monasteries during the Reformation, many hospitals also closed as they were run by the Church. It took some time for numbers to increase again, and many hospitals were subsequently run by charities.
• What were pest houses?

  Pest houses were set up for people suffering from extremely infectious diseases, like the plague.
• What was the Great Plague?


  . The Great Plague was the last major epidemic of Bubonic plague in England.

  . Lasted from 1665 to 1666.

  . Killed 100,000 people
• What did people believe were the causes of the Great Plague?

  . People believed that God had sent the disease as punishment.

  . People believed that miasmas or bad smells caused the disease.

  . Many believed that an unusual alignment of planets caused the disease.
• What were the remedies used against the Great Plague?


  . Physicians tried to balance their patients' humours, for example by bloodletting.

  . Fires were lit in the streets to purify the air.

  . Infected houses were quarantined. A red cross, and the words 'God have mercy upon us', were painted on the door.

  . Public prayer and confession.

  . Transference: for example, by attaching a live chicken to the buboes.
• How were quack doctors involved in the plague?

  . Quack doctors were people who had no medical training, but who charged people for treatment as if they were a physician or apothecary.

  . Due to a lack of medical understanding, there were a number of quack cures for the Great Plague. Quack doctors sold different pills or herbal remedies that supposedly cured people, or protected them from the disease.
• How did the government intervene to try to stop the spread the Great Plague?


  . They banned public meetings, fairs, and large funerals.

  . Streets and alleyways were regularly cleaned.

  . Dogs and cats were killed, because people believed they were spreading the disease.

  . Plague victims had to be quarantined for 40 days.

  . Carts travelled through the city to collect dead bodies.
• What event is believed to have helped end the great plague?

  Some people believe the Great Fire of London killed much of the plague bacteria, by killing the rats who carried the fleas which transmitted the disease.