Medicine in the Middle Ages, P4

Shidonna Raven
1 hour ago
2 min read

The Art of History

January 1, 2012

Photo Source: Unsplash,

Surgery such as amputations, cauterization, removal of cataracts, dental extractions, and even trepanning (perforating the skull to relieve pressure on the brain) were practiced. Surgeons would have relied on opiates for anesthesia and doused wounds with wine as a form of antiseptic.

Many people would have sought out the local healer for care, or might have gone to the barber to be bled or even leeched. Midwives took care of childbirth (21.168) and childhood ailments. For the sick and dying, there were hospitals. Although many large monasteries did have hospitals attached to them—for example, Saint Bartholemew’s in London and the Hotel Dieu in Paris—and all would have had at least a small infirmary where sick and dying monks could be cared for, it is unclear just how much time the monks dedicated to care of the sick. The medicus in a monastery would have devoted himself to prayer, the laying on of hands, exorcizing of demons, and of course the dispensing of herbal medicine. The hospital of Santa Maria della Scala in Siena was initially administered by the canons of the cathedral (23.166); (16.154.5). It was renowned for its efficient administration and, supported by wealthy patrons, was richly endowed with works of art (1975.1.2488); (32.100.95). Many communities had hospitals to care for the sick that were independent of monasteries.

Some of the most notorious illnesses of the Middle Ages were the plague (the Black Death), leprosy, and Saint Anthony’s fire. From 1346, the plague ravaged Europe, and rich and poor alike succumbed with terrifying speed (69.86). Pneumonic plague attacked the lungs and bubonic plague produced the characteristic buboes; there was no cure for either form. The only hope for those who escaped the dread disease was prayer or pilgrimage. While leprosy (54.1.2), Hours of Jeanne d’Evreux, Louis Feeding the Lepers, fol. 123v) was very disfiguring and therefore sufferers were feared and kept apart, in fact, leprosy has a very slow incubation period and may not have been as contagious as it was believed. Lepers were obliged to live outside a town or village and to carry a bell to warn people of their approach. Many medieval parish churches in England have leper “squints” that allowed a leper to see the Mass and even receive the sacrament without coming into contact with other parishioners.