The unity of medicine : its corruptions and divisions, by law established in England and Wales, their causes, effects, and remedy / By Frederick Davies.

  • Davies, Frederick.
Date:
1870
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The unity of medicine : its corruptions and divisions, by law established in England and Wales, their causes, effects, and remedy / By Frederick Davies. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by Royal College of Physicians, London. The original may be consulted at Royal College of Physicians, London.

    75/366 (page 41)
    THE MODEEN PHYSICIAN, Tvhose existence or removal was less easily detected, remained during this period tlie exclusive province of the priest-physician.* I would fain hope to have faithfully portrayed, not only the history, but, in some measure at least, the true cause of the first great schism in medicine. It remains to consider the more immediate subject of this paper; namely, the physician's office—thus (jiyitied—THROUGHOUT Great Britain and Ireland in MODERN TIMES; for which purpose it will be necessary to regard severally, that portion of it which attached to the priest and monk, even up to the time of its transfer to the Royal College of Physicians; and the other division which was consigned by the same authority to Barbers, Smiths, and others. Whilst such evil powers and principles had com- bined to complete this division, better and more worthy means were at work to establish the revival of hterature generally, and with it that of medicine. The escape of the Greek savans with their long- hidden copies of the ancient authors from Constan- tinople, and elsewhere in the Eastern empire, prior to, and at the time of its capture by the Turks, A.D. * In tlie fourteentli century miraculous cures continued to be as frequent as in tlie times preceding. Whilst men of science and learning (followers of Roger Bacon and Petrus d'Apono) were con- signed to death as magicians and sorcerers, sainted physicians became so numerous, that some absurd laws were enacted whereby alone cures could be pronounced miraculous, and the physician canonised. See Sprengel, torn, ii, p. 428.