Superstition vs Science: Understanding Medicine in the Middle Ages

Medieval medicine played an important role in medieval history, some illnesses could be cured by a wise woman, whereas others need to be dealt with by a barber-surgeon.

In the middle ages there were many common diseases with treatments that were not very reliable, one of which being hemorrhoids. Hemorrhoids is the swelling of veins in the anus and the lower area of the rectum. In medieval times, hemorrhoids was known as St Fiacre’s Curse. St Fiacre is the patron saint of hemorrhoid sufferers and gardeners; it is said that one day when St Fiacre was in his garden, he sat upon a stone and was completely cured of his hemorrhoids. Later, many physicians told their clients to sit on the stone and then hope to be cured. If this failed to work, than more extreme methods were used. A cautery iron was inserted into the anus to burn off hemorrhoids in the rectum.

A peritonsillar abscess or a Quinsy is a very painful and inflamed throat. It occurs when an excessive amount of pus forms and infection spreads past the tonsils, to the neck and chest. Today, a Quinsy can be cured with the help of a medical professional, but in the Middle Ages it was a much more horrific and stomach-turning treatment.

Firstly, a fat cat would be needed by the physician, then the mammal would be flayed, and the guts drained. Next, the fat of a bear and grease of a hedgehog would be mixed with fenugreek, gum of honeysuckle, virgin wax and sage. This crumbly mixture would then be stuffed inside of the hollow cat and roasted. Grease drippings would then be collected from the cat and then given to the patient to soothe the irritated throat. However, there is no proof that this concoction was very successful.

The medicine from medieval times was undeniably not based on scientific knowledge, an example being that surgeons believed people with a mental illness or epilepsy was caused by the possession of a demon.

To get better, trephination or trepanning was used to treat mental illnesses, seizures, skull fractures and headaches. Trepanning is a surgery where a hole is drilled or incised into the head which then lets the ‘bad’ be released from the brain. Trephination was only to be performed on adults, both men and women of wealth. There was knowledge of anesthesia but patients were usually in deep sleep when the surgery took place. However dangerous this surgery may seem, it’s also used sometimes in today’s practice to help relieve pressure after serious trauma with the added benefits of today’s medicine.

To conclude, medicine and medical treatments in the middle ages were not entirely based off scientific knowledge as a headache can usually be fixed with ibuprofen and there wasn’t enough anatomical knowledge to properly conduct surgeries.

Many elements of medicine have survived until today’s practice, one of which being maggot therapy. Maggot therapy aims to clean injuries and prevent infection. As they feed on dead flesh, they are a great treatment as physicians don’t have to worry about the maggots feeding off healthy tissue. It is proven that maggots clear away more dead flesh than surgical debridement and this was proven in a study published in the Archives of Dermatology.

Superstition had great power over Medieval society, in contrast to science that there was little to no knowledge of. Because of the unknown, superstition was allowed to explain illnesses and medication instead of anatomical knowledge explaining the causes and cures. As many people thought that diseases were caused by demons and evil spirits entering the body, charms and incantations were used. On the other hand, many individuals believed that if witches gave them the ‘evil eye’ it would cause diseases or push demons into their bodies.

Many people of the Middle Ages believed that kings and queens also had the ability to heal disease by their touch, this was referred to as ‘the royal touch.’ A disease with glandular swellings, known as scrofula, was believed to be healed when touched by a sovereign. Edward Confessor, ruler of England from 1042-1066 was claimed to be the first person to practice the healing method. Large ceremonies would take place where hundreds of people affected from scrofula would be touched and then receive special gold coins known as touch pieces that were believed to bring good luck and cure disease.

In the Middle Ages, the term ‘bless you’ when someone sneezed was highly used. The reasoning behind the phrase was that sneezing was one of the first signs of the plague and people believed if they bless the ones that sneeze, God will help save them from the plague.

There are many medicinal superstitions during the Middle Ages that had huge effects on men, women and children. These superstitions existed as there wasn’t a lot of knowledge about the human body, instead people acted on fear and chose to believe these tales.

Bibliography:

1. Roy Porter, 1997, Medicine a History of Healing, The Ivy Press Limited,
2. No author, no date, Magic and superstition in the European Dark Ages, viewed-6/10/2019, http://www.historyisnowmagazine.com/blog/2018/12/23/magic-and-superstition-in-the-european-dark-ages#.XZ3BcygzY2w=
3. No author, no date, superstition and medieval medicine, viewed-30/9/2019 https://owlcation.com/humanities/Superstition-and-Medieval-Medicine
4. No author, no date, 8 Medical Practices from Medieval Times That Will Turn Your Stomach, viewed 5/10/2019 https://historycollection.co/medieval-medical-practices-sure-turn-stomach/2/
5. Brianna Holumzer, 2015, Medieval Medical Superstitions, viewed 10/10/19 https://prezi.com/wpypo_p5asvx/medieval-medical-superstitions/