The History of Medicine – Rennaisance

Period
By Anandini Rao and Marvi Najam
 Background:Italy
 The revival period of the Renaissance started in
Italy
 1300-1600
 Florence was the center of this revival
 Governed by many rich families like the Medici
 Background: Medici Family
 The Medici Family
 Family of wealthy bankers
 Lived in Florence
 Produced three popes and many future rulers of
Florentine (Florence)
 Name means “doctor”; but none of their family is
reported to be doctors!
 Supported science, art, architecture, and literature
 Housed Galileo for some time, and some of the moons of
Jupiter are named after the Medici children
 Influence of the Medici’s Family
on Medicine (political influence)
 The Medici Family influenced science
 Galileo tutored many of their children
 Was protected from the Inquisition by the Medicis

 Started with Cosimo de’ Medici

 Great patron of the sciences- very generous
 Paid scholars and transcribers to translate the Ancient
Greek texts
 Amassed the greatest library in Europe, and founded
the Platonic academy
 Influence of the Medici’s Family on
Medicine (political influence) cont.
 Other Medici influences:
 Ferdinand 1: great interest in science
 Cosimo made Florence the cradle of Humanism
 Humanism influenced the study of medicine (and art and
literature) because it emphasized dignity and self worth.
 “We should study Greek and Roman classics for our own good,
and not to look for connections to the Church.” (our inference)
 Church
 The Medici family were connected to the Church-
they made 3 popes
 Church (another political
influence)
 The church slowly lost its grip on medicine
 Earlier, the Church dictated that God had healing
power, but believed that people should do all that
they could to get well (including medicine)
 However, did not approve of research (such as
dissection) to improve the medicine
 Rebellion!
 The formation of the College of Physicians
 Andreas Vesalius – first person to actually
successfully revolt the church; did many dissections
of the human body
 Social Influence on
Renaissance Medicine
 Renowned Schools
 University of Padua
 Founded in 1222
 Taught astronomy, medicine, philosophy, and many more
subjects
 From 1400s to 1700s, it was renowned for its excellence in
research, espescially in medicine
 In part to the protection of the Republic of Venice, which saved it
from the influence of the Roman Catholic Church
 Social Influence on
Renaissance Medicine Cont.
 Medical Catostrophes
 Diseases sparked doctors to find cures
 Includesyphilis, tubercolosis, etc.
 Spread by trade routes
 Prompted by the reemergence of the Bubonic Plague in
Europe, almost 800 years after it hit
 The Printing Press
 Spread medical ideas very quickly
 Old, Greek and Roman books were quickly translated
 The Result??????????
 SO WHAT DID ALL THESE SOCIAL AND
POLITICAL HAPPENINGS DO?
 WHAT WERE THE IMPORTANT MEDICAL
ADVANCES OF THE RENAISSANCE?
 Well………..
 Research in the Human Anatomy done through
dissections by notable doctors and scientists like
Andreas Vesalius and Leonardo Da Vinci
 Surgical techniques were improved
 Our Sources… alas, we don’t have
this info stored in our brains 
 http://library.thinkquest.org/15569/hist-7.html
 http://www.mtholyoke.edu/~lbmelton/v1.0/creatio
 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Medieval_medicine
 http://encyclopedia.farlex.com/Renaissance+medic
 Durant, Will. The Renaissance. New
York: Simon and Schuster, 1953.