c1250-c1500- Middle Ages

Question 1

what was the main belief for cause of illness in the middle ages?

Answer 1

God testing their faith or punishing them

Question 2

what were astrological beliefs about causes of illness in the middle ages

Answer 2

alignment of the stars and planets caused diseases

Question 3

after what event did belief in astrological causes of illness increase?

Answer 3

the black death

Question 4

why was God as a cause of illness a hinderance to progression in medicine?

Answer 4

people believed and trusted God so did not question it

Question 5

who were the groups of people who could read and write in the middle ages?

Answer 5

monks and preists

Question 6

where were most books kept in middle ages?

Answer 6

monasteries

Question 7

how did the church control what people read in the middle ages? (2)

Answer 7

• only religious figures such as priests and monks could read and write so ordinary people couldn’t write their own ideas or read about others
• all the important books were kept in monasteries meaning they could control what was read by people

Question 8

whos ideas did the church support?

Answer 8

Galen’s

Question 9

why were galens ideas supported by the church?

Answer 9

Galens ideas fitted christian beliefs that the body had a soul and had been created by God

Question 10

what were disections like in the middle ages?

Answer 10

not common but performed in universities and used to teach galens theories

Question 11

how did the church control education?

Answer 11

universities were set up and run by the church and was the centre of formal learning

Question 12

how would the church tackle contradicting evidance to galens theories?

Answer 12

ignoring them

Question 13

what were the christians attitude to the sickin the middle ages?

Answer 13

care for them like jesus wanted

Question 14

where were most hospitals located?

Answer 14

nunneries and monasteries

Question 15

what was the belief of 4 humours?

Answer 15

ancient Greek idea that everyone has a mix of 4 humours in their body and illness came from an unbalance in this mix

Question 16

what were the four humours?

Answer 16

blood, phlegm, black bile, yellow bile

Question 17

what was the theory of opposites?

Answer 17

Galens development of the 4 humours theory suggesting that you should use treatments based on the opposite of their symptoms

Question 18

what were the treatments for getting rid of excess humours

Answer 18

blood letting and purging

Question 19

who was Galen?

Answer 19

Greek doctor who developed hipprocrates ideas. he wrote lots of books and drew anatomical diagrams

Question 20

who was hippocrates?

Answer 20

an ancient Greek doctor who was very influential but dismissed the idea that God caused disease as he believed there was a physical reason.

Question 21

what were most of hippocrates treatments based on?

Answer 21

exercise, rest and diet

Question 22

what was the hippocratic oath?

Answer 22

doctors swear an oath to respect life snd prevent harm

Question 23

whst part of hippocrates’ methods are still used today?

Answer 23

his method of clinical observation: studying symptoms then comparing them to other cases then diagnosing and treating.

Question 24

what was the theory of miasma?

Answer 24

“bad air” caused disease- this related to god as bad air was said to indicate sin

Question 25

what was the most common treatment for an imbalance in humours?

Answer 25

blood letting

Question 26

methods of blood letting and who performed them

Answer 26

leeching, cutting veins and cupping- performed by barber surgeons or non medical people

Question 27

what was purging and who gave it to patients?

Answer 27

involved a patient vomiting or going to the toilet to remove food from the body- emetics and laxatives given by apothecaries wised women or people at home

Question 28

different methods of supernatural illness prevention (4)

Answer 28

lucky charms christian lifestyle chants self punishment

Question 29

different methods of rational prevention of illness (6)

Answer 29

keep the streets clean purifying air bleeding/purging not overeating exercise bathing/washing

Question 30

what did traditional remedies consist of

Answer 30

made of herbs that were drunk, sniffed, rubbed or bathed into the skin and included different foods to balance humours

Question 31

religious treatments for illness (4)

Answer 31

praying fasting going on a pilgramidge paying for a special mass to be said

Question 32

supernatural treatments (1 example)

Answer 32

specific for each illness- hanging a magpies beak around your neck to cure toothache

Question 33

who were barber surgeons? what did they do?

Answer 33

no training pulled teeth, bloodletting, lancing boils as well as cutting hair basic amputation surgery cheaper than physician

Question 34

who were apothecaries and what did they do?

Answer 34

some training but no qualifications mixed medicines and ointments based on own knowledge or directions from a physician cheaper than physician but more than barber surgeons

Question 35

what did physicians do?

Answer 35

medically trained at universities diagnosed and perscribed treatments or sent patient to an apothecary or barber surgeon expensive very few of them, rarely women

Question 36

what was care in the home like?

Answer 36

majority treated this way by female family member village 'wise woman' would come to peples homes for free to care for them

Question 37

what did physicians do to determine an illness?

Answer 37

checked skin colour, pulse and urine (colour and taste) used urine charts in their handbook used zodiac charts to diagnose and then treat or (more commonly) send them to get treatment accordingly

Question 38

what were hospitals like in the middle ages? (7)

Answer 38

place where travelers stayed on journeys people with infectious diseases not admitted very clean surroundings places of restoration rather than treatment plenty of food and rest some hospitals built for specific infectious diseases run by church

Question 39

how did the number of hospitals change in the middle ages?

Answer 39

the number increased

Question 40

when was the black death

Answer 40

1348-9

Question 41

what caused the black death?

Answer 41

today we believe it was caused by disease carrying fleas living on black rats brought to england on trading ships. The illness is obtained when they are bitten.

Question 42

what fraction of the population did the black death kill?

Answer 42

1/3

Question 43

how did people thing the black death was caused? (6)

Answer 43

religion astrology miasma volcanoes four humours outsiders

Question 44

how did people try to avoid the black death? (6)

Answer 44

praying and fasting to punish themselves cleaning the streets smelling bad smells to overcome the plague lighting a fire, letting birds fly round the room to keep air moving carrying herbs and spices not letting strangers into the village

Question 45

how did people think religion was the cause of the black death

Answer 45

god sent the plague as punishment for sins

Question 46

why did people think astrology was a cause of the BD

Answer 46

the position of mars, saturn and jupiter were unusual at this time

Question 47

why did people think miasma was the cause of the BD

Answer 47

decaying rubbish caused bad smells

Question 48

why did people think that volcanoes were responsible for the BD

Answer 48

poisonous gasses were emitted from volcanoes and earthquakes and carried in the air

Question 49

why did people think the four humours was the reason for BD

Answer 49

generally most people thought this was the cause for all disease

Question 50

why did people think outsiders caused BD

Answer 50

they thought strangers or witches had caused the disease

Question 51

what were symptoms of the black death? (4)

Answer 51

large buboes filled with pus fever and chills headache vomiting, diarrhoea and abdominal pain

Question 52

treatments for the BD? (4)

Answer 52

prayer and lucky charms drain buboes holding bread on buboes and the burying it eating cool food and taking cold bathds