Medieval Treatments (AQA GCSE History)
Revision Note
Written by: Zoe Wade
Reviewed by: Natasha Smith
How effective were treatments in Medieval England? - Summary
Treatments in Medieval England were a mix of supernatural and natural approaches. They were often ineffective because people lacked an understanding of how diseases actually worked.
Supernatural treatments were common and involved prayers, charms, and rituals to try to heal illnesses believed to be caused by God or evil spirits. For example, people would wear charms to ward off sickness or visit holy places to pray for cures. Astrology also influenced treatments, with doctors choosing certain days for treatments based on the position of the stars and planets. These methods relied more on faith than science and often didn’t work.
Natural treatments were also used, based on the Theory of the Four Humours and traditional herbal remedies. Humoural treatments aimed to rebalance the body’s humours, often by blood-letting. Herbal remedies were passed down through generations and sometimes provided relief. Bathing and a good diet were also encouraged to stay healthy, as cleanliness and eating the right foods were thought to help balance the humours. While some of these natural treatments were more effective than supernatural ones, they were still limited by a lack of medical knowledge.
Natural treatments in Medieval England
Herbal Remedies
Herbs were mixed to create remedies a patient could drink, breathe in or bathe in to make them feel better
These natural elements possessed healing powers
For example, aloe vera to help digestion
Theriacas was a mixture of over 60 ingredients
Galen noted it was effective in treating snake bites
It later became popular for treating multiple diseases
Diet
There was a belief that some food had healing qualities
Blanc Mangier, made from chicken and almonds aided the humours as it was warm and moist
Bathing
The use of hot baths was commonly prescribed to melt excessive humours
Medieval people added herbs to the bath for their health benefits
For example, mallow and violets to relieve bladder stones
Superstition led to the development of some bathing cures:
boiling a fox, known to be quick and nimble, and bathing with it was believed to cure paralysis
Examiner Tips and Tricks
In the AQA Health and the People course, students often find it hard to find similarities between the Medieval period and the Modern period. The emphasis on healthy eating and herbal remedies are important in the 21st century.
Humoural treatments in Medieval England
Once a physician had identified what humour a patient had too much or too little of, they attempted to rebalance the humours
Blood-letting
The three methods of blood-letting are:
Cutting a vein
Cutting a vein, usually near the elbow, with a sharp object to release blood
Leeches
Leeches were collected and placed on a patient’s body to feed on their blood
Cupping
A patient’s skin was cut with either a sharp object or fingernails
A cup was heated and placed on the cut
This vacuum drew the blood out of the patient
Examiner Tips and Tricks
Question 1 in AQA Health and the People asks you to evaluate how useful one source is for a historian about the issue outlined. The above source could be a focus for a question surrounding Medieval blood-letting.
To approach this style of question, you should:
refer to the content and provenance of the source
analyse two parts of the source in your answer
include knowledge that is relevant to the source
make a judgement on how useful the source is for the given issue in the question
Our exam skills pages provide more help and guidance on the 'How useful' question
Purging
Purging was the act of making a patient vomit or poo to remove ‘excess bile'
Purging could happen due to:
an emetic
Bitter herbs (like aniseed) or poison that force a patient to vomit
a laxative
A remedy that made a patient poo
Mallow leaves stewed in ale or linseeds fried in hot fat were used in Medieval times
an enema
A liquid that is passed into the rectum or anus to relieve constipation
For stubborn digestive blockages, a mixture of water, honey, oil, wheat bran, soap and herbs was inserted into a patient’s anus via a greased pipe attached to a pig’s bladder
The patient then rubbed their stomach to force faeces out of their body
Treatment using the Theory of Opposites
Galen's Theory of Opposites was a way to attempt to rebalance the humours
Supernatural treatments in Medieval England
Astrology
Physicians used star charts to formulate treatments and consulted them at every stage of treatment
A patient's horoscope also influences the timing of treatments
The King's Touch
People believed that the King held the power to heal
He would place holy oil on his hands at his coronation
This came from the Medieval belief in the Divine Rights of Kings
People believed that God passed some of His supernatural powers to the King
Written accounts at the time show that the belief was particularly effective against scrofula, a form of tuberculosis
Religion
The Church promoted multiple treatments for illnesses:
healing prayers and spells
placing an offering at a shrine of a saint as to become a saint, they must have stories of performing miracles
touching holy relics
lighting a candle of the length of the body part that you wanted to heal
fasting
pilgrimage
However, Christians believed that it was God's will whether you lived or died
Many people did not take cures
People believed that going against God's will was a sin
Sins corrupt a Christian’s soul, preventing it from going to heaven
Examiner Tips and Tricks
When writing about supernatural treatments, you can argue that there is no scientific evidence that they worked. However, try not to downplay the importance of supernatural treatments to Medieval life. For some people, this would be the only method of treatment that they trusted.
Last updated:
You've read 0 of your 5 free revision notes this week
Sign up now. It’s free!
Did this page help you?