The last thing you would expect is ‘ Witch’ and ‘Doctor’ to be in the same sentence, let alone together. Two things are for sure: one, you are not losing your mind, and second, someone from medieval times would tell you that there is no clear distinction between the two.
Before 1140, there was no requirement for certain licenses or education to practice medicine as a profession, since the knowledge of therapeutic practices was transmitted orally through informal training. That meant that anyone who possessed practical knowledge or a good name in their town could become a healer. Regardless of their education level, known physicians as well as domestic healers were capable of conducting minor treatments and had experience with surgeries.
Though history has overshadowed their efforts toward advancements in medieval medicine, women healers were prominent members of healthcare because Medicine was considered an indoor domestic profession. As mentioned before, the quality of medical treatment wasn’t dictated by the education level of the physicians, which resulted in a high competition for authority between herbalists, apothecaries, and healers. However, by the 12th century, Medicine had become a commercialized practice, which led to King Roger of Sicily enacting a law requiring healthcare practitioners to buy their medical licenses from the administration.
Eventually, there was significant growth in modernization and advancements in Healthcare as a result of the emergence of several Medical Universities, leading to the integration of more rigorous and expert medical practices into the healthcare system. Despite such drastic improvements, a major setback came when women were banned from attending these universities due to high competition. This high competition was in no way because the degree being desirable. After all, the ‘healing powers’ of a university graduate were not superior to the skills possessed by a women healer because medical practices were preventive standing on Galen’s Humoral Theory, and women controlled food, water, and medicinal herbs, which meant that their role in medicine would have to be eliminated to sustain it.
Licensing laws became extremely strict in 1329, when a Valencian law was enacted which ordered that “no woman may practice medicine or give potions, under penalty of being whipped through the town but they may care for little children and women to whom, however, they may give no potion” despite which, some healers continued to practice in secret, paying a heavy price for breaking the law.
By 1300, women physicians were accused of witchcraft solely on the basis of their gender, as shown by evidence such as “The greatest injuries to the Faith as regards the heresy of witches are done by midwives; and this is made clearer than daylight itself by the confessions of some who were afterward burned."
Churches did not directly target or accuse midwives of witchcraft but rather came up with campaigns targeting them and questioning the moral and religious aspects of their holistic practice based on charms, rituals, prayers, and superstitions.
During 1500- 1700, midwives were referred to as pagans, having sexual relationships with the devil and harming infants, which was punishable by death. This narrative significantly harmed medieval medicine and is one of the reasons for its transition to modern medicine. Women abandoned the practice due to fears of being declared ‘witches’ and being burned alive.
Resources:
Comentários