Study Guides

Unit Summary

In this unit, pupils learn about either migrants in Britain or medicine in Britain over a period of roughly 1000 years. They examine one of these themes, analysing the impact it had in Medieval, Early Modern, Industrial and Modern Britain, with a particular focus on change and continuity.

Lesson Summary

You will learn to evaluate the extent of progress made in medieval surgery.

Key Notes

• Medieval surgery was performed by barber-surgeons.
• Bloodletting was the most common form of medieval surgery.
• Barber-surgeons also performed procedures such as pulling teeth, amputations and trepanning.
• Pain, infection and blood loss were major problems of surgery.
• Despite some helpful developments, the major problems of surgery were not overcome in the medieval period.

Vocabulary To Learn

• invasive: in this context, medical treatments which involve cutting into the body
• amputation: the cutting off of a part of the body
• trepanning: surgery which involved drilling a hole into the skull
• anaesthetic: a substance that makes you unable to feel pain
• cauterisation: the action of burning body tissue using heat to stop an injury from bleeding or getting infected

Common Mistakes To Avoid

• There was no change in medieval surgery.

3 Quick Questions (With Answers)

More Lessons In This Unit

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• Edward Jenner and vaccination Study Guide
• Fighting cholera in London in the 19th century Study Guide
• Hospital care in the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries Study Guide
• Improvements in public health in the 19th century Study Guide
• Medieval approaches to treating and preventing disease Study Guide
• Medieval caregivers Study Guide
• Medieval ideas about the causes of illness and disease Study Guide
• Modern advances in understanding the causes of illness and disease Study Guide
• Modern approaches to medical treatment Study Guide
• Modern approaches to the prevention of illness and disease Study Guide
• Modern improvements in diagnosis Study Guide
• New 19th century ideas about the causes of disease and illness Study Guide
• Renaissance approaches to treatment and prevention Study Guide
• Renaissance changes in anatomy and surgery Study Guide
• Renaissance ideas about disease and illness Study Guide
• The Black Death Study Guide
• The development of magic bullets and antibiotics Study Guide
• The fight against lung cancer in the 21st century Study Guide
• The Great Plague of 1665 Study Guide
• The growth of hospital care in the 19th century Study Guide
• The welfare state and the NHS Study Guide
• William Harvey Study Guide