Medieval Military Medicine: From the Late Middle Ages to the Early Sixteenth Century

Following on from Medieval Military Medicine, from the Vikings to the High Middle Ages, this volume explores the diseases and wounds, both physical and psychological, suffered by soldiers during the subsequent 250 years, alongside the treatments administered by those who looked after them.

Drawing once again on diverse contemporary sources, including numerous firsthand accounts, Medieval Military Medicine: From the Late Middle Ages to the Early Sixteenth Century begins by exploring the medical landscape of the period and its close ties to warfare. It highlights the many discoveries and rediscoveries that emerged in response to the continual improvements and innovations in weaponry. Certainly, the most notable technological advancement in European warfare at this time was associated with the introduction and development of gunpowder weapons, which enabled armies to cause much greater harm to one another and led to the development of several new treatments. Further chapters examine the broken bones, as well as the disfigurements and disabilities endured by warriors of this era. One of the most catastrophic disasters in human history, the bubonic plague, struck during the middle of the fourteenth century and continued to resurface in deadly encores every few years afterwards. It undoubtedly left its mark on Europe’s armies, as did the outbreak of a virulent strain of syphilis that began at the end of the fifteenth century, both of which are explored here. The book’s final chapter examines the psychological consequences of war, considering its impact on soldiers as well as on the broader civilian population of Europe during these two-and-a-half centuries.