Medieval Medicine Ideas
How people in medieval Britain explained the cause of illness: the natural approach of the Four Humours and the Theory of Opposites from Hippocrates and Galen, the supernatural beliefs about God and the stars, and how a doctor was trained.
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How did they explain illness?
A thousand years ago there were no microscopes and no idea that germs existed. Yet medieval people still needed to explain why someone fell ill. Some looked for natural reasons inside the body, while others believed illness came from God or the stars. This module looks at those ideas and at how a medieval doctor was trained.
Ideas about illness
Learn these before you sort the ideas.
Two ways to explain illness
Medieval people used two very different kinds of explanation.
Always explain why it made sense
In the exam, do not just say a medieval idea was wrong. Say why it felt logical at the time. With no way to see germs, an explanation that matched the visible symptoms seemed reasonable, so balancing the body made sense. When you write about beliefs in God or the stars, report them as what people thought, not as fact.
Match the humour to its quality
- blood
- phlegm
- yellow bile
- black bile
- hot and wet
- cold and wet
- hot and dry
- cold and dry
Match the source of the idea
- Hippocrates
- Galen
- the Church
- astrology
- first set out the four humours
- added the theory of opposites
- kept the old ideas alive for centuries
- used star charts to explain illness
Use the Theory of Opposites
A patient has a fever and feels very hot. Using the Theory of Opposites, what would a medieval doctor try?
- Give something cooling to bring the body back into balance.
- Wrap them up to make them hotter still.
- Do nothing and wait.
- Only pray and give no treatment.
Spot the supernatural ideas
Select the TWO explanations of illness that were supernatural.
- People believed illness was a punishment from God.
- Some blamed the position of the stars and planets.
- An imbalance of the four humours.
- Watching the symptoms of the body.
Balancing the humours
The body was thought to hold 4 humours. A doctor decides that a patient has an excess in just 1 of them. Subtract to find how many humours were thought to be already in balance. What is the answer?
Order the diagnosis
Put the steps a medieval doctor might follow in order, earliest first.
- Observe the symptoms
- Decide which humour is in excess
- Choose a treatment of the opposite quality
- Record the case in the notes
Complete the account
Medieval doctors followed the Four _____, first described by Hippocrates. Galen added the Theory of _____, treating an illness with its opposite. Many people also believed that illness was a _____ from God. The Church kept the ideas of _____ alive for hundreds of years.
Spot the dry humours
The humours were paired with qualities. Tap the TWO humours that were thought to be dry.
- yellow bile
- black bile
- blood
- phlegm
Natural or supernatural?
Read each medieval idea and choose the best label.
- A doctor says a patient has too much blood and needs it reduced. What kind of explanation is this?
- A priest says a person is ill because God is punishing them for sin. What kind of explanation is this?
- A healer checks a star chart to work out why someone has fallen ill. What kind of explanation is this?
Explain medieval ideas
Explain how medieval people in Britain thought about the cause of illness, and why their ideas made sense at the time.
- Describe the natural approach of the four humours and the theory of opposites
- Describe one supernatural belief, reported as what people thought
- Explain why these ideas seemed logical given the knowledge of the era