Jean-Martin Charcot was born on November 29, 1825 in Paris, France; he died at Auberge des Settons, near Vézelay, France on August 16, 1893. He is remembered as a physician, neurologist, and teacher who succeeded in relating many neurological disorders to physical causes. He held the position of professor at the University of Paris for 33 years. In 1862, he began an association with the Salpetrière Hospital, an ancient and famous hospital in Paris, that lasted throughout his life (eventually Charcot would become director of this hospital).

Charcot studied medicine in Paris. After failing a competitive examination in 1847, he was elected Interne at the Salpetrière in 1848. Charcot's M.D. thesis (1853) contributed to the understanding of the difference between rheumatoid arthritis, and gout and other joint diseases. Charcot was the first to describe intermittent claudication (1858). When he began practicing at the Salpetrière in 1862, he found many long-term...