1250-1306

Italian French Surgeon

Guido Lanfranchi is regarded as the founder of surgery in France. He was born in 1250 in Milan, Italy, and was educated by the famous physician William of Saliceto (1210-1277), who contributed to the renaissance in medical teaching at Salerno.

Lanfranchi (also known as Lanfranc of Milan, Lanfranc, or Lanfranco) had to leave Milan in a hurry in 1290 because he was on the wrong side of a dispute between the powerful Guelf and Ghibelline families. He escaped to Lyons, France, a city that was accepting of diverse ideas. Five years later he moved to Paris to become a professor, but this was cut short when it was discovered that he was married; professors were supposed to remain unmarried. However, Lanfranchi was not too unhappy about losing this job when he learned that teachers at the medical college were housed in the artist's center...