Overview

It is often said that war is the best medical school. The battlefields supplied young, often inexperienced surgeons with what seemed to be an unlimited number of cases. Military physicians were called on to deal with endless cases of camp fevers and dysenteries. Although some of the conditions encountered by military surgeons and physicians are peculiar to warfare, many of the lessons they learned and the training they obtained in military service were later applied to civilian life. Military medicine underwent many changes and reforms of techniques, organization, and personnel during the nineteenth century in response to experiences gained in the numerous wars fought in Europe and America.

Background

Napoleon's favorite surgeon, Dominique-Jean Larrey (1766-1842), provides a good example of the advances achieved in military medicine and surgery. Baron Larrey, a French military surgeon, is...