The illness and death of Henry Prince of Wales in 1612 : a historical case of typhoid fever / by Norman Moore.

  • Moore, Norman, 1847-1922.
Date:
1882
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: The illness and death of Henry Prince of Wales in 1612 : a historical case of typhoid fever / by Norman Moore. Source: Wellcome Collection.

Provider: This material has been provided by The Royal College of Surgeons of England. The original may be consulted at The Royal College of Surgeons of England.

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    reduplication came with more sweating, even when the patient was awake. Blackness, dryness, and moulding of the edges of the tongue, ulceration of the throat, buzzings and trcmhlings greater. The urine increased in quantity, and there was a terrible restlessness which lasted all night. The increase of the illness and the fact that nature began to decline caused bleeding to be most strongly urged as the sole remedy to save his Highness, if kept within due quantity, and even repeated if need was. As all sorts of appearances were found in regard to the constitution of the body, to the age, to the forces, to the disease, and to the accidents, after a very great discussion at last the three doctors, Mayerne, Hammon, Butler, came to an agreement the eighth day after his Highness had taken to bee), and in their presence from the median of the right arm were taken 7 to 8 oz. of blood. His Highness bore bravely this blood-letting, wished that more had been taken, and had no feebleness. The blood flowed in a good stream, and almost at once some relief was obvious. The blood when cool was seen by any one who wished, all fluid blue below, and almost without fibres, and clotting with difficulty. Throughout his disease his Highness was never so well as on this day and had no increase, so that it seemed as if his pulse was about to come out of the febrile state. The trem- blings and buzzings were less, the night better, although dis- turbed, the urine and the discharges more formed, the thirst a little diminished, and the eyes better able to bear the light. The 9th day the great increase returned, a little less in heat than up to the 7th day. In this access the respiration became shorter, the pulse more frequent, the face redder, the tongue blacker, and the thirst greater, the tremblings continued, and the sighing began; in short, everything made it obvious that the blood and the humours were thrown with abundance and violence towards the brain. This night came on great sweating and wandering talk. His Highness cast himself out of bed, asked for his clothes, and talked of walking out. In the morning Dr. Atkins1 was sent by the King to the Prince, who bore his coming with impatience till he was per- suaded by the other physicians that he stood in need of help from every kind of good counsel, and that the number of learned men could not but be useful and likely to lead to the recovery of his Highness. The aforesaid Dr. Atkins stated before his Majesty aud before the Lords of the Council that this disease was a putrid 1 President of the College of PhydobffiB in 1618.