Forensic Medicine and Death Investigation in Medieval England

332 Pages·2015·1.56 MB·English

by  Sara M. Butler

Forensic Medicine and Death
Investigation in Medieval England
England has traditionally been understood as a latecomer to the use of
forensic medicine in death investigation, lagging nearly two hundred years
behind other European authorities. Using the coroner’s inquest as a lens, this
book hopes to offer a fresh perspective on the process of death investigation
in medieval England. The central premise of this book is that medical practi-
tioners did participate in death investigation—although not in every inquest,
or even most, and not necessarily in those investigations where we today
would deem their advice most pertinent. The medieval relationship with
death and disease, in particular, shaped coroners’ and their jurors’ under-
standing of the inquest’s medical needs and led them to conclusions that can
only be understood in context of the medieval world’s holistic approach to
health and medicine. Moreover, while the English resisted Southern Europe’s
penchant for autopsies, at times their fi ndings reveal a solid understanding
of internal medicine. By studying cause of death in the coroners’ reports,
this study sheds new light on subjects such as abortion by assault, bubonic
plague, cruentation, epilepsy, insanity, senescence, and unnatural death.
Sara M. Butler is Professor of History at Loyola University New Orleans.
She has written on the subjects of marital violence, suicide, abortion, and
divorce in medieval England. In 2007, she was awarded the Sutherland Prize
by the American Society for Legal History.
Routledge Research in Medieval Studies
1 Agrarian Change and Crisis in 5 Medieval Islamic Historiography
Europe, 1200–1500 Remembering Rebellion
Edited by Harry Kitsikopoulos Heather N. Keaney
2 Pluralism in the Middle Ages 6 The Jewish-Christian Encounter
Ragnhild Johnsrud Zorgati in Medieval Preaching
Edited by Jonathan Adams and
3 Theorizing Medieval Geopolitics Jussi Hanska
War and World Order in the Age of
the Crusades 7 Forensic Medicine and Death
Andrew A. Latham Investigation in Medieval
England
4 Divorce in Medieval England Sara M. Butler
From One to Two Persons in Law
Sara M. Butler
Previous titles to appear in Routledge Research in Medieval Studies include:
The Generation of Identity in Late Women Pilgrims in Late Medieval
Medieval Hagiography England
Speaking the Saint Susan S. Morrison
Gail Ashton
P erforming Virginity and Testing
Chastity in the Middle Ages
Kathleen Coyne Kelly
Forensic Medicine and Death
Investigation in Medieval
England
Sara M. Butler
First published 2015
by Routledge
711 Third Avenue, New York, NY 10017
and by Routledge
2 Park Square, Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon OX14 4RN
Routledge is an imprint of the Taylor & Francis Group,
an informa business
© 2015 Taylor & Francis
The right of Sara M. Butler to be identified as author of this work has been
asserted in accordance with sections 77 and 78 of the Copyright, Designs
and Patents Act 1988.
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reprinted or reproduced or
utilized in any form or by any electronic, mechanical, or other means, now
known or hereafter invented, including photocopying and recording, or in
any information storage or retrieval system, without permission in writing
from the publishers.
Trademark Notice: Product or corporate names may be trademarks or
registered trademarks, and are used only for identification and explanation
without intent to infringe.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Butler, Sara M. (Sara Margaret), author.
Forensic medicine and death investigation in medieval England / by
Sara M. Butler.
p. ; cm. — (Routledge research in medieval studies ; 7)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
I. Title. II. Series: Routledge research in medieval studies ; 7.
[DNLM: 1. Forensic Medicine—history—England. 2. Coroners
and Medical Examiners—history—England. 3. History, Medieval—
England. W 611 FE5]
RA1022.G3
614′.10942—dc23
2014016350
ISBN: 978-1-138-80981-9 (hbk)
ISBN: 978-1-315-74980-8 (ebk)
Typeset in Sabon
by Apex CoVantage, LLC
Contents
List of Figures vii
List of Tables ix
Table of Royal Statutes xi
List of Abbreviations xiii
Acknowledgments xv
Introduction 1
1 The Coroners 32
2 The Jurors 75
3 The Process of Investigation 125
4 The Medical Dimension of a Coroner’s Inquest 176
5 Health and Healthcare in the Coroners’ Rolls 218
Conclusion 266
Glossary 275
Bibliography 279
Index 301
This page intentionally left blank
Figure

2.1 “Wound Man” 105
This page intentionally left blank