Medical doctors during this time were usually too expensive for the lower class of the population. So, when they were actually able to see a doctor, the treatment they were offered was not really sufficient. Doctors during this time usually dealt with physical ailments of the body, and not illnesses relating to the mind. Robert Burton, a seventeenth century doctor states “for diseases of the mind, we take no notice of them.”

There are various causes of mental illness. They range from genetic disorders, brain damage, to even malnutrition. Ag

The general understanding as to the cause of mental illness in the Middle Ages was due to the “divine retribution, diabolic possession, witchcraft or any combination of

In 1247 Bethlem hospital in England opened its doors as an institution to hold the mentally ill. Bethlem was a royal foundation incorporated for lunatics by Henry VIII. At that time the institution did not take care of the mentally retarded which placed the

burden of responsibility to their families. Bethlem Hospital did not provide any acceptable form of treatment to the mentally ill. Instead, it was a place for torture and allowed them to waste away their days. Bethlem had a policy of discharging patients after a year, if they had not recovered. At the turn of the century, Bethlem’s name changed into “Bedlam” slang for utter madness.”

Some topics in this essay:
Middle Ages, Christianity Mental, Bethlem Hospital, mentally ill, Robert Burton, mental illness, middle ages, Henry VIII, seventeenth century, evil spirits, ill person, medical approach, superstitious beliefs, sixteenth seventeenth, sixteenth seventeenth century, mentally ill person, ages mentally ill, middle ages mentally, late middle, mentally ill people,