William Clowes (surgeon)
Encyclopedia
William Clowes the elder (c.1543 or 1544–1604) was an early English surgeon
. He published case reports in which he advocated the application of powders and ointments. He also published one of the first reports in English on how to reduce a femur
.
in Warwickshire
. He learned surgery as apprentice of George Keble, a London surgeon, but not a member of the Barber-Surgeons' Company. Clowes began practice in 1563 as a surgeon in the army commanded by Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick
, in France, and on this expedition began his lifelong friendship with John Banester
.
After the Le Havre
expedition Clowes served for several years in the navy and then about 1569 settled in London
. On 8 November in that year he was admitted by translation into the Barber-Surgeons' Company. He was successful in practice, with occasional disappointments, as when a man complained in 1573 that the cure of his wife was a failure and got twenty shillings damages from Clowes. In March 1575 he was appointed on the surgical staff of St. Bartholomew's Hospital, and became full surgeon in 1581. He also became surgeon to Christ's Hospital
, and in his later works gives many details of his practice in both institutions. At St. Bartholomew's he introduced a new styptic powder which caused smaller sloughs than that of Thomas Gale
, which it supplanted.
In May 1585 he resigned his surgeoncy at St. Bartholomew's, having been commanded to go to the Low Countries with Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester
. In his Proved Practise Clowes gives many details of this expedition, and though bad surgeons, he says, slew more than the enemy, he and Mr. Goodrouse lost no cases from gunshot wounds but those mortally wounded at once. He attended Mr. Cripps, lieutenant of Sir Philip Sidney's horse, and was in the field when Sidney was wounded; but it is probable that if Sidney received any surgical help it was from the other chief surgeon whom Clowes often praises, Mr. Goodrouse or Godrus. Clowes had ideas on ambulance work, and remarks that scabbards make excellent splint
s. He learned what he could from every member of his craft, English or foreign, and by experiment; at Arnhem
he tried with success a new balm on a pike-wound seven inches long.
After this war Clowes returned to London, and on 18 July 1588 was admitted an assistant on the court of the Barber-Surgeons' Company, and immediately after served in the fleet which defeated the Spanish Armada
. He kept his military surgical chest by him, with the bear and ragged staff of his old commander on the lid, but was never called to serve in war again, and after being appointed surgeon to the queen, and spending several years in successful practice in London, retired to a country house at Plaistow
in Essex
. He died in 1604, before the beginning of August. He succeeded in handing on some court influence to his son William Clowes the younger, who was made surgeon Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales
a few years after his father's death.
are his other chief text-books, and he had read seventeen English authors on medicine. But he trusted to his own observation, and a spirit of inquiry pervades his pages which makes them altogether different from the compilations from authorities which are to be found in the surgical works of his contemporaries Baker and Banester. In 1579 he published his first book, De Morbo Gallico. It is mainly a compilation, and his best observations are to be found here and there in his later works.
His Prooved Practise for all young Chirurgians (London, 1591) and Treatise on the Struma (London, 1602) are full of pictures of daily life in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. He was called to a northern clothier whose leg was broken by robbers two miles outside London; to another man whose injury was received by the breaking down of a gallery at a bear-baiting; another patient was a serving-man whose leg had been pierced by an arrow as he walked near the butts; a fifth was one of Sir Francis Drake's sailors who had been shot by a poisoned arrow on the coast of Brazil
; a sixth was a merchant wounded on his own ship by a pirate at the mouth of the Thames. Clowes cared little for critics, but he always speaks with generosity of his professional contemporaries Goodrouse, Banester, Bedon, and George Baker
, the surgeons; John Gerard
, Rodrigo López
, Henry Wotton, Dr. Foster, and Dr. Randall, and Maister Rasis, the French king's surgeon. He had met all of them in consultation.
He did not conceal that he had secret remedies — ‘my unguent,’ ‘my balm,’ ‘of my collection’ — but he never made bargains for cures, and never touted for patients as some surgeons did at that time. He gives amusing accounts of his encounters with quacks, and prides himself on always acting as became ‘a true artist.’ He figures a barber's basin among his instruments of surgery, and says he was a good embalmer of dead bodies, and knew well from practice how to roll cerecloths.
Besides ready colloquial English, he shows a wide acquaintance with proverbs, and a fair knowledge of French and of Latin. His books were all printed in London in black letter and quarto
, and are:
In 1637 reprints of his De Morbo Gallico and Profitable Book of Observations were published. Letters by him are printed in Banester's Antidotarie (1589), and in Peter Lowe
's Surgery (1597).
Surgeon
In medicine, a surgeon is a specialist in surgery. Surgery is a broad category of invasive medical treatment that involves the cutting of a body, whether human or animal, for a specific reason such as the removal of diseased tissue or to repair a tear or breakage...
. He published case reports in which he advocated the application of powders and ointments. He also published one of the first reports in English on how to reduce a femur
Femur
The femur , or thigh bone, is the most proximal bone of the leg in tetrapod vertebrates capable of walking or jumping, such as most land mammals, birds, many reptiles such as lizards, and amphibians such as frogs. In vertebrates with four legs such as dogs and horses, the femur is found only in...
.
Life
William Clowes was the son of Thomas and grandson of Nicholas Clowes, both of KingsburyKingsbury, Warwickshire
Kingsbury is a large village and civil parish in the North Warwickshire district of the county of Warwickshire, in the West Midlands region of England....
in Warwickshire
Warwickshire
Warwickshire is a landlocked non-metropolitan county in the West Midlands region of England. The county town is Warwick, although the largest town is Nuneaton. The county is famous for being the birthplace of William Shakespeare...
. He learned surgery as apprentice of George Keble, a London surgeon, but not a member of the Barber-Surgeons' Company. Clowes began practice in 1563 as a surgeon in the army commanded by Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick
Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick
Ambrose Dudley, 3rd Earl of Warwick, KG was an English nobleman and general, and an elder brother of Queen Elizabeth I's favourite, Robert Dudley, Earl of Leicester...
, in France, and on this expedition began his lifelong friendship with John Banester
John Banister (anatomist)
John Banister was an English anatomist, surgeon and teacher. He published The Historie of Man, from the most approved Authorities in this Present Age in 1578.-Life:...
.
After the Le Havre
Le Havre
Le Havre is a city in the Seine-Maritime department of the Haute-Normandie region in France. It is situated in north-western France, on the right bank of the mouth of the river Seine on the English Channel. Le Havre is the most populous commune in the Haute-Normandie region, although the total...
expedition Clowes served for several years in the navy and then about 1569 settled in London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. On 8 November in that year he was admitted by translation into the Barber-Surgeons' Company. He was successful in practice, with occasional disappointments, as when a man complained in 1573 that the cure of his wife was a failure and got twenty shillings damages from Clowes. In March 1575 he was appointed on the surgical staff of St. Bartholomew's Hospital, and became full surgeon in 1581. He also became surgeon to Christ's Hospital
Christ's Hospital
Christ's Hospital is an English coeducational independent day and boarding school with Royal Charter located in the Sussex countryside just south of Horsham in Horsham District, West Sussex, England...
, and in his later works gives many details of his practice in both institutions. At St. Bartholomew's he introduced a new styptic powder which caused smaller sloughs than that of Thomas Gale
Thomas Gale
Thomas Gale was an English classical scholar, antiquarian and cleric.-Life:He was born at Scruton, Yorkshire...
, which it supplanted.
In May 1585 he resigned his surgeoncy at St. Bartholomew's, having been commanded to go to the Low Countries with Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester
Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester
Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, KG was an English nobleman and the favourite and close friend of Elizabeth I from her first year on the throne until his death...
. In his Proved Practise Clowes gives many details of this expedition, and though bad surgeons, he says, slew more than the enemy, he and Mr. Goodrouse lost no cases from gunshot wounds but those mortally wounded at once. He attended Mr. Cripps, lieutenant of Sir Philip Sidney's horse, and was in the field when Sidney was wounded; but it is probable that if Sidney received any surgical help it was from the other chief surgeon whom Clowes often praises, Mr. Goodrouse or Godrus. Clowes had ideas on ambulance work, and remarks that scabbards make excellent splint
Splint
Splint may refer to:* Splint , a medical device for the immobilization of limbs or spine* Splint , a device for checking computer programs...
s. He learned what he could from every member of his craft, English or foreign, and by experiment; at Arnhem
Arnhem
Arnhem is a city and municipality, situated in the eastern part of the Netherlands. It is the capital of the province of Gelderland and located near the river Nederrijn as well as near the St. Jansbeek, which was the source of the city's development. Arnhem has 146,095 residents as one of the...
he tried with success a new balm on a pike-wound seven inches long.
After this war Clowes returned to London, and on 18 July 1588 was admitted an assistant on the court of the Barber-Surgeons' Company, and immediately after served in the fleet which defeated the Spanish Armada
Spanish Armada
This article refers to the Battle of Gravelines, for the modern navy of Spain, see Spanish NavyThe Spanish Armada was the Spanish fleet that sailed against England under the command of the Duke of Medina Sidonia in 1588, with the intention of overthrowing Elizabeth I of England to stop English...
. He kept his military surgical chest by him, with the bear and ragged staff of his old commander on the lid, but was never called to serve in war again, and after being appointed surgeon to the queen, and spending several years in successful practice in London, retired to a country house at Plaistow
Plaistow, Newham
Plaistow is a place in the London Borough of Newham in east London. It formed part of the County Borough of West Ham in Essex until 1965.Plaistow is a mainly residential area, including several council estates; the main road is the A112 - Plaistow Road, High Street, Broadway, Greengate Street and...
in Essex
Essex
Essex is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in the East region of England, and one of the home counties. It is located to the northeast of Greater London. It borders with Cambridgeshire and Suffolk to the north, Hertfordshire to the west, Kent to the South and London to the south west...
. He died in 1604, before the beginning of August. He succeeded in handing on some court influence to his son William Clowes the younger, who was made surgeon Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales
Henry Frederick, Prince of Wales
Henry Frederick Stuart, Prince of Wales was the elder son of King James I & VI and Anne of Denmark. His name derives from his grandfathers: Henry Stuart, Lord Darnley and Frederick II of Denmark. Prince Henry was widely seen as a bright and promising heir to his father's throne...
a few years after his father's death.
Works
The books of Clowes were the leading surgical writings of the Elizabethan age. They are all in English, sometimes a little prolix, but never obscure. He had read a great deal, and says that he had made Calmathius ‘as it were a day-starre, or christallin cleare looking-glasse.’ Tagalthius, Guido, Vigo, and QuercetanusJoseph Duchesne
Joseph Duchesne or du Chesne was a French physician. A follower of Paracelsus, he is now remembered for important if transitional alchemical theories.-Life:...
are his other chief text-books, and he had read seventeen English authors on medicine. But he trusted to his own observation, and a spirit of inquiry pervades his pages which makes them altogether different from the compilations from authorities which are to be found in the surgical works of his contemporaries Baker and Banester. In 1579 he published his first book, De Morbo Gallico. It is mainly a compilation, and his best observations are to be found here and there in his later works.
His Prooved Practise for all young Chirurgians (London, 1591) and Treatise on the Struma (London, 1602) are full of pictures of daily life in the reign of Queen Elizabeth. He was called to a northern clothier whose leg was broken by robbers two miles outside London; to another man whose injury was received by the breaking down of a gallery at a bear-baiting; another patient was a serving-man whose leg had been pierced by an arrow as he walked near the butts; a fifth was one of Sir Francis Drake's sailors who had been shot by a poisoned arrow on the coast of Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
; a sixth was a merchant wounded on his own ship by a pirate at the mouth of the Thames. Clowes cared little for critics, but he always speaks with generosity of his professional contemporaries Goodrouse, Banester, Bedon, and George Baker
George Baker (surgeon)
George Baker , was an English surgeon notable for writing and translating a number of early medical texts.-Biography:Baker was a member of the Barber Surgeons' Company and was elected master in 1597...
, the surgeons; John Gerard
John Gerard
John Gerard aka John Gerarde was an English herbalist notable for his herbal garden and botany writing. In 1597 he published a large and heavily illustrated "Herball, or Generall Historie of Plantes", which went on to be the most widely circulated botany book in English in the 17th century...
, Rodrigo López
Rodrigo Lopez (physician)
Rodrigo Lopez was physician to Queen Elizabeth, and may have been an inspiration for Shakespeare's Shylock in The Merchant of Venice.He was born in Crato, Portugal and raised as a New Christian...
, Henry Wotton, Dr. Foster, and Dr. Randall, and Maister Rasis, the French king's surgeon. He had met all of them in consultation.
He did not conceal that he had secret remedies — ‘my unguent,’ ‘my balm,’ ‘of my collection’ — but he never made bargains for cures, and never touted for patients as some surgeons did at that time. He gives amusing accounts of his encounters with quacks, and prides himself on always acting as became ‘a true artist.’ He figures a barber's basin among his instruments of surgery, and says he was a good embalmer of dead bodies, and knew well from practice how to roll cerecloths.
Besides ready colloquial English, he shows a wide acquaintance with proverbs, and a fair knowledge of French and of Latin. His books were all printed in London in black letter and quarto
Quarto
Quarto could refer to:* Quarto, a size or format of a book in which four leaves of a book are created from a standard size sheet of paper* For specific information about quarto texts of William Shakespeare's works, see:...
, and are:
- De Morbo Gallico, 1579. Treatise of the French or Spanish Pocks, by John Almenar, 1591, was a new edition.
- A Prooved Practise for all young Chirurgians concerning Burnings with Gunpowder, and Woundes made with Gunshot, Sword, Halbard, Pike, Launce, or such other,’ 1591. A Profitable and Necessary Book of Observations, 1596, was a new edition.
- A Right Frutefull and Approved Treatise for the Artificiall Cure of the Struma or Evill, cured by the Kinges and Queenes of England, 1602.
In 1637 reprints of his De Morbo Gallico and Profitable Book of Observations were published. Letters by him are printed in Banester's Antidotarie (1589), and in Peter Lowe
Peter Lowe
Peter Lowe is a British Constructivism artist. He was born in London at Victoria Park, Hackney. He studied at Goldsmiths' College 1954–60 where he was taught by Mary and Kenneth Martin. Lowe's work is rational, abstract and geometric. In 1960 he constructed and exhibited his first geometric...
's Surgery (1597).