Key Terms
- Four Humours: Medieval disease theory (blood, phlegm, yellow bile, black bile)
- Miasma: Bad air theory of disease
- Germ Theory: Pasteur 1861 — microscopic organisms cause disease
- Public Health Act 1875: Compulsory water/sewage reform
- Antibiotic: Substance that kills bacteria (penicillin = first)
- Welfare State: Government responsibility for health, unemployment, old age
Key Dates
- 1348: Black Death arrives in England
- 1543: Vesalius — anatomy
- 1628: Harvey — blood circulation
- 1854: Snow — Broad Street pump
- 1861: Pasteur — Germ Theory
- 1875: Compulsory Public Health Act
- 1928: Fleming discovers penicillin
- 1948: NHS founded
Key People
- John Snow: Proved water-borne cholera (1854)
- Edwin Chadwick: Sanitary Report 1842; triggered reform
- Louis Pasteur: Germ Theory 1861
- Joseph Bazalgette: Built London's sewers (1858-75)
- Alexander Fleming: Discovered penicillin (1928)
- Aneurin Bevan: Health Secretary; launched NHS 1948
- William Beveridge: Report 1942; blueprint for welfare state
Must-Know Facts
- Black Death killed ~1/3 of England's population (1348-49)
- Chadwick: average life expectancy in Manchester = 28 for labourers (1842)
- Great Stink 1858: Thames smell forced Parliament to fund Bazalgette's sewers
- 1875 Act: COMPULSORY (unlike 1848 which was voluntary)
- Penicillin mass-produced for D-Day 1944
- NHS year 1: 8.5 million dental treatments, 5.25 million pairs of glasses
- Change factors: Science, War, Individuals, Government, Chance (SWIGC)
Common Mistakes
- Confusing John Snow with Pasteur: Snow proved cholera spread through water (1854, Broad Street pump); Pasteur proved germ theory (1861, bacteria cause disease). They did different things — do not merge them into one point.
- Saying Germ Theory immediately changed medicine: Pasteur published in 1861 but ordinary patients still received traditional treatments for decades. Always emphasise the gap between scientific discovery and practical change — and use the 1875 Act and NHS as evidence of the delay.
- Treating the 1848 and 1875 Public Health Acts as the same: The 1848 Act was voluntary (local councils could act but didn't have to); the 1875 Act was compulsory. The distinction is the key to explaining WHY health improved when it did — government will, not just scientific knowledge, was needed.
- Listing factors of change without linking them: "Science, government, and individuals all helped" is Level 1. Show how they connected: "Snow's 1854 evidence gave Chadwick's argument the proof it needed; Parliament then had to act after the Great Stink — showing that individuals, chance, and government combined to produce the 1875 Act."
This topic summary covers Knowledge Organiser: The People's Health, c.1250-present within The People's Health, c.1250-present for GCSE History. Revise The People's Health, c.1250-present in Component Group 1 — Thematic Studies for GCSE History with 14 exam-style questions and 17 flashcards. This topic shows up very often in GCSE exams, so students should be able to explain it clearly, not just recognise the term. It is section 16 of 16 in this topic. Use this topic summary to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
Practice questions for The People's Health, c.1250-present
Describe two features of medieval beliefs about the causes of disease.
Describe two responses to the Black Death in England.
Quick recall flashcards
What were the Four Humours (Galen)?
Blood, phlegm, yellow bile, black bile. Galen taught that disease was caused by imbalance of these fluids. Treatments aimed to restore balance — bleeding, purging, vomiting. Dominated medicine until the 19th century.
What was Miasma Theory?
The belief that disease spread through foul-smelling 'bad air' from rotting matter, sewage, and corpses. Wrong about the cause, but accidentally encouraged avoiding infected areas.