The Hôtel-Dieu of the Hospices de Beaune was used as a hospital until the 1960s, when medical activities were transferred to a new building. The Hôtel Dieu is now a museum that shows how the Hospices cared for the sick and indigent from 1443 through the 19th Century.Part of the care for the poor was a daily "bread dole" to the citizens of the community. The affluent would be cared for in their homes and of course did not need charity..
The Hospices de Beaune were built by Nicolas Rolin, the Duke of Burgundy's chancellor, who hoped to earn a place in heaven through good works. With his wife, Guigone de Salins, Rolin devoted much of his fortune to caring for the 75% of Beaune's population who were poor and starving after the Hundred Years' War. After more than 550 years, the charitable organization is still supported by income from the vineyards that were left as an endowment by the Rolins, along with profits from annual wine auctions that have taken place since 1859.
During the French Revolution in 1784 the buildings suffered from vandalism and the Nuns were "kicked out" during the anti-religious fervor of the era. However in 1810 Napoleon restored the Nuns to their duty caring for the ill.
A short and incomplete history about hospitals cribbed from various sources; As early as 4000BC religions identified certain of their deities with healing. The temples of Saturn, and later of Asclepius in Asia Minor, were recognized as healing centres. Later Hipocratese practiced on the Island of Cos off the coast of Asia Minor.
Elsewhere, Brahmanic hospitals were established in Sri Lanka as early as 431BC, and King Aśoka established a chain of hospitals in Hindustān about 230 BC. Around 100BC the Romans established hospitals (valetudinaria) for the treatment of their sick and injured soldiers; their care was important because it was upon the integrity of the legions that the power of Rome was based.
The modern concept of a hospital dates from 331CE when Constantine, having been converted to Christianity, abolished all pagan hospitals and thus created the opportunity for a new start. Until that time disease had isolated the sufferer from the community. The Christian tradition emphasized the close relationship of the sufferer to his fellow man, upon whom rested the obligation for care. Illness thus became a matter for the Christian church.
Thus in the European hospitals of the middle ages the Nuns assumed the duty of caring for the ill.
The 4 pictures I selected shows a man sitting in the central courtyard reading, an exterior view of the building in which the large room for the sick.
The last two are of the large common room with an alter at the far end. The bed compartments were about 5 feet long, and two patients often occupied a bed. Since there was no heat for the large room that provided warmth. There was a corridor between the back side of the beds which was used for nursing procedures and to feed the sick but with tables for those who could get out of bed in the room The final photo is a close up of the beds.
If you looked closely you would note that the roof of the room was shaped and supported as if it were an inverted ship's hull. That was common construction in that time.
9:00 AM: for those readers who do not have cyberspace vision and can not find the fourth picture, when I just now checked my post for frequently occurring errors I discovered that my cyberspace nemesis had absconded with this picture.
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