In his Lectures on the Duties and Qualifi cations of a Physician (1770) Doctor John Gregory sympathized with students who were forced to study medical history, claiming, ‘It is indeed an unpleasant task, and, at fi rst view, seems a useless one, to enquire into the numerous theories that have infl uenced the practice of physic in diff erent ages’. Nevertheless, he maintained, the subject did have some redeeming value; certain forgotten historical remedies could have real therapeutic importance, and the study of ‘fanciful hypotheses’ adopted by physicians of earlier ages could encourage modern practitioners to be more discerning in their own adherence to new medical To.
