ABSTRACT
Chapter 6 considers how 16th-century English medical men extended their field of interest to childbirth. In 1547, physician Andrewe Boorde drew attention to the shortcomings of the competency of midwives, without the benefit of evidence. The Chamberlen family were among others attempting to control midwifery practice. By the 18th-century, men-midwives or accoucheurs were found in towns, cities and large rural communities, most without benefit of obstetrics training. Later, Aveling would wrongly claim that the accoucheurs improved mortality rates. Meanwhile, the determined attempts of medical men to control childbirth moved forward, with a push to create more lying-in-hospitals.
