ABSTRACT
In Bavaria, poor relief and health care provision for the labouring poor became major issues of political debate and reform at a time when there was hardly any industrialisation to speak of, and before the emergence of any of the social and political problems and tensions which are commonly associated with industrialisation, urbanisation and the formation of an urban industrial proletariat. In the creation of a comprehensive health care system for the registered poor, as well as for dependent labourers, Bavaria appears much more as a vanguard force. An American Protestant and military man, who had remained loyal to the English in the War of Independence, Rumford enjoyed the personal favour and protection of the Bavarian Elector Karl Theodor, who had entrusted him with a thorough reform of the Bavarian army. Among the medical profession in Bavaria there was a massive and highly successful drive to reshape and expand health care according to their own needs and desires.
