Audioguides
The midwife’s tale
How did a midwife work in the 1800s? What would she have taken with her when she visited the homes of labouring women?
Listen to the midwife’s story:
A royal career for a woman
In early modern Europe, midwifery was one of few professions in which a woman could have a successful career. Such was the fate of both Louise Bourgeois (1563-1636) and Justine Siegemund (1636-1705). Both worked as court midwives. Both also did something highly unusual at the time for a woman: they published medical textbooks. Listen to their stories:
From Henbane to Laughing Gas
Pain has always accompanied childbirth. How did women deal with labor pain centuries before epidurals were invented?
Learn about the strange history of pain relief:
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