Antonio Clericuzio
Department of Science and Society, University of Cassino, I
Keywords:
Royal Botanical Gardens of Paris, Medicine , Chemistry Botany in the XVII century
Abstract
The Jardin des Plantes played a prominent role in Seventeenth-century French Science. Thanks to the royal patronage, the Jardin was founded and acquired teaching functions, despite the strong opposition of the Paris medical faculty. Its founder was Guy de La Brosse, one of Louis XIII's physicians and a follower of Paracelsian iatrochemistry. The Jardin wasd indipendent from the University and its courses were attended by apothecaries and physicians who were invested in experimental science and in anatomy. During the early decades of its life, the Jardin contributed in the the development of anatomy, botany and chemistry. Some of the teachers working in the Jardin were also member of the Academie des Sciences - an institution which had close links with the Jardin. The Present study investigates the political and intellectual context of the birth and of the early activities of the Jardin, as well as the role of the royal patronage in French science and medicine.
