Johannes von Buchwald

Johannes von Buchwald , also de Buchwald , (born April 7, 1658 in Meldorf , † October 24, 1738 in Copenhagen ) was a surgeon and university professor .

Live and act

Johannes von Buchwald was a son of Detlev von Buchwald and his wife Magdalena, nee Boje. According to Johann Moller, the father worked according to the Cimbria literata as a royal land clerk in Süderdithmarschen . According to Johann Adrian Bolten , he was probably just a parish clerk in Meldorf.

Since both parents probably died in the year of his birth, von Buchwald spent his childhood and youth on the estate of his uncle Balthasar Johann von Buchwald in Lütkenharstede . In 1674 he moved from there to Copenhagen, where his uncle Nicolai Boje, a brother of his mother, worked as a master of the barbers' guild and official surgeon. Von Buchwald learned the craft of the surgeon in the Bojes barber shop, which was located in the Amager market . At the same time he visited the anatomy chamber of the University of Copenhagen , which offered demonstrations not only for students, but also for barber surgeons in training.

In 1680 von Buchwald finished his training with the journeyman's examination. Then he went on a four-year hike, which was mandatory at the time. During this time he worked in Gdansk, Berlin, Hamburg and Bremen. From there he moved to Holland, via Germany to Poland and then from Silesia to Vienna. In the Austrian capital he practiced with the imperial body surgeon Hawelant, whose patient at the Viennese court also included Andreas Pauli von Liliencron .

During his stay in Vienna, von Buchwald witnessed the Second Turkish Siege of Vienna and the Battle of the Kahlenberg . In 1684 he went back to Copenhagen and received the title of ship surgeon. In 1686 he visited Leiden and Paris . In the French capital, he took part in lectures on anatomy, surgery, obstetrics, botany and chemistry. After returning to Copenhagen in 1689, he was appointed personal surgeon to the Crown Prince.

In 1690 von Buchwald produced his masterpiece and bought master honors. He then worked as a surgeon at Kvæsthus Hospital. After the death of his uncle Boje, he took over his office. In the same year he traveled with the Danish Crown Prince and learned in Montpellier and Angers . In 1692 he returned to Copenhagen and worked as magistrate until 1697.

Von Buchwald received a scholarship from the king and studied at the medical faculty in Leiden. He finished his studies in 1699 as Lic. Med. He completed further studies at the University of Copenhagen with Caspar Bartholin the Younger in 1700 with a doctorate as Dr. med. from.

In 1707 von Buchwald followed a call from King Friedrich IV as his personal physician and in 1717 took over a full professorship for anatomy, surgery and botany at the University of Copenhagen, where he served as rector for three years. In 1717 he was appointed judicial councilor and in 1728 budget councilor.

Importance as a medic

Since Buchwald was a trained barber surgeon, he did not enjoy a high reputation among academics. Despite scorn and ridicule on the part of this group of people, he made significant contributions to the University of Copenhagen. From 1699 he carried out regular section exercises for studying surgeons. He was regarded as a very capable practical surgeon who is said to have achieved significant improvements in the herniotomy . As a barber surgeon, he taught more practical medicine.

Von Buchwald campaigned in particular for birth assistance. As the first doctor at Copenhagen University, he gave lectures on this. He also supported the practical training of midwives and the establishment of midwifery districts. An ordinance dated November 30, 1714 went back to him, which described "the examination, the acceptance and the circumstances of midwives both in Copenhagen and everywhere in Denmark". The regulation stipulated that midwives should receive specialist training instead of the instruction from clergy that had been customary up to that point, which enabled the physics of Denmark to officially monitor them for the first time.

family

On October 6, von Buchwald married his cousin Anna Margaretha von Buchwald, who was buried on April 21, 1735. His wife was a daughter of Balthasar Johannes (Hans Balster) von Buchwald and his wife Catharina Margaretha, née Hudtwalcker from Brunsbüttel.

The von Buchwald couple had twelve children. The son Balthasar Johannes Buchwald (1679–1763) worked from 1725 to 1738 as a land physicist for Falster and Lolland and was a professor at the University of Copenhagen. The son Frederic (1706-1752) practiced as a doctor in Aalborg .

literature

• Dietrich Korth: Buchwald, Johannes von . in: Schleswig-Holstein Biographical Lexicon . Volume 2. Karl Wachholtz Verlag, Neumünster 1971, pp. 85-86

Web links

• Johannes de Buchwald in Dansk Biografisk Leksikon (Danish)