Matthias Steevens van Geuns

Matthias Stevens van Geuns

Matthias Steevens van Geuns (also: Matthijs van Geuns ; born September 2, 1735 in Groningen ; † December 8, 1817 in Utrecht ) was a Dutch doctor and botanist .

Life

The son of the cloth merchant Jan Steven van Geuns (1694–1757) and his wife Diewertje Roos (1696–1737) came from the middle class and belonged to the Mennonite denomination . He received a solid basic education at the Latin school in his hometown, where an early interest in the scientific debates of his time awoke in him. Through great diligence, lust and love, he constantly expanded his knowledge. He won high-value prizes while still at school. His father originally wanted Matthias to learn the same trade as himself. However, on the advice of friends, he managed to allow his son to study. After van Geuns had said goodbye to his school education with the speech de Praetoribus Romanis , he moved to the University of Groningen in 1751 .

He attended the lectures of Professor Jakob Hendrik Croeser (1691–1753) and soon realized that it was too early for him to study medicine and that he first had to complete a thorough study of general science. He switched to the philosophical faculty, where he taught from Johann Daniel van Lennep (1724–1771) in Greek and Latin, from Leonard Offerhaus (1699–1779) in history and geography, and from Friedrich Adam Widder (1724–1784) in rhetoric , was taught by Dionysius van de Wijnpersse (1724-1808) in physics, and by Paulus Chevallier (1722-1796) in natural theology. In addition, he had also familiarized himself with the English, French and High German languages. He had also made some friends among the students, with only Allard Hulshoff (1734–1795), Petrus Abresch (1736–1812), Ahasverus van den Berg (1733–1807) and Daniel Hovens (1735–1795) being mentioned.

From 1754 an intensive study of the medical sciences began. The pharmacy he heard from Tiberius Lambergen (1717–1763) and the other subjects of the medical sciences from Leidsman and Raadgever. Under Gualtherus van Doeveren (1730–1783) he defended his first publication on June 14, 1758 with Disquisitio physiologica, de eo, quod vitam constituit in corpore animali (Groningen 1758) and continued at the university from September 15, 1758 for a year Suffer his studies. In Leiden were Frederik Bernard Albinus (1715–1778) in anatomy and surgery, Hieronymus David Gaub (1705–1780) in chemistry and pathology, Frederik Winter (1712–1760) in practical medicine and David van Royen (1727–1799) in botany his teachers.

In addition, he attended the science lectures there and with Johannes le Francq van Berkhey (1729–1812) he attended lectures in natural history. During this time he had made friends with Paulus de Wind (1714–1771), Martinus Houttuin (1720–1798), Simon Stinstra and the poet Jan de Kruijff (1706–1775), with whom he would later correspond by letter. After passing his medical candidate examination in 1759, he traveled via Antwerp and Brussels to the University of Paris to continue his studies. Johannes le Francq van Berkhey had recommended the rich natural history collection of Jacques-Christophe Valmont de Bomare (1731-1807) and advised him to attend his lectures on natural history. He also attended the lectures in experimental physics by Jean-Antoine Nollet and the courses in chemistry with Guillaume Francois Rouelle (1703–1770) and Pierre-Joseph Macquer .

He placed particular emphasis on studying with professors and practitioners of medicine and obstetrics. In their courses he increased his experience. So he had to the Hôtel-Dieu de Paris announced, the former surgeon Antoine Louis at the Hôpital de la Charité met in André Levret practiced in the practice of obstetrics (1703-1780) and the most in the Hôtel des Invalides in Raphaël Bienvenu Sabatier (1732–1811) and Jean François Clément Morand (1726–1784) familiarized with medical practice in France. In 1760 he returned to the Netherlands and went to Amsterdam to complete his training with Petrus Camper (1722–1789). Returned to Groningen, he received his doctorate in medicine on June 14, 1761 with the dissertation pathologica, de morte corporea et causis moriendi .

He then worked as a doctor in his place of birth, where his practice was very popular. Here he got married too. Above all, from 1765 onwards, he made a great contribution to preventive smallpox prevention. He was also able to win a competition advertised by the Dutch Academy of Sciences in 1769. When van Doeveren went back to Leiden in 1771, a successor to his post was sought in Groningen. The university's curators found that van Geuns was the most suitable for this position. However, he was supposed to sign an oath of office that contradicted his Mennonite beliefs. So that venture failed. Instead he became a physician and teacher at the local midwifery institute. In 1776 he was appointed archiater of the province of Gelderland .

Therefore, he moved with his wife and seven children to Harderwijk, where on June 5, 1776 he was professor of medical practice, chemistry, botany and obstetrics, which at that time still included pathology and therapy, with the inaugural address Oratio, qua an expediat reipublicae Medicinam facientium opera expenditur (Harderwijk 1776), took up his post at the University of Harderwijk . As a professor he was a very busy man. However, during this time he found a lot of energy to publish some scientific papers. The dysentery had spread in Harderwijk and Gelderland in 1779 and 1783. As an analytical observer, he recognized that the hygienic conditions were the prerequisites for such epidemics. About it he wrote a writing De heerschende persloop, which heeft in de laatste jaaren, vooral in 1783, de Provincie van Gelderland fel ... (Harderwijk 1784), which 1790 also in German by Johann Bernhard Keup (1755-1802) under the title treatise on epidemic dysentery (Düsseldorf 1790) appeared.

In addition, he had also earned services as a botanist in Harderwijk. After arranging for the widow of David de Gorter to leave his herbarium to the university, he set about rebuilding the Botanical Garden in Harderwijk. So he increased the stock of plants, built a greenhouse and an orangery. As a result of the billeting of troops in 1787, however, part of his work was destroyed, so that surveillance of the object was ordered. In addition, in 1777/78 and 1786/87, as rector, he took part in the university's organizational tasks. In 1784 he took over the first professorship for pathology and therapy and took over the training of midwives, for which he received a substantial increase in salary.

After he had worked fifteen years in Harderwijk, he went in 1791 as the successor to Johannes Oosterdijk Schacht (1704-1792) as a professor of practical and theoretical medicine at the University of Utrecht , which he did on June 5 of that year with the speech de providentia politica, uno maximo adversae civium valetudinis praesidio (Utrecht 1792). He was elected rector in 1795/96 and also took over the professorship for botany in 1795 and was thus director of the botanical garden. Under Louis Bonaparte he acted as a medical advisor and after the restoration of the Netherlands he became a member of the Royal Institute founded in 1808 ( Koninklijk Instituut van Wetenschappen, Letterkunde en Schoone Kunsten ). In 1815 van Geun retired after a creative life. His daughter Deborah looked after him during the last phase of his life. He was a member of several learned societies at that time, was a knight of the Order of the Dutch Lion and died of a stroke.

Act

Although the German doctor Johann Peter Frank is often referred to as the father of public hygiene , van Geuns, from a Dutch perspective, would have more right to this title. Because his activities were varied in order to raise the level of health care at that time. Above all, he involved the state in its control, although state preventive measures for drinking water supply, sewage disposal, air purity and food quality were not his only concerns. In four speeches to doctors and members of the government, he demanded that bakers should not mix harmful substances into the flour and that milk should no longer come from sick cows.

At that time, all sorts of quacks and charlatans were still involved in medical care. These were a thorn in his side. So he tried to get the government to rule that only approved doctors were allowed to provide health care. He also suggested a kind of health insurance in which, as a healthy person, you would pay a reasonable amount, which was then available in the event of illness. In this context, it is not surprising that he made regular public health advocates. He insisted on good training for obstetricians, surgeons and pharmacists and always emphasized the state's responsibility to ensure this. As an incentive for good training of the midwives, he introduced an employment relationship for them.

Van Geuns was a proponent of variolation and has vaccinated hundreds of patients against disease in his lifetime. Above all, he attested to the great success of Edward Jenner's method of vaccination against cowpox and said that this method would one day eradicate smallpox. He also passed his ideas on to his students. The theses of the 36 doctoral students in Harderwijk reflect his diverse interests and broad knowledge. Van Geuns kept himself informed about new publications and owned an extensive library, which he was constantly adding to.

Despite all the severity, he remained honest with others and knew how to deal with people of all walks of life. He avoided the premature use of medicines and paid more attention to the healing power of human nature. Infusions of willow bark (salicylic acid), frequent rest, and good nutrition were more beneficial to him than drastic medication. He recommended steam baths with balsamic vinegar for coughs and colds. So it stands entirely in the tradition of the Dutch physician Hermann Boerhaave , whose trademark was to return medicine to its original simplicity and observation. Without further ado, however, one has to emphasize his efforts to develop the Dutch healthcare system. He is not only considered the founder of modern medicine in the Netherlands, but also gave many suggestions for other European countries with his ideas. This makes him one of the forefathers of medicine in Europe. In addition to numerous specialist treatises in the Dutch specialist journals of his time, independent works were also published.

family

His marriage to Sara (1739–1809), the daughter of Jan van Delden and Sophia Booser, on November 6, 1763 in Groningen resulted in four sons and three daughters:

• Jan van Geuns (theologian) (born September 14, 1764 in Groningen, † January 25, 1834 in Nijmegen) was a theologian.
• Debora Jozina (born October 27, 1765, † September 29, 1854 in Utrecht) remained unmarried.
• Stephan Jan van Geuns (born October 18, 1767 Groningen † May 16, 1795 in Utrecht) became like his father a doctor and in 1791 a professor in Utrecht; In 1789 he went on a trip to the Rhine with Alexander von Humboldt and died of typhus.
• Jakob van Geuns (born January 10, 1769 in Groningen-1832) was initially a problem child, trained in trade, also wanted to become a doctor and became director of a bank in Amsterdam.
• Sophia (born December 14, 1770-1807)
• Isaac Matthias van Geuns (born September 11, 1772-1804) studied law and received a position in the government.
• Josina Gepke van Geuns (born May 26, 1776 in Groningen, † May 11, 1852 in Utrecht) married August 16, 1809 in Utrecht with the physician IJsbrand de Kock (born October 21, 1781 in Utrecht, † October 31, 1868 in Utrecht )

Works

• Redevoering van W. van Doeveren, over de gunstige gesteldheid van Groningen voor de gezondheid, af te suffering uit de Natuurlijke Historie der stad, with a negotiating voorrede van M. van Geuns. Groningen 1771.
• Negotiating over het Weeder, met trekking tot den Landbouw, uit het Italiaansch van J. Toaldo, in het Nederduitsch over gezet en met eene Voorrede van M. van Geuns voorzien. Amsterdam 1778.
• De heerschende Persloop, who met in de laatste jaren, vooral in 1783, de Provincie Gelderland fel heeft, nagespoord, inzonderheid op het quartier van den Veulwe, en ten gemeenen nutte negotiated. Harderwijk 1786. In German Düsseldorf 1790 ( online )
• Oratio de humanitate, virtute medici praestantissima. Harderwijk 1790.
• Orationes duae de civium valetudine Respublicae rectoribus inprimis commendanda. Harderwijk 1791.
• The national handhaving van der ingezetenen gezondheid en leven, aangeprezen by M. van Geuns. Uit het Latijn vertaald door HA Bake, met ophelderende bijvoegselen van den schrijver. Amsterdam 1801.
• Opgave van eenige inlandsche voortbrengselen des velds, wilted zouden can serve the vervullinge van behoefte aan voedsel, vooral voor minvermogenden. Utrecht 1796.
• Plantarum Indigenarum, in usum, sive medicum, sive oeconomicum, selectarum Index systematicus; cui accedit pro indoctioribus institutio aliqua botanica. Utrecht 1816.

literature

• August Hirsch : Biographical lexicon of the outstanding doctors of all times and peoples. Volume 2, Verlag Urban & Schwarzenberg, Vienna / Leipzig 1885, p. 562.
• Er - Gruber : General Encyclopedia of Sciences and Arts . 1st Sect., Part 65, Verlag Friedrich August Brockhaus, Leipzig 1857, p. 236. (online)
• Meindest Evers: Encounters with German culture. Dutch-German relations between 1780 and 1920. Verlag Königshausen & Neumann, Würzburg 2006, ISBN 3-8260-3260-8 , p. 59 ff. (Reading sample)
• W. Christiaens, M. Evers: Patriotse illusies in Amsterdam en Harderwijk. Uitgeverij Verloren, Hilversum 2002, ISBN 90-6550-687-X , p. 6 ff. (Reading sample) (Dutch)
• M. Evers: Matthias van Geuns . In: Biographical Woordenboek Gelderland . Volume 2, Verloren, Hilversum 2000, ISBN 90-8704-070-9 , pp. 33-35, (Dutch)
• Simon Thomas: Geuns, Matthias van . In: Petrus Johannes Blok, Philipp Christiaan Molhuysen: Nieuw Nederlands Biografisch Woordenboek. (NNBW). Volume 1, Instituut voor Nederlandse Geschiedenis (ING), AW Sijthoff, Leiden 1911, Sp. 931-932. (Dutch)
• Abraham Jacob van der Aa : Biographical woordenboek der Nederlanden, bevattende levensbeschrijvingen van zoodanige people, who zich op eenigerlei wijze in ons vaderland vermaard made. Volume 7, Verlag JJ Van Brederode, Haarlem 1862, pp. 148-153. (online) (Dutch)
• Philipp Wilhelm van Heude: Annales Academiae Rheno Traiectinae. Universitätsverlag, Utrecht 1819, p. 54 ff., (Online)
• Life story and character picture of Matthias van Geuns. In: Algemeene Konst- en Letter-Bode, voor Het Jaar 1819. Volume 1, Verlag de Wed, A. Loosjes, Haarlem 1819, p. 339. (online) (Dutch)
• Gerrit Nieuwenhuis: Algemeen woordenboek van kunsten en wetenschappen. Verlag HCA Thieme, Zutphen 1822, p. 203, (online) (Dutch)
• Anthony Winkler Prins : Geïllustreerde encyclopaedie. Woordenboek voor Wetenschap en Kunst, beschaving en Nijverheid. Volume 7, Uitgevers-Maatschappij “Elsevier”, Rotterdam 1885, pp. 265–266. (Dutch)

Web links

• Catalogus Professorum Academiae Rheno-Traiectinae
• Literature about Matthias van Geuns in the Digital Library of the Netherlands (DBNL)
• Author entry and list of the described plant names for Matthias Steevens van Geuns at the IPNI

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Dr. Med in Harlingen
2. ↑ Steven Jan van Geuns: Diary of a trip with Alexander von Humboldt through Hesse, the Palatinate, along the Rhine and through Westphalia in autumn 1789 . Ed .: Bernd Kölbel and Lucie Terken with the collaboration of Martin Sauerwein et al. Academy, Berlin 2007.