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The Empress and the English doctor : how Catherine the Great defied a deadly virus / Lucy Ward.

Van Pelt Library DK170 .W37 2022
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Format:
Book
Author/Creator:
Ward, Lucy, author.
Contributor:
Alumni and Friends Memorial Book Fund.
Language:
English
Subjects (All):
Catherine II, Empress of Russia, 1729-1796.
Catherine.
Dimsdale, Thomas, 1712-1800.
Dimsdale, Thomas.
Smallpox--Russia--History--18th century.
Smallpox.
Smallpox--Vaccination--Russia--History--18th century.
Russia--History--Catherine II, 1762-1796.
Russia.
Smallpox--Vaccination.
Genre:
History.
Biographies.
Physical Description:
xiii, 333 pages : illustrations, maps ; 24 cm
Other Title:
How Catherine the Great defied a deadly virus
Place of Publication:
London : Oneworld Publications, 2022.
Summary:
"A killer virus ... an all-powerful Empress ... an encounter cloaked in secrecy. Within living memory, smallpox was a dreaded disease. Over human history it has killed untold millions. Back in the eighteenth century, as epidemics swept Europe, the first rumours emerged of an effective treatment: a mysterious method called inoculation. But a key problem remained: convincing people to accept the preventative remedy, the forerunner of vaccination. Arguments raged over risks and benefits, and public resistance ran high. As smallpox ravaged her empire and threatened her court, Catherine the Great took the momentous decision to summon the Quaker physician Tomas Dimsdale to St Petersburg to carry out a secret mission that would transform both their lives. Lucy Ward expertly unveils the extraordinary story of Enlightenment ideals, female leadership and the fight to promote science over superstition"--Dust jacket flap.
Contents:
Machine generated contents note: 1. The Doctor
2. The Deadly Lottery
3. The Empress
4. The Invitation
5. The Preparations
6. The Inoculations
7. The New Fashion
8. The Impact
9. The Celebrity
10. The Last Meeting.
Notes:
Includes bibliographical references (pages 291-324) and index.
Local Notes:
Acquired for the Penn Libraries with assistance from the Alumni and Friends Memorial Book Fund.
Other Format:
ebook version :
ISBN:
9780861542451
0861542452
OCLC:
1259508567
Publisher Number:
99991008170

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