Daniel Le Clerc (or Daniel Leclerc) (1652-1728) was a

Genevan Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

medical writer of the late 17th and early 18th centuries. He wrote the seminal ''Histoire de la Medecine'', and co-edited the equally groundbreaking text '' Bibliotheca Anatomica'' with

Jean-Jacques Manget Jean-Jacques Manget (or Johann Jacob Mangetus) (1652–1742) was a Genevan physician and writer. He was known for his work on epidemic diseases such as bubonic plague and tuberculosis. In addition to his own researches, he assiduously compiled pr ...

Life

Le Clerc was born in

Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...

on February 4, 1652. As a student he traveled to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...

, Valence, and

Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania (administrative region), Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the Departments of ...

, to study medicine, eventually returning to Geneva to begin his professional practice. Leclerc was the author of a number of books, though it is the ''Histoire de la Medecine'' which made his reputation. The work was unique in its time in that it went beyond merely describing the current state of medical knowledge, but delved in detail into the history of medical knowledge from the ancient world until contemporary times, and gave special emphasis to

ancient Greek medicine Ancient Greek medicine was a compilation of theories and practices that were constantly expanding through new ideologies and trials. Many components were considered in ancient Greek medicine, intertwining the spiritual with the physical. Specifi ...

. Le Clerc also drew heavily upon

Al-Tamimi Banū Tamīm ( ar, بَنُو تَمِيم) is an Arabs, Arab tribe that originated in Najd in the Arabian Peninsula. It is mainly present in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Iraq, Jordan, Algeria, and has a strong presence in Morocco, State of Pale ...

's seminal work, ''al-Murshid'', upon which many of his views on dietetics and medicines are based.Fuat Sezgin, ''Geschichte des Arabischen Schrifttums'' (Band III, Medizin - Pharmazie; Zoologie - Tierheilkunde), E.J. Brill: Leiden 1970, p. 317 It is widely considered a classic and has been translated and reprinted many times in the centuries since its publication. Le Clerc later became interested in politics in his native city, and was elected to the

Council of Two Hundred The Councils of Two Hundred (; ) were the legislative authorities in four Swiss cities (Zürich, Bern, Fribourg, Basel), as well as in the independent Republic of Geneva prior to the French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a peri ...

in 1701, a position that he held until his death in 1728.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Le Clerc, Daniel 1652 births 1728 deaths Physicians from the Republic of Geneva Politicians from the Republic of Geneva Medical writers