Mary Trye (born 1642) was a woman who practiced medicine in Warwickshire, England and the city of London, in an era when women were not permitted to become licensed physicians. Little is known about Trye or her life. She was baptized as Mary Dowde on July 30, 1642; was married in 1660 to a merchant, Edward Stanthwaite; was widowed; and in 1670 married Berkeley Trye, with whom she had a son, William, in 1671. In 1675, she published ''Medicatrix, Or The Woman-Physician,''a defense of her father, Thomas O'Dowde, who died caring for patients during the

Great Plague of London The Great Plague of London, lasting from 1665 to 1666, was the last major epidemic of the bubonic plague to occur in England. It happened within the centuries-long Second Pandemic, a period of intermittent bubonic plague epidemics that origi ...

, and whose practice she continued. in ''Medicatrix'' she asserted her right to write and publish. She defended the practice of

iatrochemistry Iatrochemistry (; also known as chemiatria or chemical medicine) is a branch of both chemistry and medicine. Having its roots in alchemy, iatrochemistry seeks to provide chemical solutions to diseases and medical ailments. This area of science h ...

as opposed to the Galenic approach supported by the official

Royal College of Physicians The Royal College of Physicians (RCP) is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1 ...

. Her medical philosophy was influenced by Jan Baptist Van Helmont.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Trye, Mary History of Warwickshire Folk healers History of London 1670s 17th-century English women writers 17th-century English medical doctors 1642 births 17th-century English writers