Unlocking the Mystery of Maturin: The Tale of Two Universities
In the world of Patrick O'Brian’s Aubrey-Maturin series, Stephen Maturin is a man of many layers—naturalist, spy, and skilled physician. But for those of us who dive deep into the historical mechanics of his life, one detail has always invited curiosity: Why did he need two different universities to complete his medical education? While previous posts explored the scattered fragments of Stephen's childhood, tracing his path through the medical wards of the late 18th century proved to be a much more complex puzzle. It required looking past the fiction and into the shifting sands of the French Revolution and the strict religious barriers of Trinity College Dublin. In today's post, we're "walking the wards" of 1780s Paris and the delivery rooms of Dublin's Rotunda Hospital to organize Stephen's training timeline. From cheering the fall of the Bastille to earning the right to wear the scarlet robes of a Doctor of Medicine, this is how political upheaval an...
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