THE THREE LEADING PHYSICIANS OF GERMANY DURING THE LATTER HALF OF THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY: FRANZ DE LE BOË SYLVIUS, FRIEDRICH HOFFMANN AND GEORG ERNST STAHL
The seventeenth century, says Berendes, was one of the saddest periods in the history of Germany; but, during the greater part of this time, the neighboring countries—Holland, France, England and Italy—still continued to enjoy many of the blessings of the Renaissance,—such, for example, as an uninterrupted activity of artistic efforts, of scientific work, and of commerce;—but in Germany everything seemed to be in a state of confusion. A bloody religious war was at this period devastating the land, and the best powers of the people were being wasted. Instead of increasing cultivation of manners and sentiments, there was a steady growth of savagery. The Protestants, although they probably were numerically superior, were split up into factions. The Catholics, on the other hand, were united, and their power steadily increased. In 1618 the disturbances, which previously had been scattered in character, took on the form of what in time came to be known as "The Thirty Years' War," a struggle which proved to be most sanguinary, costing Germany a great deal in every respect. Finally, the war was brought to an end by the signing of the Westphalian Treaty of Peace at Lützen, in 1648. Some idea of the terribly destructive nature of this long war may be gathered from the fact that the population of Germany, which previously had been
