Prior to the 1850s, the leading theory for disease was Miasma, or “bad air”, was the cause of disease. Though basic germ theory was written about around 400 B.C., it wouldn’t be until the 1800s, that the idea of germs as the cause of disease would be widely accepted.
In 1789, in the South Pacific, crewman, led by Fletcher Christian, seized control of the Bounty from Captain William Bligh. While many know of the basic story, what happened to the mutineers is less well known, but maybe more interesting. And help, for them, was definitely not on the way.
Germ Theory of Disease
Miasma Theory
Ignaz Semmelweis
The Doctor Who Championed Hand-Washing And Briefly Saved Lives
It Took Surprisingly Long for Doctors to Figure Out the Benefits of Hand Washing
Mutiny on the Bounty
Mutiny on the HMS Bounty
The real story behind the infamous mutiny on the H.M.S. Bounty
Fletcher Christian
William Bligh