Biomaterial Database

[The death of foundlings, a drama in two acts]. 1994

J P Bardet, and C Martin Dufour, and J Renard

Paris-Sorbonne Centre Roland Mousnier, Paris.

Around 1750 society grows aware of the high mortality of abandoned infants: enlightened physicians and administrators attempt to remedy this disaster and put the blame on the country wet nurses who took in the foundlings. A large number of contemporary historians have incritically contented themselves with repeating these reproaches. This article constitutes an attempt to rehabilitate country wet nurses. According to the authors, the infants were victims of the circumstances of being abandoned. An analysis based on a list of names does show that the most obvious causes for the high mortality rate of the foundlings were the close incidents surrounding the fact of being abandoned whereas it can rarely be explained by the living conditions at a wet nurse's. In the background, an original rural society emerges in a poor country taking in infants constitutes a real business. This study represents but one stage at the core of a developing research.

UI	MeSH Term	Description	Entries
D007223	Infant	A child between 1 and 23 months of age.	Infants
D007226	Infant Mortality	Postnatal deaths from BIRTH to 365 days after birth in a given population. Postneonatal mortality represents deaths between 28 days and 365 days after birth (as defined by National Center for Health Statistics). Neonatal mortality represents deaths from birth to 27 days after birth.	Neonatal Mortality,Mortality, Infant,Postneonatal Mortality,Infant Mortalities,Mortalities, Infant,Mortalities, Neonatal,Mortalities, Postneonatal,Mortality, Neonatal,Mortality, Postneonatal,Neonatal Mortalities,Postneonatal Mortalities
D007231	Infant, Newborn	An infant during the first 28 days after birth.	Neonate,Newborns,Infants, Newborn,Neonates,Newborn,Newborn Infant,Newborn Infants
D002648	Child	A person 6 to 12 years of age. An individual 2 to 5 years old is CHILD, PRESCHOOL.	Children
D002654	Child Care	Care of CHILDREN in the home or in an institution.	Puericulture,Child Day Care,Day Care, Child,Care, Child
D002669	Child Welfare	Organized efforts by communities or organizations to improve the health and well-being of the child.	Adolescent Welfare,Welfare, Adolescent,Welfare, Child
D002670	Child, Abandoned	A child or adolescent who is deserted by parents or parent substitutes without regard for its future care.	Adolescent, Abandoned,Children, Abandoned,Abandoned Adolescent,Abandoned Adolescents,Abandoned Child,Abandoned Children,Adolescents, Abandoned
D002675	Child, Preschool	A child between the ages of 2 and 5.	Children, Preschool,Preschool Child,Preschool Children
D005602	France	A country in western Europe bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, the English Channel, the Mediterranean Sea, and the countries of Belgium, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, the principalities of Andorra and Monaco, and by the duchy of Luxembourg. Its capital is Paris.	Corsica,Saint Pierre and Miquelon,Miquelon and Saint Pierre,Miquelon and St. Pierre,St. Pierre and Miquelon
D006701	Home Nursing	Nursing care given to an individual in the home. The care may be provided by a family member or a friend. Home nursing as care by a non-professional is differentiated from HOME CARE SERVICES provided by professionals: visiting nurse, home health agencies, hospital, or other organized community group.	Home Care, Non-Professional,Nursing, Home,Home Care, Nonprofessional,Care, Non-Professional Home,Care, Nonprofessional Home,Home Care, Non Professional,Non-Professional Home Care,Nonprofessional Home Care