Pierre-François Olive Rayer: Biography

Writing in 1932, Dr. Raymond Molinéry described the renowned French physician Pierre-François Olive Rayer (1793–1867) as having had the misfortune to have been born and to have lived through tempestuous times, when intrigue and violent uprisings were happy bed-fellows. It would seem appropriate then, before setting out details of the life and professional achievements of this ‘‘good, gentle, affable and dignified man’’, to pause briefly and consider the general tenor of that period in the history of France. How unsettled was the political climate in those years through which Rayer lived and worked so energetically? Those years, in which he devoted himself tirelessly to his professional life and medical researches, left a fine legacy to future generations of physicians. As Molinéry put it, ‘‘The history of the life and work of Rayer? This is a complete chapter in the History of Medicine.’’ Some might level a critical ‘‘hagiography not biography!’’ at statements such as this, but it is hard to encounter any truly adverse comment in most accounts of Rayer’s life and work, and surely none would contest the undoubted scholarship of this remarkable man. Rayer graduated in 1818, three years after the second reinstatement of the Bourbon monarch Louis XVIII, whose determination to rule constitutionally was frustrated by both the Ultra-Royalists on the right and the Republicans on the left. Both factions were determined to overthrow the existing regime in furtherance of their own interests. In 1824 the succession of Louis’s brother, Charles X, allowed the ‘‘Ultras’’ to gain complete control: the liberal charter of 1814 was virtually repealed, the land settlements of the Revolution were openly challenged and the press vigorously censored. In 1830 Charles dissolved the Chambers; when the new elections went against him he issued the celebrated Four Ordinances of St. Cloud. Thus the new parliament was dissolved even before its inaugural meeting, the liberty of the press was suspended indefinitely and the franchise was further restricted. The people’s answer to such repressive and reactionary measures was rioting and the erection of the barricades in Paris on 28th, 29th and 30th July, ‘‘les Trois Glorieuses’’. This brought an effective end to the Restoration. Louis Philippe’s reign from 1830 to 1848 brought similar problems. Many people were deprived of their livelihood as the Industrial Revolution spread rapidly across France, and this again led to rioting in many major cities. The constitutional and political changes born of the successive regimes that governed France during Rayer’s lifetime gave scant encouragement to the scientist, particularly since research in this field was grossly undervalued. This was particularly so during the reign of Napoleon III who, in his supreme autocracy, held the entire executive power in his own hands, with the Senate and the Legislative Body left virtually impotent. The Council of State was nominated by him, as were the Prefects and the Mayors, who were made directly responsible to him. The press was controlled and the universities were supervised. As history has shown us, intellectuals always pose a threat