[Meyerbeer, spa curist, biography of J. -F. Struensee, physician and man of the modernist state].

Abstract

In 1757, Struensee (1737-1772) graduated in medicine at Halle-Saale university, as his father a high dignitary in the lutherian church was, and supported by the presence of his grand-father the physician and scientist Samuel Carl. The family moved to Altona where he was nominated as physician in the city council. Then he largely dealt with medical and social items, for orphans and disabled, and attempted to prevent infectious deseases, small pox, typhus, scabies ans dysenteric syndroms. For sure when he practised his investigations on water samples with microscopy, Struensee acted as a pioneer to suspect microrganisms to be responsible for infectious diseases. Later on, he started his medical service dedicated to the Danish king Christian VII. This part of his life demonstrated the ambitious but highly capable man he was when running the whole government load for Denmark, in a liberal and advanced way. We link the drama of his death when he was condamned, to the symphony composed by Meyerbeer (1791-1864), known as an incidental music for Michael Beer's play Struensee, 1846.