Book of the Month: The Compleat Midwife’s Companion

Very little is known about the author of this book, Jane Sharp, other than that she was an English midwife who, in an age when few women wrote books, published The Midwives Book: or the Whole Art of Midwifery in 1671, becoming the first English woman to publish a book on midwifery.

Sharpe draws on her own, 40 year, experience as a midwife combined with the accepted medical knowledge of the day. She claims in the introduction, "I have been at a large expense in translating of books, either French, Dutch or Italian of this kind; the marrow of which I offer with my own experience".

The book is presented as a self-guide manual for women, taking them through conception, pregnancy, birth and postnatal care. Sharp is extremely critical of man-midwives, believing them to be expensive and unnecessary. The book is dedicated "To the celebrated Midwives of Great Britain and Ireland" whom she addresses as "Sisters".

The book enjoyed great success and went through four editions by 1725, with the title being slightly changed to the extremely long version as illustrated. Astonishingly, it has remained in print to the present day and has been the inspiration for a children's book (The Midwife's Apprentice, 1996) and a play (The Man who discovered that Women lay Eggs, 2005).

The Dun's Library holds a copy of the 4th edition of this work, published in London in 1725. It was originally acquired by Dr. Fleetwood Churchill, the great 19th century obstetrician, and came to the College as part of Churchill's bequest of his wonderful collection of over 600 rare and important books on obstetrics and gynaecology.

Robert Mills, RCPI Librarian