Portrait of Richard Banister Wellcome M0010062EA

Richard Banister (died 1626), was an English

oculist Ophthalmology ( ) is a surgical subspecialty within medicine that deals with the diagnosis and treatment of eye disorders. An ophthalmologist is a physician who undergoes subspecialty training in medical and surgical eye care. Following a medic ...

Stamford, Lincolnshire Stamford is a town and civil parish in the South Kesteven District of Lincolnshire, England. The population at the 2011 census was 19,701 and estimated at 20,645 in 2019. The town has 17th- and 18th-century stone buildings, older timber-framed ...

. He was educated under his relative, John Banister, the surgeon. He devoted himself especially to certain branches of surgery, such as 'the help of hearing by the instrument, the cure of the

hare-lip A cleft lip contains an opening in the upper lip that may extend into the nose. The opening may be on one side, both sides, or in the middle. A cleft palate occurs when the palate (the roof of the mouth) contains an opening into the nose. The te ...

and the

wry neck Torticollis, also known as wry neck, is a dystonic condition defined by an abnormal, asymmetrical head or neck position, which may be due to a variety of causes. The term ''torticollis'' is derived from the Latin words ''tortus, meaning "twisted ...

, and diseases of the eyes.’ He studied under various persons eminent in these subjects, among whom were ‘ Henry Blackborne, Robert Hall of

Worcester Worcester may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Worcester, England, a city and the county town of Worcestershire in England ** Worcester (UK Parliament constituency), an area represented by a Member of Parliament * Worcester Park, London, Engla ...

, Master Velder of Fennie Stanton, Master Surflet of Lynn, and Master Barnabie of

Peterborough Peterborough () is a cathedral city in Cambridgeshire, east of England. It is the largest part of the City of Peterborough unitary authority district (which covers a larger area than Peterborough itself). It was part of Northamptonshire unti ...

.’ To complete his education he studies the works of authors such as Rhazes, Mesne, Fernelius, and

Vesalius Andreas Vesalius (Latinized from Andries van Wezel) () was a 16th-century anatomist, physician, and author of one of the most influential books on human anatomy, ''De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septem'' (''On the fabric of the human body'' '' ...

. Banister then established himself in Stamford, and acquired considerable reputation as an oculist. He was in demand in all the nearby large towns, and was even asked to go to London. He appears to have performed numerous operations for

cataract A cataract is a cloudy area in the lens of the eye that leads to a decrease in vision. Cataracts often develop slowly and can affect one or both eyes. Symptoms may include faded colors, blurry or double vision, halos around light, trouble ...

, and to have cured twenty-four blind persons at

Norwich Norwich () is a cathedral city and district of Norfolk, England, of which it is the county town. Norwich is by the River Wensum, about north-east of London, north of Ipswich and east of Peterborough. As the seat of the Episcopal see, See of ...

, of which he obtained a certificate from the mayor and aldermen. In 1622 Banister published a second edition of a ''Treatise of One Hundred and Thirteen Diseases of the Eyes and Eyelids'', with some profitable additions of certain principles and experiments, by Richard Banister, oculist and practitioner in physic. It is a translation from the French of

Jacques Guillemeau Jacques Guillemeau (1550–1613) was a French surgeon from Orléans. He is credited for making pioneer contributions in the fields of obstetrics, ophthalmology and pediatrics. He was a surgeon at Hôtel-Dieu de Paris, and a favored student ...

, made by one A. H., and at its first publication dedicated to the elder Banister. Guillemeau was a distinguished surgeon at the courts of Charles IX, Henry III, and

Henry IV of France Henry IV (french: Henri IV; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monar ...

, and his work, ''Traité des Maladies de l'Œil'' (Handbook for treatment of ailments of the eye), was published in Paris in 1585, and at

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...

in 1610, and was translated both into

Flemish Flemish (''Vlaams'') is a Low Franconian dialect cluster of the Dutch language. It is sometimes referred to as Flemish Dutch (), Belgian Dutch ( ), or Southern Dutch (). Flemish is native to Flanders, a historical region in northern Belgium; ...

and into German. The English translation by A. H. having become out of print, a second edition was published in 1622 by Richard Banister, together with an 'appendant part' called ''Cervisia Medicata, Purging Ale, with divers aphorisms and principles''. The work received the name of ''Banister's Breviary of the Eyes'' in which the curative properties of Malvern water are also mentioned. In this treatise he names the best oculists for the last fifty or sixty years, not university graduates. Banister was buried at

St Mary's Church, Stamford St Mary's Church, Stamford is a parish church of the Church of England, located in Stamford, Lincolnshire, lending its name to St Mary's Hill (part of the old Great North Road) on which it stands, and which runs down to the river crossing op ...

, 7 April 1626. His wife Anne was buried there 16 April 1624.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Banister, Richard Year of birth missing 1626 deaths People from Stamford, Lincolnshire Oculists English medical writers 17th-century English writers 17th-century English male writers Eye care in the United Kingdom