Caring for the Poor: The True Role of Geneva’s Hospitals in the Reformation Era

Welcome to Really Calvin, is this an ideal life? A historical podcast. In today’s episode, we dive into some fascinating excerpts from a French academic study that takes a deep dive into the history of Geneva’s "hospitals" during the Reformation—a time when things were changing faster than you can say “John Calvin.”

Using a treasure trove of Geneva’s archives—think dusty Council records, financial ledgers, and notarial documents—the author pieces together the puzzle of how many hospices there were, where they were located, and how they actually worked before and during this whirlwind of religious and political upheaval.

Along the way, the study clears up a few historical mix-ups (because even historians need to fact-check), and gives us a clear picture of how Geneva’s social care system was reshaped to deal with the new Protestant reality. So, buckle up as we explore how caring for the poor, the local bourgeois, and weary travelers got a serious makeover in 16th-century Geneva—no miracle potions required!

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This historical popularization podcast is developed as part of the interdisciplinary project entitled "A semantic and multilingual online edition of the Registers of the Council of Geneva / 1545-1550" (RCnum) and developed by the University of Geneva (UNIGE), as part of funding from the Swiss National Scientific Research Fund (SNSF). For more information: https://www.unige.ch/registresconseilge/en.

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