title: [The creation of hospitals by charities in Minas Gerais (Brazil) from 18th to 20th century].
abstract: This article is the fruit of research into the cultural heritage of healthcare in Minas Gerais (Brazil) and explores the construction of hospitals supported by Catholic charities from the 18th to 20th century. Catholicism has always been strong in Minas Gerais, partly because the Portuguese Crown prohibited the free travel of priests, who were suspected of illegally trading in gold from the mines. A brotherhood was responsible for creating the first Santa Casa, in Vila Rica. Another very important religious group in Brazil, the Vincentians, was also devoted to charitable works and propagated the ideas on charity of Frederico Ozanan, based on the work of St. Vincent de Paul. This group comprised both a lay movement, supported by conferences organized by the St. Vincent de Paul Society, and a religious order, the Vincentian priests and nuns. Catholic physicians make up the third group studied here, organized in a professional association promoted by the Catholic Church. The brotherhoods, Vincentians, and associations, with their Santa Casas, represent a movement that is recognized worldwide. The enormous Catholic participation in these charitable works brought in the physicians, who would often make no charge and exerted efforts to create hospitals that served the population. Although the capital of Minas Gerais was the creation of republicans and positivists in the 20th century, with their ideas of modernity, it remained dependent on Christian charity for the treatment of the poor.
authors.affiliation: Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais, Brasil. rcmarques63@yahoo.com.br
authors.forename: Rita de Cássia
authors.initials: Rde C
authors.lastname: Marques
mesh_terms: D001938:Brazil; D002410:Catholicism / Q000266:history; D002608:Charities / Q000266:history*; D049671:History, 18th Century; D049672:History, 19th Century; D049673:History, 20th Century; D006761:Hospitals / Q000266:history*