Louis Barthélemy Malaise M.D. (30 July 1808 – 13 April 1851) was one of the first Belgian orthodox physicians to convert to homeopathy. He was a member of the Société Homéopathique Liégeoise.

Malaise practiced in Liège, where he was a colleague of Olivier Brixhe (1795 – 1885), Jean Francois Dugniolle, Carolus Ludovicus de Meester (1800-1855) and Gottlieb Heinrich Georg Jahr. Malaise was senior physician at the Baviere, Grand Civil Hospital, in Liège.

MALAISE (Louis-Barthélemy), doctor, born in Liége on July 30, 1808, died in the same city on April 14, 1851. He was the son of Barthélemy Malaise, a doctor, and Anne-Catherine Haillot. Like several members of his family, he devoted himself to the art of healing, studied brilliantly at the university of his hometown, was appointed head of clinic in the competition and proclaimed, in 1831, a doctor of medicine and midwifery with great distinction. He then went to improve his skills in Paris, where he had the opportunity to observe, the following year, the first epidemic of Asian cholera; he brought back a commendatory certificate from Andral, who he had observed at the Pitié clinic, swamped by cholera patients. As cholera invaded Liege in October 1832, Malaise was included among the doctors attached to temporary hospitals. On this occasion, he submitted an article to the Journal de la Province de Liége, which included it in its issue of 27 October, an article on the precautions to take, the diet to follow, the symptoms, the course and the treatment of the disease.

It was around this time that Malaise devoted himself to homeopathy. He tried it on cholera, and it will not be surprising that he achieved as much success as the allopaths. In any case, he practiced homeopathy with conviction until his death and tried to spread it. Promoter of a Liège Homeopathic Society, he was its linchpin as Secretary General, but it had only an ephemeral existence.

He published: 1. Homeopathic Clinic, for the Use of Doctors and People of the World. (Brussels: Méline, Cans et Cie, 1837). It is a collection of one hundred and nineteen observations of serious or chronic diseases, treated by the homeopathic method and resulting in a cure.

– 2. “Practical Observations on Homeopathy,” inserted in the Encyclography of Medical Sciences. (Brussels, 1834, 1st series, t. XXVIII).

L. Malaise married twice. His first wife was Constantine-Agnès Hamakers, with whom he had two sons: Constantin-H.-G.L., doctor of natural sciences, member of the Academy, and Louis-Barthélemy-Elie. He married Mathilde-Caroline Trostorff for the second time, with whom he had a son, Emile, an artillery captain, who died in Ghent on 17 May 1876. [Dr. Gilles Joseph Gustave Dewalque, Biographie Nationale, Vol. 13]

Malaise (Louis-Barthélemi), doctor of medicine, was born in Liège on 30 July 1808 to an honourable family, several of whose members had already successfully devoted themselves to the art of healing.

The young Malaise followed his father’s career. After completing brilliant studies at the University of Liège, he was appointed, following a competition, head of the internal and external clinic at the civil hospital known as Bavière and proclaimed, in 1851, doctor of medicine and midwifery with great distinction.

Shortly afterwards, he went to Paris where he attended courses at the School of Medicine, and, in hospitals, the clinics of the most fashionable doctors: it was in 1855 that he became a follower of homeopathy. Here are the details he left on this subject: “A few attempts, in desperate illnesses, were crowned with success and encouraged me in this difficult study. I attached myself especially, at this time, to the in-depth knowledge of the medicines recommended against Asian cholera-morbus, with the firm resolution to use them, if unfortunately this destructive scourge had to make an invasion in the city where I settled.

This epidemic was not long in breaking out in Liège, and especially in the surrounding area: one could be convinced of the happy results that I obtained with the help of homeopathy.

These successes contributed powerfully to proving to me the immense scope of the homeopathic doctrine. I decided from then on to practice it exclusively and to make it the principal and continual object of my studies.

Towards the end of the year 1855, a most fortunate event came to mark an epoch in my career: Doctor Jahr went to Belgium, with the intention of going to America, after having propagated homeopathy in our country, where he thought that this doctrine was still unknown.

I managed to persuade him to settle in Liège. Aided by the advice of this distinguished scholar, I profited from his experience and obtained the happiest results in my practice.”

Until his death, which occurred in Liège on March 14, Malaise practiced homeopathy with enlightened conviction, and neglected nothing to propagate its principles. He was the promoter of the Liège Homeopathic Society which chose him as its general secretary.

 

It is, in 1835, that Gottlieb Heinrich Georg Jahr founds in Liege the first Belgian Association for homeopathy with the aim “to contribute, by its scientific works to the progress of homeopathy, to its propagation and to its vulgarisation”.

This association is constituted of 10 homeopaths representing 7 cities, its existence is unfortunately of short length. One of the members, from Brussels J. F. Dugniolle (1808 – 1892) defends homeopathy at the first Belgian medical convention.

In 1837, 15 homeopaths meet to discuss and Carolus Ludovicus (Charles-Louis) de Meester (1800 – 1855) publishes ” Some considerations on the homeopathic medicine ” in the annals of the  Medical Society of Gent, at the same time Louis Malaise creates his “homeopathic Clinic for the use of physicians and high class people”.

An obituary for Louis Malaise was included in the Nécrologe Liégeois for 1851.

Select Publications:

Clinique Homoeopathique, à l’usage des médecins et des gens du monde (1837)

Of Interest:

Constantin Henri Gérard Louis Malaise (1834 – 1916), son of Louis Malaise, became a noted Belgian naturalist and mineralogist.