Abstract
This thesis explores the course of Roman medicine from its birth through its development into a professional practice through the military. First, this thesis examines the earliest stages of Roman medicine and how it influenced Romans' views of medicine. It then investigates Roman society's view of doctors during the second century CE through the writing of Galen, a renowned practitioner of medicine from Pergamum. The final chapter explores how the Roman military provided Roman medicine the avenue through which it grew and thrived throughout the Roman Empire. While many have examined these three components separately, none have ever combined them in order to explain the sentiments Romans had towards doctors and how Roman medicine has overcome them.