24-year-old doctor Jesse Bennett successfully performed a C-section on his wife, Elizabeth, saving both her life and their daughter Maria's: 14th January, 1794, in a log cabin on the Virginia Frontier.

The attending physician's refusal to participate, leaving the scene altogether, left Bennett to make quick decisions - though this included spontaneously removing his wife's ovaries.

The groundbreaking operation remained a local legend for nearly a century, as he never publicly reported it due to concerns about disbelief and the delicacy of the matter.

In this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly explain why, despite the success of this operation, C-sections still weren’t routinely performed until over a century later; investigate whether earlier examples of successful caesareans had happened in Africa; and consider whether pig-spaying was an appropriate qualification for midwifery…

The Caesarean Frontier