 The midwifery manuals in England began with "The Byrth of Mankynd", a 1540 translation of Eucharius Rösslin's "Der Rosengarten".From then until the publication of "The Midwives Book", such manuals were dominated by male authors without practical experience.Rather than consult midwives and mothers, they drew on ancient Greek translations and other midwifery manuals written by inexperienced men.