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At the beginning of the 19th century, medicine underwent an important metamorphosis. The emphasis shifted from function to structure, and from organism to organ. This went hand in hand with the development of the physical examination. The founders of the new movement were Italian and French. In Great Britain, Richard Bright (1789-1858) was an important pioneer. In his books Reports of medical cases, published in 1827 and 1831, with many colour plates, Bright correlated clinical features with morphological changes found at autopsy. He became most famous for showing the relationship of dropsy, coagulable urine and kidney changes. Acute glomerulonephritis is named after him. With Addison and Hodgkin he contributed to the fame of Guy's Hospital in London.