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Spanish Royal Protomedicato

Type Object Region Spain Time 1477–1834

A national medical regulatory and licensing body established by the Spanish crown in Castile in 1477, examining physicians, apothecaries, and surgeon…

Timeline

  1. 1477Castile · CastileThe Catholic Monarchs established the Protomedicato, headed by the chief royal physician (protomedico), to examine and register practitioners in the kingdom, aiming to curb quacks and unify medical standards.
  2. 1561–1570Madrid · MadridAfter Philip II established Madrid as his capital, the Royal Protomedicato grew with the court's central authority; its regulations, spread through the network of royal physicians, influenced medical licensing and pharmacopoeia practice in the American colonies.
  3. 1550–1700Kingdom of Spain · SpainThe committee administered written and oral examinations to practitioners in each city, supervised apothecaries' guilds, approved drug prices and the quality of medicinal materials, and combined Galenic medicine with royal public health needs.

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