What was a Apothecary job for Tudors?

Answer 1

In the Tudor period (1485-1603), & for centuries after (really until the early c19th), an "Apothecary" was broadly equivalent to a modern family physician. Apothecaries were trained to prepare "potions" (including poisons & aphrodisiacs!) & medicines, but most were also skilled in assessing general health (in terms of contemporary understanding of health & disease!), & they performed a range of general medical services. Many people - poor and wealthy - often consulted apothecaries about their health needs; some of the remedies offered were actually surprisingly effective - generally because they contained antibiotic, antiseptic, anti-inflammatory or analgesic elements.

Apothecaries were trained by apprenticeship, & were privy to much "ancient lore" (much of it "secret", & derived from far older traditions - eg "wise women", herbalists, shamen etc) about plants/ plant extracts, fungi etc, & their physical/ psychological effects if ingested. They also had a good understanding of what today would be called human behaviour/ psychology; the power of ritual, suggestion, the placebo effect etc to influence behaviour & health.

Patients whose needs were "surgical" ("chirurgical") - eg rotting teeth, abscesses, cysts, broken bones, lacerations & other wounds etc - would be sent to a surgeon: like apothecaries surgeons were trained by apprenticeship (but unlike university trained physicians not barred by the Hippocratic Oath from cutting flesh!), & were often heirs to "ancient knowledge" (much derived from the Romans, Indians & Arabs), who would do what they could to alleviate patients' problems.

Many "barber surgeons" (so called because they supplementd their surgical work with hair cutting, shaving etc) were very skilled, especially if they'd learned their trade treating battle casualties in the Army or Navy. Seemingly bizarrely, the majority of surgeons were licenced by the Church: bishops regulated most surgical apprenticeships, & sanctioned surgeons as fit to operate! This was because the Church regulated disposal of the dead, & was the only authority able to authorise dissection of human corpses for investigative or training purposes.

Understanding of infection control was minimal, & pain relief/ anaesthesia very limited (although there was some relief available from alcohol, opiate based potions, & hallucinogens like "Henbane"), but many surgeons were highly skilled, & fast, operators: with luck, a robust patient might survive a limb amputation, & large abscesses & cysts etc were regularly drained/ removed successfully. "Barber surgeons" were usually pretty good at setting uncomplicated fractures, but complex/ "open" fractures usually meant loss of a limb - at best, because most such injuries - inevitably - resulted in fatal infections. A few of the very best surgeons did attempt more complex procedures - eg gall bladder removal, removal of clouded eye lenses etc - & were often surprisingly effective.

That stated, many (probably 50%+) of surgical patients died because of pain/ shock (esp due to blood loss) and infections. Some surgeons, however, did appreciate the vital necessity of hygiene - they did not know why, but experience taught them to be clean! Practices such as debriding of damaged flesh; use of wine/ vinegar to wash wounds; application of honey (a natural antiseptic) based ointments, & bread poultices (often containing naturally occurring antibiotics), & wound cauterization, often meant (with luck!) many patients survived despite the odds!

With the advent of modern scientific medicine (from the late C18th onwards), the skills & arts of apothecaries & "barber surgeons" were gradually incorporated into the syllabuses of the emerging medical schools. By the mid C19th it was pretty well a universal requirement for anyone wishing to practise medicine/ surgery to have attended one of these schools, & apothecaries in the traditional sense all but disappeared from medical practice.

However, the Learned Societies of Apothecaries of Dublin, Edinburgh, & London evolved into modern medical schools in their own right, & until very recently (1990s) their diplomas ("Licence in Medicine & Surgery of the Society of Apothecaries") were registerable primary medical qualifications in both the UK & the Republic of Ireland. Today, the London & Edinburgh Societies are learned medical societies which fund & conduct research, & host conferences/ symposia etc, but no longer operate medical schools of their own. The Dublin Society, however, does still run a medical school (jointly with the Royal College of Surgeons of Dublin), but awarding the standard, recognised British/ Irish medical degree of Bachelor of Medicine & Surgery.

In a sense, modern pharmacists are heirs to the Apothecary tradition, but their ancient function of general practice physician has been taken over by the modern family doctor. Additionally, to this day, qualified surgeons in England, Ireland, & Wales (but not, generally, in Scotland) tend to be titled "Mister" (or "Mrs", "Ms" etc) rather than "Doctor": a tradition harking back to the old days when surgeons were not qualified medical doctors.