Thomas Linacre (c.1460 – 1524) is today remembered as the reason Henry VIII founded the Royal College of Physicians, and its first president. Linacre not only persuaded the king to sign the founding charter, he also gave the young institution his own home in Knightrider Street, near St Pauls Cathedral, London, as its first headquarters.
But there is so much more to his story.
During the 16th century Linacre’s greatest contribution to medicine was as a translator and scholar. He was one of the first Englishmen to study Greek, in Italy. His teachers were some of the greatest scholars of the day. Among his own pupils were Erasmus, Sir Thomas More, Prince Arthur (brother of Henry VIII), and Queen Mary I of England.
Linacre’s parents’ names and the exact date of his birth are unknown. But he was probably born around 1460. As a boy, he attended the school of the monastery of Christchurch, Canterbury, run by William Selling. Linacre went to Oxford University around 1480, and in 1484 became a fellow of All Souls College.
In 1485 Linacre travelled through Italy with Selling, his previous headmaster, who was now Henry VII’s envoy to the papal court. In Bologna, he left Selling and studied with Angelo Poliziano, even sharing lessons in Florence with Prince Lorenzo de Medici’s sons. The younger son later became Pope Leo X. Linacre travelled on to Rome, Venice and finally Padua, where he was awarded the degree of Doctor of Medicine. He returned to England by way of Geneva, Paris, and Calais.
Back at Oxford, Linacre continued life as a scholar and was awarded an M.D. because of his Paduan degree. He gave some public lectures on medicine and taught Greek privately, to Sir Thomas More, among others. During this period he made a Latin translation of Proclus’ De Sphaera, which was published by Aldus in a collection of ancient Greek astronomical works (1499).
In about 1501 Linacre became tutor and physician to Prince Arthur. Although Arthur died in 1502 Linacre had clearly made an impression on the royal household. He was later chosen as physician to the new King Henry VIII in 1509, serving in that role until 1520. He practised medicine in London while attending his royal patient, having among his patients notable members of the Court.
Linacre also studied theology. He was ordained as a priest around 1509 and held a succession of ecclesiastical posts. His last post was that of Rector of Wigan, from 1520 to his death in 1524. But he wasn’t particularly active in any of his ecclesiastical posts. He seems to have been much more active in the field of medicine.
In 1518 Linacre petitioned King Henry VIII to found the College of Physicians. With him as its first president, the new college was to be similar in style to the medical academies in Italy, namely a regulatory and representative body for academically qualified physicians, to maintain high academic standards within the profession.
Another concern of Linacre’s was that medical practice was being hindered by a poor understanding of the ancient authors. They were considered authorities on this subject. However, over many centuries these works had been edited and translated from Greek to Arabic, and from Arabic to Latin, resulting in errors and changes.
Linacre sourced the most authoritative early Greek texts he could find and produced new translations from Greek to Latin, to try to prevent these misunderstandings continuing. His first translation was published in 1517, and they continued until his death in 1524.
The following are the medical works of Galen translated by Linacre:
De sanitate tuenda ‘On the preservation of health’ (Paris, 1517)
Methodus medendi ‘On medical method’ (Paris, 1519)
De temperamentis et de inaequali intemperie ‘On the temperaments and on unequal temperaments’ (Cambridge, 1521)
De naturalibus facultatibus ‘On the natural resources’ (London, 1523)
De symptomatum differentiis et causis ‘On the differences and causes of symptoms’ (London, 1524)
De pulsuum usu ‘On the uses of the pulse’(London, no date).
These publications were generally acknowledged as the most authoritative versions of those parts of Galen's writings, and frequently reprinted. The first of these, De sanitate tuenda, sometimes translated as ‘On hygiene’, was dedicated to Henry VIII. The copy owned by the RCP was originally a gift from Linacre himself to Richard Fox (1448–1528), Bishop of Winchester.
Shortly before his death, Linacre again petitioned the king, this time to establish readerships in medicine at Oxford and Cambridge, for which he provided generous endowments. At St John's College, Cambridge, there is still an annual "Linacre lecture" on a subject in medicine, delivered by a leading research scientist.
A modern monument in the crypt of St Paul's Cathedral in London lists Linacre's grave as lost in the Great Fire of London in 1666, as was his former home in Knightrider street. From contemporary writings, we know that Linacre’s grave had contained an epitaph written by John Caius, a later president of the RCP, and another generous supporter of the young institution. The epitaph described Linacre’s contemporary achievements. In fact, his legacy has endured and still influences modern medicine.
However, the epitaph also offered a more personal reflection, describing Linacre as: "Fraudes dolosque mire perosus; fidus amicis; omnibus ordinibus juxta carus" (An enemy of deceit; a loyal friend; equally loved by men of all classes). It seems that he was not just considered by his peers as a great man, but also, a good man.
Pamela Forde
Archive manager
Watch our recent short film celebrating the life and legacy of Thomas Linacre.
Sources
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thomas_Linacre [Accessed August 2024]
https://history.rcplondon.ac.uk/inspiring-physicians/thomas-linacre [Accessed August 2024]
https://history.rcplondon.ac.uk/blog/presidents-publication-thomas-linacre-translates-galen [Accessed August 2024]
https://history.rcplondon.ac.uk/blog/ornament-his-age accessed [Accessed August 2024]
https://www.joh.cam.ac.uk/linacre-lectures [Accessed August 2024]
