History of Herbs in the UK
The First British Herbalists
Before modern medicine took hold, every community, culture, and religion leaned on their own knowledge and the skills of practitioners who treated various ailments. This often involved gathering herbs, plants, and spices based on what had been learned and passed down through generations.
When diving into the history of herbal medicine, it’s easy to get sidetracked by well-known figures like Hippocrates, Dioscorides, and Galen. But what about the herbalists, physicians, and botanists who played crucial roles in the health of people in the British Isles?
The oldest surviving English herbal medical book is Bald’s Leechbook, attributed to a doctor named Bald, who drew on Anglo-Saxon traditions and folklore. Interestingly, scientists at the University of Nottingham discovered that a salve for eye infections made from onions, garlic, and a cow’s stomach nearly eliminated MRSA during tests.
In Britain, it was once common for every village to have a herbalist who provided basic herbal treatments to those in need. Some would gather herbs to make ointments and tinctures, while others cultivated medicinal plants in their gardens to help their neighbours and community.
J. Falcand de Luca is said to be the first officially recorded apothecary in England, receiving permission to sell medicines in 1357. However, earlier traders, such as Master Otto of Germany, were selling medicinal compounds in York as early as 1292. Apothecaries evolved from the Guild of Pepperers, a group of merchant traders who imported a variety of medicinal wares and spices, first mentioned around the twelfth century. By the fourteenth century, groups like the Pepperers, Spicers of the Ward of Chepe, and the Easterlings of Sopers Lane developed, trading spices, medicinals, and perfumes in shops and stalls.
Many larger towns and cities dedicated areas for spiceries and apothecaries that operated in local markets. A record from the City of Oxford in 1297 even mentions a specific district, the Spicery, housing commercial apothecaries and spicers.
By 1428, the mix of pepperers, spicers, and apothecaries had combined to form the Company of Grocers, officially chartered by King Henry VI. There are numerous accounts of malpractice and adulterated drugs, particularly in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, leading to fines, the destruction of products, and even imprisonment for the guilty apothecaries.
In the fourteenth century, a Dominican friar named Henry Daniel became skilled in medicine and healing, practising uroscopy, the examination of urine for abnormalities. He studied herbs for seven years and maintained a garden in Stepney with over two hundred different plants, including white hellebore, fenugreek, violets, and lavender. He also created an encyclopedic manuscript about herbs and their medicinal properties, with two versions available in the British Library, titled either Aaron or Aaron Danielis.
William Turner of Northumberland was among the first medieval English botanists—more of a plant scientist than a healer—who gained his knowledge through travel and study across Europe in the 1500s. His notable work, Libellus de re herbaria novus, contains the first records of specific locations of British plants, alongside his three-volume Herball, which he dedicated in part to Queen Elizabeth I. In this work, he noted the uses of garden mint for ailments such as roundworms and earaches.
Post-medieval/Renaissance Herbalists
John Gerard, a Cheshire-born herbalist and barber-surgeon, is recognised for managing the gardens of Lord Burghley (William Cecil), a chief advisor to Queen Elizabeth I. In 1596, he published a list of plants he grew in Holborn, London, in his work “Catalogus arborum.” His most famous publication, The Herball or General Historie of Plants, completed in 1597, was controversial for its plagiarism and some bizarre claims, such as the claim that trees produced geese or seashells. He certainly had a knack for exaggeration, becoming more notorious than many of his contemporaries.
Interestingly, he did something unusual by mentioning “a worshipful gentlewoman called mistress Anne Wylbraham” in The Herball, thereby legitimising her authority as a herbalist and physician, a significant feat in an era when women weren’t often recognised in such roles.
Women’s interest in herbalism and botany was quite significant during the seventeenth century. One notable example is Margaret Boscawen’s “plant notebook,” which provides a fascinating glimpse into medicinal plants of the time. In her notes, she details various plants, flowers, roots, and seeds, along with methods for distilling and drying them. It seems she drew inspiration from Nicholas Culpeper, as she mentions sourcing plants from London, including horseradish, gentian, citron, and black alder bark, all of which he specifically noted.
Unfortunately, the social dynamics of the era often confined women, particularly in terms of property ownership. However, widows faced a unique caveat: if they proved competent, they could manage family businesses in their husbands’ absence. For instance, Widow Wynke, whose husband was Tobias Wynke, received £2 annually from the Company of Apothecaries starting in 1628. This support allowed her to become an independent apothecary and operate her own shop—quite a commendable achievement.
Another key figure in this story is John Parkinson, a prominent apothecary and botanist who served James I and later Charles I. Born around 1567, he published “Paradisi in Sole Paradisus Terrestris” in 1629—a clever play on his own name, positioning himself at the centre of his metaphorical garden of paradise. His botanical garden in London’s Covent Garden reportedly spanned over two acres. Parkinson’s most famous work, “Theatrum Botanicum” (Theatre of Plants), was published in 1640. Interestingly, despite his later success, his beginnings were quite humble; he hailed from a line of Lancashire farmworkers and enjoyed the freedom of nature during his upbringing in Blesadale and Whalley. Reflecting on this later in life, he mused, “If I should set down all sorts of herbs that are usually gathered for sallets, I should not only speak of garden herbs, but of many… that grow wild in the fields, or else be but weeds in the garden.”
Perhaps the most renowned herbalist in British history is Nicolas Culpeper, whose name translates to mischief-maker, and he certainly lived up to that reputation. Born in the Stuart era, Culpeper developed a fascination with astronomy, astrology, and medicinal plants as a child. Raised primarily by his mother—whom he deeply admired—and a grandfather he feared, he found solace in the art of healing. His mother, having experienced much illness and loss, taught him to attend to wounds and prepare medicines, and young Nicolas gathered the necessary plants from the surrounding Ashdown Forest. Despite his grandfather’s attempts to steer him toward a more conventional education, enrolling him in grammar school at age ten and later in theology at Cambridge, Nicolas’ passion remained unwavering. By 1634, he became an apprentice in the apothecaries’ society.
At the time, apothecaries were restricted from practising medicine and were trained solely to prepare medicines. However, as the seventeenth century progressed, their roles began to shift. By the time the Plague struck England, many people sought treatment from apothecaries. Culpeper focused on British herbs, believing they were better suited to the English constitution, and took a holistic approach to patient care, assessing various aspects of their well-being. He was known for using astrological charts while remaining rational in his methods. Establishing a clinic in Spitalfields, Culpeper dedicated himself to treating up to 40 patients a morning at no charge, infuriating many physicians who were commercialising medicine, leading to accusations of witchcraft from which he was eventually acquitted. He later joined the parliamentarians during the English Civil War, where he sustained a chest injury in August 1643; he never fully recovered, dying of tuberculosis in January 1644. His legacy endures through “The English Physitian” (1652), later titled “Complete Herbal” (1653), which catalogued over 100 herbs and their uses, often translating from earlier Latin texts.
Another noteworthy figure is Elizabeth Blackwell, née Simpson, born in London on April 23, 1699. The daughter of painter Leonard Simpson, she developed an early interest in drawing and painting plants. In 1733, Elizabeth married Alexander Blackwell, a well-educated man who ran a printing business but unfortunately ended up in debtor’s prison for two years. To support herself and pay off her husband’s debts, Elizabeth leveraged her artistic skills to create “A Curious Herbal.” At a time when women faced significant barriers to education and professional societies, she sought the backing of the Royal College of Physicians and the Worshipful Society of Apothecaries, making her mark in a male-dominated field.
20th Century Herbal Revival
By the early 1900s, the world of herbalism was undergoing some transformative changes, thanks to the establishment of certified organisations dedicated to this age-old practice. Among the pioneers was the National Institute of Medical Herbalists, which was founded in the latter part of the 19th century. This organisation aimed to bring professionalism and legitimacy to herbal medicine at a time when it was often viewed with scepticism. Not long after, in 1927, the Society of Herbalists was formed, which has since evolved into what we now recognise as The Herb Society. These organisations played a crucial role in creating an environment where herbalism could be explored and practised more formally, fostering a sense of community among herbalists and advocates alike.
A game-changer in this movement came in 1931 when renowned herbalist and author Maud Grieve released her much-anticipated book, A Modern Herbal. This groundbreaking work was the first comprehensive encyclopedia of herbs published in England since the 1600s, filling a significant gap in herbal literature. Greive had spent years researching and experimenting with various plants, and her insights were not just theoretical—they were grounded in real experience and observations.
A Modern Herbal was remarkable not only for its breadth but also for its modern approach to herbalism. Greive introduced readers to the contemporary use of standardised plant extracts, emphasising their potential in treating a variety of ailments. This approach brought renewed vigour to the herb industry, attracting a whole new generation of herbal enthusiasts and practitioners eager to learn about the healing properties of plants in a scientific context. It also reinforced the idea that herbalism could coexist with modern medicine, offering alternative options for health and wellness.
Through the efforts of organisations such as the National Institute of Medical Herbalists and the insights of visionaries like Maud Greive, Nicholas Culpeper and The Herb Society, herbalism gained recognition and respect, paving the way for its resurgence and integration into modern health practices. This rich legacy continues to inspire today’s herbalists and seekers of natural healing.
Thank you to Kayleigh Sinclair (The Historical Herbologist), Ambassador for The Herb Society, for writing this section.