The Royal College of Physicians of London, commonly referred to simply as the Royal College of Physicians (RCP), is a British professional membership body dedicated to improving the practice of medicine, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination. Founded by royal charter from King Henry VIII in 1518, as the College of Physicians, the RCP is the oldest medical college in England.
The RCP's home in Regent's Park is one of the few post-war buildings to be listed at Grade I. In 2016 it was announced that the RCP was to open new premises in Liverpool at The Spine, a new building in the Liverpool Knowledge Quarter.[3] The Spine opened in May 2021.[4]
The college was incorporated as "the President and College or Commonalty of the Faculty of Physic in London" when it received a royal charter in 1518, affirmed by Act of Parliament in 1523. It is not known when the name "Royal College of Physicians of London" was first assumed or granted.[5] It came into use after the charter of 1663,[6] and was used to make reference to the college in the Medical Act 1858.[5] It was legally authorised as the college's corporate name by the Royal College of Physicians of London Act 1960, the function of which was primarily to move the premises of the college outside the cities of London or Westminster to Regent's Park).[5]
The Cutlerian Theatre in Warwick Lane, an anatomy theatre designed by Robert Hooke rebuilt after the Fire (demolished 1866). The frontispiece to the Royal College's pharmacopeia, 1677. Engraving by David Loggan
The first Harveian Librarian was Christopher Merret, a fellow of the college and a friend of Harvey. He was set up with a lifetime appointment that compensated him with room and board and a small stipend. In 1666, the Great Fire of London destroyed many of the rooms and most of the books, so they tried to break the contract with Merret, but he fought them at the King's Court, claiming it was a lifetime appointment. He eventually lost the case, was expelled from the Fellowship, had to seek private lodgings and return the books he had rescued from the fire.[9][10]
The college became the licensing body for medical books in the late seventeenth century, and sought to set new standards in learning through its own system of examinations. The college's tradition of examining continues to this day and it is still perhaps how the college is best known to the general public.
The Royal College of Physicians celebrated its 500-year anniversary in 2018.[11]
Membership and fellowship
Membership
The MRCP(UK) postnominal is used by doctors who have passed the examinations for the Diploma of Membership of the Royal Colleges of Physicians of the United Kingdom, which are held jointly by all of the UK Royal Colleges of Physicians.[12] Holders of the MRCP(UK) may also become "Collegiate Members" of the London College (using the additional post-nominal MRCP(Lond)) and/or of the other two UK colleges. Affiliate membership of the Royal College of Physicians is a similar level of membership as collegiate membership, but is awarded to senior doctors without MRCP(UK). Both Collegiate Members and Affiliate Members may be considered for advancement to fellowship of the college.
The college also has associate, medical student, and foundation doctor levels of membership.
Fellowship
FRCP, the Fellowship diploma of the Royal College of Physicians
Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians (who use the post-nominal FRCP)[13] are elected mostly from the general membership (collegiate or affiliate), but also occasionally from among the members of the more specialised faculties within the Royal Colleges of Physicians, e.g. Occupational Medicine (MFOM), Pharmaceutical Medicine (MFPM), and Forensic and Legal Medicine (MFLM), etc. There are also fellows who are elected de jure (usually medical experts from other countries) and honoris causa (dignitaries, members of the Royal Family, etc.).[14]
Physicians from the Royal College of Physicians published a series of works containing biographical entries of the fellows called Munk's Roll.
Library
The library aims to support the learning and information needs of the members, students, and staff of the college. The unique collections may also used for research by members of the public. An enquiry service provides information on the current role and functions of the RCP as well as its history.[15] The library holds books on a range of subjects including:
The Royal College of Physicians has had a library collection since its foundation in 1518, although most of the original books were destroyed during the Great Fire of London in 1666.[16] The rare books and special collections are diverse in coverage, reflecting the collecting habits of earlier fellows and the need to provide the broad educational base considered suitable for physicians.[17] The rare books are normally available to the general public, by appointment, Monday to Friday 10 am – 5 pm.[18]
Books and journals—new and old—display a continuum of change and development in the RCP's specialties, as well as in the medical profession. Highlights include:
approximately 130 books printed before 1502, including some of the earliest printings of the classical medical texts by Greek, Roman and Arabic doctors
books belonging to and annotated by the Elizabethan astrologer and occultist John Dee
approximately 3,000 books, dated up to 1688, in the Dorchester collection, on a variety of subjects including architecture, science and travel
over 4,500 tracts from the 17th to the 19th century covering a wide range of subjects, both medical and scientific
the Evan Bedford collection, which includes almost every significant text in the history of cardiology up to 1970
Highlights of the 20th-century collection include:
books relating to the history of the RCP's specialties
biographies of fellows and prominent figures in medicine
books relating to the formation of the National Health Service (NHS) and its continuing history
books relating to the history of hospitals in the UK
books relating to medical ethics and the status and role of the physician
every item published by the RCP, including reports and pamphlets.
The book collections are displayed in regularly changing exhibitions.
In December 2020 the college's Board of Trustees (BoT) discussed in detail the RCP's financial position, which, like so many charities, had been impacted significantly by the COVID-19 pandemic. All aspects of RCP activity had come under review and a range of cost reduction and income generation options considered, including the possible sale of non-medical books from its collection. The BoT recognised that this had caused concern for some quarters of the membership and agreed to delay such a sale for the immediate future.[19]
Museum collections
Portrait of a Physician in His Library by Cornelis Janssens van Ceulen, one of the significant portraits in the Royal College of Physicians' collection
The museum collections at the Royal College of Physicians relate to the history of the college, and the history of the Physician's profession. They help to place the history and development of medicine and health care in its widest context. The collections include: portraits, silver, medical instruments, the Symons Collection, commemorative medals and anatomical tables.
The collection of c. 250 portraits provides a pictorial and sculptural record of presidents, Fellows and other physicians associated with it from its foundation in 1518 to the present day. It includes pieces by well-known artists, such as a bust of Baldwin Hamey Junior (1600–1676) by Edward Pierce and one of Richard Mead (1673–1754) by Louis François Roubiliac. There are portraits, such as that of Richard Hale (1670–1728) by Jonathan Richardson. In 1964 a volume on the Portraits of the college was published by Gordon Wolstenholme in which they were described by David Piper.
The silver collection has few pieces pre-dating the Great Fire of London (1666) because of a robbery during the previous year. Baldwin Hamey's inkstand bell and William Harvey's whalebone demonstration rod, tipped with silver, are two that survive.[20] Many pieces of silver are used to this day for formal occasions in the college. Special objects include the President's staff of office, the caduceus and the silver-gilt College mace.
The college also owns six 17th-century anatomical tables, probably made by drying and mounting the actual blood vessels and nerves of the human body onto blocks of wood and then varnishing them. They would have been used as a teaching aid for teaching anatomy, because it was difficult to obtain cadavers for dissection.
The Symons Collection of medical instruments is displayed within the college building. It began as a collection of objects relating to self-care in Georgian times and expanded to include items that would have been used by physicians when treating patients, mostly in the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries.
The collections can be searched via an online catalogue and items on display are open to the general public Monday to Friday 9am – 5pm. The Royal College of Physicians is a member of the London Museums of Health & Medicine.[21]
Archives
The archive collections date back to the foundation of the Royal College of Physicians in 1518 and include the original Royal charter granted by King Henry VIII. The activities of the college are preserved in official minutes and other institutional records dating from the 16th century to the present.
Over 200 collections of personal papers reflect the experiences of practitioners and patients over the last 500 years. These collections include items dating back to the 13th century which relate to the history of medicine and science in Europe.
In the 19th century, William Munk, a fellow with a keen interest in medical biography started collection information about all the physicians who had either been licensed by the College or became a member. After years of research the resulting biographies were compiled into 3 volumes which included everyone who was a member of, or licensed by the college up to 1825. These volumes, published between 1861 and 1878 were the start of a series, known as Munk's Roll after the original compiler. Later volumes focussed on fellows and the series is now online with regular updates ensuring there is a biography for every past fellow from 1518 to the present.
The archive continues to collect records that demonstrate the developing roles of physicians, including oral recordings of practitioners reflecting on their lives and careers. The collections can be searched via an online catalogue,[22] and are available to the general public by appointment. The 'Voices of medicine' oral histories are available to listen to via the library catalogue.[22]
Facility
The college is located in St. Andrews Place, which is at the north end of the road running up the east side of Regent's Park, Park Square East. The college's previous headquarters, on Pall Mall East/Trafalgar Square, is now Canada House, part of the Canadian high commission in London. The college had a number of other locations prior to Pall Mall East, in the City of London.
The Censors Room at The Royal College of Physicians
The current College building was designed by architect Sir Denys Lasdun, opening in 1964 and has since been recognised as a building of national importance: it is a Grade I listed building, one of a very select band of post-war buildings sharing this distinction.[23] Lasdun's use of mosaic clad concrete was extremely influential on many later public buildings. An interesting feature of the building was a 'Moving Wall', weighing five tons (5080kg) and capable of being hydraulically lifted ten feet (3050mm) to unite or sub-divide a hall of sixty-two feet (18.9 m) width, which was the interior width of the building. The hydraulic equipment and the steel framework for the Moving Wall were produced by Merryweather & Sons Ltd of Greenwich, hydraulic engineers. Although better known for fire fighting equipment it was not the company's first installation of this kind.[24]
Publications
The college publishes two peer-reviewed medical journals. Clinical Medicine and Future Healthcare Journal. In addition, it publishes regular reports, clinical guidelines, policy papers and online resources. Occupational and Environmental Medicine is the official journal of the Faculty of Occupational Medicine.
Commentary is the membership magazine. It is published every 2 months.
Faculties
The Royal College of Physicians hosts six training faculties: the Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine, the Faculty for Pharmaceutical Medicine, the Faculty of Occupational Medicine the Faculty of Public Health, the Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine and the Faculty of Physician Associates.
Forensic and Legal Medicine
The Faculty of Forensic and Legal Medicine (FFLM) was established as a faculty of the RCP in 2006 to develop and maintain the highest possible standards of competence and professional integrity in forensic and legal medicine. The specialty covers professionals working in three related disciplines: forensic medical practitioners (forensic physicians, forensic nurses and paramedics, forensic pathologists, sexual assault examiners, and child physical and sexual assault examiners); medico-legal advisers; and medically qualified coroners. The FFLM holds a number of exams for professionals working in Forensic and Legal Medicine.[25] It is recognised as the authoritative body for the purpose of consultation in matters of educational or public interest concerning forensic and legal medicine.[26]
Pharmaceutical Medicine
The Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine (FPM) of the royal colleges of physicians of the UK (Edinburgh, Glasgow and London) aims to advance the science and practice of pharmaceutical medicine by working to develop and maintain competence, ethics and integrity and the highest professional standards in the specialty for the benefit of the public.[27]
Occupational Medicine
The Faculty of Occupational Medicine was inaugurated as a specialist faculty of the RCP in 1978. The FOM is the professional and educational body for occupational medicine in the UK and seeks to ensure the highest standards in the practice of occupational medicine.[28]
Public Health
The Faculty of Public Health (FPH) is a joint faculty of the three royal colleges of physicians of the United Kingdom (London, Edinburgh and Glasgow). It is a membership organisation for nearly 4,000 public health professionals across the UK and around the world. Its role is to improve the health and wellbeing of local communities and national populations.
Sport and Exercise Medicine
The Faculty of Sport and Exercise Medicine (FSEM) UK is the governing body for the specialty of sport and exercise medicine (SEM) in the UK. It is an intercollegiate faculty of the RCP and the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh.
Physician Associates
The Faculty of Physician Associates was founded in 2015 with the collaboration of the RCP and the UK Association of Physician Associates (UKAPA).[29][30] The Faculty is the professional membership body for physician associates in the UK, and sets standards for the education and training of physician associates, publishes the PA national curriculum and oversees the running of the PA national certification examinations. It oversees the PA managed voluntary register.[31]
On 13 March 2024 the RCP held an Extraordinary General Meeting, the third in its history, to debate the issue of physician associates and their role, scope of practice, and regulation.[32] The controversy resulted in the resignation of the College's President in June 2024.[33]
Lecture series
The college holds an annual lecture, commonly referred to as the Lumleian Lectures, which were named in honour of Lord Lumley and established as part of the Lumleian Trust. The trust and lectures were established in 1582 by Richard Caldwell, a former president of the college.[34] The subject matter of the lectures was initially in surgery, which was later changed to in medicine.[35] The first lecture was given by Richard Forster, and the lectures continue to today.
Once a year, traditionally on St Luke's Day (18 October), a Fellow is appointed to deliver the Harveian Oration to the assembled college in memory of William Harvey. The oration seeks to honour the founders and benefactors of the college and encourage a spirit of experimentation amongst the members.
The Bisset Hawkins Medal is a triennial award founded in 1899 in honour of Francis Bisset Hawkins, a fellow of the college, to recognise work done in the preceding ten years in advancing sanitary science or promoting public health.[36] The Baly Medal is a biennial award, founded by a gift from Frederick Daniel Dyster (1809?–93) received in 1866, confirmed by deed 1930 – in memory of William Baly: £400 to provide a gold medal for the person deemed to have most distinguished himself in the science of physiology, especially during the previous two years.
The Worshipful Society of Apothecaries of London is one of the livery companies of the City of London. It is one of the largest livery companies and ranks 58th in their order of precedence.
The Royal College of Physicians of Ireland (RCPI), is an Irish professional body dedicated to improving the practice of general medicine and related medical specialities, chiefly through the accreditation of physicians by examination.
Sir Ernest Donald Acheson was a British physician and epidemiologist who served as Chief Medical Officer of the United Kingdom from 1983 to 1991. He was born in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The Royal Australasian College of Physicians (RACP) is a not-for-profit professional organisation responsible for training and educating physicians and paediatricians across Australia and New Zealand.
William Augustus Guy was a British physician and medical statistician.
Max Leonard Rosenheim, Baron Rosenheim, KBE, PRCP, FRS was a British physician and academic.
The Harveian Oration is a yearly lecture held at the Royal College of Physicians of London. It was instituted in 1656 by William Harvey, discoverer of the systemic circulation. Harvey made financial provision for the college to hold an annual feast on St. Luke's Day at which an oration would be delivered in Latin to praise the college's benefactors and to exhort the Fellows and Members of this college to search and study out the secrets of nature by way of experiment. Until 1865, the Oration was given in Latin, as Harvey had specified, and known as the Oratio anniversaria; but it was thereafter spoken in English. Many of the lectures were published in book form.
Sir Andrew Douglas MaclaganPRSE FRCPE FRCSE FCS FRSSA was a Scottish surgeon, toxicologist and scholar of medical jurisprudence. He served as president of 5 learned societies: the Royal Medical Society (1832), the Royal College of Surgeons of Edinburgh (1859–61), the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (1884–87), the Royal Society of Edinburgh (1890–5), and the Royal Scottish Society of Arts (1900).
The Faculty of Pharmaceutical Medicine (FPM) is a faculty of the three Royal Colleges of Physicians of the United Kingdom. It is a UK-based professional membership organisation with 1,600 members; physicians with a professional interest in the speciality of pharmaceutical medicine, the science of discovering, developing and testing new drugs, their regulation, and monitoring them for safety both during development and when they are prescribed. FPM is a registered charity and ultimately exists to bring about an improvement in health in patients and the general population.
Sir Michael David Rawlins was a British clinical pharmacologist and emeritus professor at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne. During his medical career he chaired several executive agencies including the Committee on Safety of Medicines from 1993 to 1998, followed by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) for 14 years from its formation in 1999 and then the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) for six years from 2014. From 2012 to 2014 he was president of the Royal Society of Medicine.
The Roll of the Royal College of Physicians of London, commonly referred to as Munk's Roll, is a series of published works containing biographical entries of the fellows of the Royal College of Physicians. It was published in print in eleven volumes with a twelfth online. The series is now titled Inspiring Physicians. The series has been informally known as Munk’s Roll, after the original compiler, for over a century. However, the formal name for the series of volumes (1-11) in print, is Lives of the Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians of London.
The Fitzpatrick Lecture is given annually at the Royal College of Physicians on a subject related to history of medicine. The lecturer, who must be a fellow of the college, is selected by the president and may be chosen to speak for two years successively. The lectures are supported by funds from the Fitzpatrick Trust which was established in 1901 by Agnes Letitia Fitzpatrick with a £2,000 donation in memory of her physician husband Thomas Fitzpatrick. Agnes was influenced by her husband's close friend, Sir Norman Moore, who persuaded her to choose history of medicine as a subject. Subsequently, Moore was credited with its idea and implementation.
Dossibai Rustomji Cowasji Patell MBE, MRCP, later known as Dossibai Jehangir Ratenshaw Dadabhoy, was an Indian obstetrician and gynaecologist, who in 1910 became the first woman to become a member of the Royal College of Surgeons of England (RCS).
William Henry Stone was an English physician, known for his studies on electro-therapy and the electrical properties of the human body.
Peter Wallwork Latham (1832–1923) was an English physician and professor of medicine at the University of Cambridge.
John Fisher Stokes was a physician and surgeon, who earned a footnote in the history of the Royal College of Physicians by becoming part of the first married couple who were both elected FRCP.
Sir Frederick William Andrewes was an English physician, pathologist, and bacteriologist.
Charles Edward Kingsley Newman was a British physician and medical school dean.
Henry Harvey Littlejohn, FRCSEd, was a Scottish academic, forensic scientist and medical officer of health, who followed in the footsteps of his father, Henry Duncan Littlejohn, as Professor of Medical Jurisprudence at. the University of Edinburgh. This position also entailed acting as Police Surgeon to the City of Edinburgh and Advisor to the Crown. In this capacity he was called upon as an expert witness at high profile criminal cases.
The Ernestine Henry Lecture is a talk based on occupation hazards, delivered every three years. It was endowed to the Royal College of Physicians in London, in 1949 by British physician Sydney Alexander Henry, in memory of his mother Ernestine Henry, the wife of a General Practitioner in Rochdale, Lancashire. It is now delivered as part of the Faculty of Occupational Medicine/Society of Occupational Medicine annual conference "Occupational Health"
↑ Mason, A. Stuart (2001). "3. College premises and precincts". In Davenport, Geoffrey; McDonald, Ian; Moss-Gibbons, Caroline (eds.). The Royal College of Physicians and Its Collections: An Illustrated History. Royal College of Physicians. pp.60–69. ISBN0-907-383-831.
↑ Munk, William. "Christopher Merrett". Royal Society of Physicians, Lives of the Fellows, Volume I. p.258. Archived from the original on 4 July 2019. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
↑ Munk, William. "William Harvey". Royal Society of Physicians, Lives of the Fellows, Volume I. p.124. Archived from the original on 2 April 2017. Retrieved 6 January 2017.
Fine Leon G and Royal College of Physicians of London. 2007. Harvey’s Keepers: Harveian Librarians through the Ages: Commemorating the 400th Anniversary of William Harvey Becoming a Fellow of the College and His Legacy to the College Library and Its Librarians. London: Royal College of Physicians.
Royal College of Physicians of London at the Scholarly Societies Project - Edition 2; includes a listing of their journal titles, along with abbreviations used for the latter
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