Foundation of St Bartholomew’s Hospital

Rahere, remembered as a courtier or entertainer in the household of Henry I, founded the Priory of St Bartholomew and a hospital at Smithfield in 1123. Later tradition connected the foundation with a vow made during illness and a vision of St Bartholomew.

The Witch’s Brat places a fictional young healer beside Rahere and uses the foundation to explore medieval medicine, charity and the social position of disabled or marginalised people.