Pharmacopoeia Londinensis: or the London dispensatory, by Nicholas Culpeper, London: printed for Peter Cole, 1649.

A gallant fine thing for Gentlemen that have nothing else to do with their money, and it will have a lovely look to plea[s]e their eyes. At the time, the text caused outrage among physicians who saw it as a way to reveal their medicinal secrets to the ‘common masses’.This and a willingness to examine patients in person rather than simply examining their urine (in his view, "as much piss as the Thames might hold" did not help in diagnosis), Culpeper was extremely active, sometimes seeing as many as 40 patients in a morning. Keeping true to his family name (one meaning of 'Culpeper' is 'mischief maker') he was an audacious character who held a strong dislike for the establishment and authority. Nicholas Culpeper (18 October 1616 – 10 January 1654) was an English botanist, herbalist, physician and astrologer.

He felt the use of Latin and the high fees charged by doctors, lawyers and priests worked to deprive the public of power and freedom. During the political turmoil of the English civil war, the College of Physicians was unable to enforce its ban on the publication of medical texts, and Culpeper deliberately chose to publish his translations in vernacular English as self-help medical guides for use by the poor, who could not afford to consult physicians. It became available also in colonial America and has been in print continually since the 17th century. Also, the text merely listed the ingredients and recipes, intentionally leaving out the actual use of any remedy.This meant he was able to study the text during his apprenticeship at an apothecary and note its many faults. Nicholas Culpeper, the renowned herbalist, was a man known for his vices as much as for his virtues. Dittany, as an abortifacient, to induce labour; as a treatment for poisoned weapons, and to draw out splinters and broken bones; the smell is said to drive away "venomous beasts". In London, medical practice was unregulated meaning here were more and more ‘quack’ doctors and false remedies; many relied on sorcery and witchcraft.

Culpeper's emphasis on reason rather than tradition is reflected in the introduction to his Complete Herbal.Culpeper’s English physician; and complete herbal, by Nicholas Culpeper, London: Printed for the author, 1794. Robert Hartle, 2017, The New Churchyard: from Moorfields marsh to Bethlem burial ground, Brokers Row and Liverpool Street, Crossrail: London, p. Culpeper described the medical use of the foxglove, the botanical precursor to digitalis, used to treat heart conditions.