The British royal family has had a longtime and deep appreciation for homeopathic medicine, ever since Queen Adelaide (1792–1849), wife of King William IV, first made public her special interest in this “new medicine” in 1835. Other British aristocrats shared the queen’s interests, including the Marquess of Anglesey who crossed the British Channel to go to Paris for treatment by the founder of homeopathy, Dr. Samuel Hahnemann.

In 1830, the Earl of Shrewsbury (1791–1852) had asked Hahnemann for the name of a homeopath who could come to England to be his doctor, and Hahnemann suggested Dr. Francesco Romani (1785–1854) of Italy. Dr. Romani’s cures were so remarkable that he soon created a sensation in London and its surrounds. Queen Adelaide heard about this new medical system from his good work. However, the cold climate didn’t suit the Italian homeopath, and he returned home just one year after his arrival (Granier, 1859).

Queen Adelaide had been suffering from a serious malady that the court physicians couldn’t cure. The queen called for the services of one of Hahnemann’s oldest and most faithful colleagues, Dr. Johann Ernst Stapf (1788–1860), who cured her, creating the first of many supporters of homeopathy from British royalty. The British homeopath to the titled Marquess of Anglesey, Dr. Harris Dunsford (1808–1847), wrote a book on homeopathy that was dedicated, with permission, to Queen Adelaide (Dunsford, 1842). This dedication made public her interest in and her appreciation for homeopathy. She was instrumental in helping to establish homeopathy’s early popularity, especially among the upper classes in England.

Various kings and queens of Great Britain since Queen Adelaide have openly sought medical care from homeopathic physicians. Princess May, who later became Queen Mary (1865–1953), wife of King George V, headed the fundraising efforts to move and expand the London Homeopathic Hospital. King George V (1865–1936) was appreciative of homeopathy because it provided him with the real practical benefit of treating his seasickness whenever he suffered from it.

King Edward VII (1841–1910) carried on the homeopathic tradition and was a close drinking and eating partner of Dr. Frederick Hervey Foster Quin (1799–1878), the first British physician to become a homeopath. Edward’s daughter, Maud (1869–1938), married King Haakon VII of Norway, and both sought the homeopathic care of Sir John Weir, MD (see below).

King Edward VIII (1894–1972), known as Prince Edward, Duke of Windsor, after his abdication in 1936, carried his homeopathic medicines in powder doses in his pocket. His brother, King George VI (1895–1952), also had a special love for homeopathy. He even named one of his prize racehorses Hypericum, after a homeopathic medicine for injuries. He was known to be an expert user of homeopathic medicine himself, and he formally granted the use of the royal title to the London Homeopathic Hospital, now called the Royal London Homeopathic Hospital. Today’s Queen Elizabeth II (1926–), King George VI’s daughter, who ascended the throne in 1952, is patron to this important hospital, which underwent a $35 million refurbishing in 2005.

The most famous homeopath to royalty was Sir John Weir (1879–1971), who served six monarchs: King Edward VII, George V, Edward VIII, Duke of Windsor, George VI), Elizabeth II, King Gustav V of Sweden (1858–1950), and King Haakon VII of Norway (1872–1957).