Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book examines the political discourse that sought to regulate the professions and procedures associated with health care and poor relief. The establishment of the medical system and the grain store project are discussed as evidence that the crown took an integrated view of health and welfare issues. Poor relief in the early modern period is now a well-established field of study. It examines how this field developed in early modern Portugal in tandem with the incipient forging of the state. When discussing the various agents and negotiations, the book assesses the gap between what was stipulated in the normative discourses and what happened in reality, or at least that part of reality for which we have documentary evidence. It discusses the European programmes which have provided particularly valuable learning opportunities.