The Balmis Expedition: The world’s first international healthcare mission

Brian's Spain Domain

Oct 15 2023 | 00:20:22

00:00 / 00:20:22

Show Notes

Back in 1803, Spain organized a mission to inoculate the inhabitants of its vast empire from the deadly disease smallpox. It was officially known as the Royal Philanthropic Vaccine Expedition, or simply the Balmis Expedition, after the doctor who led the medical team. An ambitious project, it employed children to “carry” the vaccine during the […]

Other Episodes

Episode

July 08, 2025 • 00:17:57

Let’s Open a Bottle: Bodegas Antídoto and wines from Soria

We return to a bit of news about Spanish wine. Today we focus on the emerging wine region of wines from Soria, a sub-section...

Episode

January 08, 2024 • 00:14:45

The truth behind Seville’s NO8DO symbol

One of the symbols of Seville (you can find it on its flag) is an enigmatic emblem that reads NO8DO, which according to legend...

Episode 0

June 19, 2023 • 00:18:50

SPANISH HISTORY 101 (ep. 25) – Carlos V and the Universal Monarchy

It’s the early decades of the 16th Century and Spain has gone from a handful of small kingdoms to an emerging world power. The...