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David Hay
Fellow
Date of Fellowship admission: 29 November 1681
David Hay was among the original twenty-one Fellows of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh when it was incorporated by royal charter on 29 November 1681. He was one of six signatories to the patent for the establishment of the College, his name appearing first on the charter. He was born into the landed gentry as a member of the family of the Earl of Errol. By 1684 he had become Physician in Ordinary to the King, a post later known as First or Principal Physician. Hay died in Edinburgh in 1699.
Fellowship
The main qualification issued by the College, awarded regularly since the College’s foundation. This qualification was granted based on demonstrated breadth of experience and did not require an individual to pass a certain examination.