Nicolas de Blégny

Nicolas de Blégny lived from 1652 to 1722 and was a French essayist, historian and barber surgeon. He was appointed surgeon to Queen Maria Theresa of Spain in 1678 and physician to King Louis XIV in 1682. He wrote many works on medical subjects and on coffee, tea and chocolate, some of which drew harsh reviews. He founded what is described as the first medical journal, the Nouvelles découvertes sur toutes les parties de la médecine, begun in 1679, which at first reported the transactions of his society, the Academy of Recent Discoveries in Medicine and was later collected as the Zodiacus Medico-Gallicus. He also published a guide to Paris addresses under the pseudonym Abraham du Pradel. Arrested in 1693 for wrongdoing, he died in disgrace in Avignon.