Early barber surgeons found their homes within the monasteries of Europe. Due to strict regulations (both religious and sanitary), monks were required to keep a shaved head. As a result each monastery had to train or hire a barber surgeon to take care of grooming and medical procedures.

Did barber-surgeons work at monasteries?

Thus barbers in the monasteries, already used to working with sharp blades, began to add minor surgical skills to their repertoire, which in due course were passed on to barbers elsewhere. Within London a Guild or Fellowship of Surgeons, whose Ordinances were approved in 1435, developed alongside the Barbers' Company.

What was a barber surgeon in the Middle Ages?

A barber surgeon was a person who could perform surgical procedures including bloodletting, cupping therapy, pulling teeth, and amputation. Barbers could also bathe, cut hair, shave or trim facial hair, and give enemas.