FRENCH AND SPANISH MEDIAEVAL STUDIA France.—Montpellier was a recognized school of medicine as early as the 12th century. Before the end of the century it pos sessed also a faculty of jurisprudence. The university of medicine and that of law continued, however, to be totally distinct bodies, with different constitutions. On Oct. 26, 1289, Montpellier was raised by Nicholas IV. to the rank of a studiurn generale.
The University of Toulouse is to be noted as the first founded in any country by virtue of a papal charter. It took its rise in the efforts of Rome for the suppression of the Albigensian heresy, and its foundation formed one of the articles of the conditions of peace imposed by Louis IX. on Count Ray mond of Toulouse. In the year 1233 it first acquired its full privi leges as a studium generale by virtue of a charter given by Gregory IX. The University of Orleans had a virtual existence as a studiurn generale as early as the first half of the 13th cen tury, but in the year 1305 Clement V. endowed it with new privileges, and gave its teachers permission to form themselves into a corporation. The schools of the city had an existence long prior—as early, it is said, as the 6th century. In the 14th century its fame as a school of law was surpassed by no other university in Europe. Prior to the 13th century it had been famed for its classical learning.
The other French universities famous in the middle ages were Angers, Avignon, Cahors and Grenoble. At Perpignan and Orange there were schools of small note.
of the university in numbers was steady and continuous through out the 15th century, and, along with Salamanca, it served as the model for Alcala in 1409.
Seville was founded in 1254 by Alphonso the Wise, simply for the study of Latin and of the Semitic languages, especially Arabic. Salamanca had been founded in 1243 by Ferdinand III. of Castile as a stadium generale in the three faculties of juris prudence, the arts and medicine. But the main stress of its activity, as was the case with all the earlier Spanish universities, was laid on the civil and the canon law. In the early part of the 15th century, however, the efforts of Martin V. established a school of theology which was afterwards regarded almost as an oracle by Catholic Europe. About the year 160o the students are shown by the matriculation books to have numbered over 5,000. According to Cervantes they were noted for their lawlessness. The earliest of the numerous colleges founded at Salamanca was that of St. Bartholomew, long noted for its ancient library and valuable collection of manuscripts, which now form part of the royal library in Madrid.
The only Portuguese university in mediaeval times had its seat alternately in Lisbon and in Coimbra, until, in the year 1537, it was permanently attached to Coimbra. It had received from King Diniz a charter, the provisions of which were mainly taken from those of the charter given to Salamanca. In 1772 the uni versity was entirely reconstituted.