[Francisco López de Villalobos (c.1473-c.1549), court doctor]

The personality and works of the converso physician Francisco López de Villalobos (c.1473-c. 1549) have been widely studied, ever since the late 19th century, when Antonio María Fabié published his classic work on this figure, which is still the point of departure for any new approach. However, most subsequent works have only focused upon some aspects of Villalobos' protean figure. The article is intended to explore Villalobos' Latin and Castilian letters in order to better understand the significance and motivations of this professional courier at the different noble courts (mainly that of Alba) and royal Castilian courts (of Ferdinand the Catholic and Charles V) in which he served during the first half of the 16th century. In each of these settings, his professional path took on particular features according to his variable expectations and to the degree of satisfaction he achieved.