At the end of the 15th century, in Europe, the first attempts were made to systematize the provision of medical care during the war. In 1487, the first military field hospital was created. At the end of the 16th century, when the regular Spanish army was formed, a document came into force regarding the allocation of wards in the civilian hospitals for military needs.

In 1591, the French army issued the first regulation on provision of medical aid to the wounded in mobile and stationary field hospitals. At the same time, doctors entered the staff of the German troops. Despite the advantages, these reforms did not cover the evacuation of soldiers wounded in battles. In European armies, the wounded were transported by the wagon train.

In the Russian State, the approach to medical care for wounded soldiers was generally similar to the European approach. In the first third of the 18th century, there was no medical transportation system in the army, so the systematic evacuation of the wounded and sick was not practiced. During campaigns, the army was still not accompanied by regular military hospitals, soldiers with minor injuries were transported in wagon trains behind battle units. The seriously wounded, as well as some of the medical officials and medical equipment, were left in large retrenchments — fortifications located behind the main position of the defending forces. From here, when the army was returning from a campaign, the wounded and sick were taken to border hospitals.

Here is how the Swede Peter Englund described the evacuation of troops in the book ‘Poltava: The Story of the Death of One Army’: