1871

Antivaccination movement, in Britain: “The tightening of compulsory vaccination legislation in 1871 had produced an anti-vaccination movement with a journal and a national association. This remained strong throughout the 1880s and 90s and persisted until compulsory vaccination was ended in 1909, by which time smallpox had virtually disappeared. The movement had often been represented as a defense of local liberties against metropolitan interference and state power. . . It was widely believed that vaccination spread eczema and there were fears that it could infect children with syphilis. The scars left by vaccination were commonly referred to as ‘the mark of the beast’, a term often applied to leprosy as well” (Edmond, 89).