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He wrote an article where he described the experiment and his conclusions, and addressed it to the Royal Society, which refused to publish it, considering Jenner mad. The scientist repeated the experiment with other people, and wrote a pamphlet titled An inquiry into the causes and the effects of the Variolae vaccinae and disease known by the fame of the Cowpox, which he printed in 1798. He tried to prove his discovery to his friends in London, but no one seemed to trust him; finally Henry Cline, a doctor, repeated the experiment, confirming the theory.
The opposition to Jenner grew badly, because of J. Ingenhousz, W. Woodville and G. Pearson, all famous physicians that were hostile to his discovery. Particularly, Pearson tried to discredit Jenner publishing a pamphlet that described how the cowpox had infected, causing problems similar to the smallpox, some children on which he had performed Jenner’s experiment.
Jenner, events
| YEAR | EVENTS |
| 1775 | First experimentation on smallpox |
| 1788 | First sketches and studies on cowpox (information selection) |
| 1796 | Double inoculation on a boy; first deductions, reported in an article, which is rejected by the Royal Society |
| 1798 | Other experimentations to confirm his theory and publication of the results on his own (pamphlet An inquiry into the causes and the effects of the Variolae vaccinae and known by the fame of the Cowpox) |
| 1799 | Diffusion of Jenner’s discoveries and first discussions |
| 1800 ca. | Diffusion of the vaccine to prevent smallpox |
Fortunately, Jenner succeeded in persuading Pearson, demonstrating that smallpox had contaminated the cowpox used for the inoculation. At the same time, in England the number of Jenner’s sustainers was growing, and they were asking for free public vaccination centres; Pearson tried to cheat the scientist another time, proposing him to become honorary member of a new society for vaccination. Jenner, obviously, refused, and founded the Royal Jennerian Society on his own, which vanished in 1808.
First the United Kingdom only paid for Jenner’s expenses for vaccination; after some years, however, he was rewarded for his hard work and was given 20,000 pounds. After Jenner’s discovery, smallpox was gradually isolated to the poor countries, until, after the last case in Somalia 1977, the OMS officially declared that the disease was evicted; however, for security, there are some reserves of vaccine in the U.S.A. and in Russia. The end of the compulsory vaccination in Italywas in 1981.
Edward Jenner’s house, The Chantry, was sold to the Church that made of it the local vicariate; but, in the Eighties, it was sold another time. Realising that it was a chance to celebrate the victory on smallpox, several admirers raised the money to buy it and transform it into a Museum. Nowadays, it includes many rooms: among them, two are dedicated to modern immunology equipment. The first goal of the museum is to spread the knowledge related to Jenner and his experimentations.
Bibliography
- www.xagena.it/medicina/azguide/vaiolo.html
- http://85.1911encyclopedia.org/J/JE/JENNER_EDWARD.htm
- www.paginemediche.it/areapubblica/aree/rubriche/articolo.asp?id=150&canale=1
- http://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Edward_Jenner#Biografia
- www.pediatric.it/vaccinazioni.htm
- www.whonamedit.com/doctor.cfm/1818.html
Iconography
- www.rainews24.rai.it/ran24/speciali/obiettivo_usa_nuovo/img/02102001_vaiolo.jpg
- www.xnm15.dial.pipex.com/berk2.jpg
- www.nlm.nih.gov/exhibition/smallpox/Images/Large/the_cow_pock_large.jpg
- www.sc.edu/library/spcoll/nathist/jenner2.jpg
- www.bt.cdc.gov/training/smallpoxvaccine/reactions/images/jenner.jpg
- www.uea.ac.uk/his/medhis/images/Jenner%20vaccinating.jpg
- www.evsrl.it/vet.journal/approfondimento.php?codnotizia=1998
- www.filelodge.com/files/room11/266067/vaiolo.jpg
- www.wonderquest.com/smallpox-revisited.htm
