Contagious Diseases Acts Flashcards
Why were the Contagious Diseases Acts introduced?
Concern over the health of the army.
Concern over the health of the public.
Prostitution seen as a social necessity.
‘Reformers’.
What was the 1857 Royal Commission on the Health of the Army?
Found that venereal diseases were higher in servicemen than for non-servicemen.
Recommended that medical checks for venereal diseases to be stopped as they created a loss of respect for troops (frequent checks stopped in 1859).
Also recommended an army statistical department be set up to publish annual reports on the health of the army.
What was the health of the army like by 1860?
37% of army hospital admissions were for venereal diseases.
An average of 105 out of every 1,000 soldiers in hospital were for sexually related diseases.
By 1864, one in every three cases were venereal diseases.
What was the 1862 Committee of Inquiry into venereal disease?
Led by Samuel Whitbread MP.
Suggested more hospital care for men, improved sanitation in barracks, penalties for men who concealed venereal diseases, and more leisure activities.
What was Florence Nightingale’s stance on high venereal rates during Crimean War onwards?
Wanted the army to purify itself morally and find entertainment elsewhere rather than with prostitutes.
How did venereal diseases effect the public?
Syphilis was a big killer of children under 12 months old- passed from mother to child during childbirth.
Up to 20% of child admissions to Royal Free Hospital had syphilis.
London Free Hospital found syphilis was responsible for 12.5-20% of admissions to ear and eye wards.
Why was prostitution seen as a social necessity for men?
Male sexually seen as animalistic and savage.
Men married later in life and virginity was seen as an important asset for women.
What highlighted the need for men to have sex but not women?
1857 Matrimonial Causes Act- men could divorce women on the ground of adultery but women also had to have another reason.
What did John William Acton write?
‘Prostitution’ in 1857.
What did Acton’s book say about dealing with venereal diseases?
Regular medical checks for prostitutes, and state regulations of prostitution.
What were the three dates of the Contagious Diseases Acts?
1864.
1866.
1869.
What did the 1864 Contagious Diseases Act implement?
If found to be diseased, the woman could be detained in a lock hospital until cured.
Police within ports and garrison towns given power to arrest prostitutes for medical examination- any woman who refused could be imprisoned.
What did the 1866 Contagious Diseases Act implement?
Prostitutes to be identified by a single policeman before a magistrate.
Compulsory examination for all prostitutes every three months.
Legislation extended to include all areas within a ten-mile radius of protected ports and garrison towns.
What did the 1869 Contagious Diseases Act implement?
Legislation extended to all garrison towns.
Established 18 protected districts across the UK.
Allowed prostitutes to be held for five days before examination without trial.
Made it legal for prostitutes to be detained in a lock hospital for up to a year and subjected to fortnightly inspections.
Why did Elizabeth Garrett Anderson defend the Contagious Diseases Acts?
Anderson believed voluntary checks could not prevent infections but that the Acts would relieve the physical suffering of prostitutes, who would otherwise not visit hospitals early enough.
