This deep dive covers Impact & Significance within Jenner and Vaccination for GCSE History. Revise Jenner and Vaccination in Medicine Through Time for GCSE History with 8 exam-style questions and 5 flashcards. This is a high-frequency topic, so it is worth revising until the explanation feels precise and repeatable. It is section 4 of 11 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
Topic position
Section 4 of 11
Practice
8 questions
Recall
5 flashcards
🧠 Impact & Significance
Immediate: Government gave Jenner £30,000 to promote vaccination. Free vaccination offered from 1840.
1853: Vaccination made compulsory for infants. Smallpox deaths dropped dramatically.
Limitation: Jenner couldn't explain WHY it worked (no germ theory yet). His method only worked for smallpox — not other diseases.
Long-term: Laid foundation for Pasteur's vaccines (1880s). Smallpox declared eradicated in 1980 — first disease humans eliminated.