Scottish surgeon (1668-1748), a pioneer of inoculation against smallpox in Great Britain. In 1721 he performed the first variolation in London on the family of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, then the “Royal Experiment” on prisoners, paving the way for Jenner's vaccination.
Charles Maitland(1620 — 1691)
Charles Maitland
5 min read
Frequently asked questions
Key Facts
- Born in 1668 in Scotland, a surgeon by training.
- Accompanied Lady Mary Wortley Montagu to Constantinople, where he observed the Ottoman practice of inoculation.
- In 1721, he inoculated smallpox into Lady Montagu's daughter in London, the first public variolation in Great Britain.
- In 1721, he led the “Royal Experiment” on six condemned prisoners of Newgate Prison to test inoculation.
- Died in 1748, regarded as a forerunner of Edward Jenner's vaccination.
Works & Achievements
Maitland inoculates Lady Montagu's son against smallpox, his first variolation procedure, modelled on the Ottoman practice.
In London he performs the first inoculation on British soil, on Lady Montagu's daughter, officially introducing the method to the country.
A trial on six volunteer prisoners, one of the earliest controlled clinical trials in the history of medicine, which proved the relative safety of inoculation.
A follow-up test on young children, which reassured the authorities and made it possible to inoculate the royal princesses.
A work in which he reports his experiments and defends inoculation, helping to spread it across Europe.
Anecdotes
In 1721, Charles Maitland took on a delicate mission: to inoculate against smallpox the daughter of Lady Mary Wortley Montagu, in London. Lady Mary had discovered the practice in Constantinople, where her husband was ambassador, and had already had her son inoculated by Maitland in Turkey in 1718. This was the first variolation performed on British soil.
To convince wary physicians, Maitland carried out the famous “Royal Experiment” in August 1721: six prisoners from Newgate Prison, sentenced to death, agreed to be inoculated in exchange for a pardon. All survived, and one of them, later deliberately exposed to smallpox patients, did not fall ill: the protection appeared to be proven.
After the success with the prisoners, Maitland tested inoculation on orphaned children of the parish of St James's, Westminster, who likewise resisted the disease. Armed with this evidence, the Princess of Wales, Caroline of Ansbach, had two of her own daughters inoculated in 1722, giving the practice royal endorsement.
The variolation Maitland practised was not without risk: a genuine strain of smallpox was inoculated, in the hope of producing a mild form. A few patients died elsewhere in England, which fuelled heated religious and medical controversy, with some preachers viewing it as an affront to divine will.
Maitland's work paved the way for Edward Jenner who, nearly eighty years later in 1796, would develop vaccination using cowpox, which was far safer. Variolation was the first major step in the organised fight against smallpox in the West.
Primary Sources
Account published by Maitland himself describing the inoculations he carried out, including that of Lady Montagu's family and the experiment on the Newgate prisoners.
“The small-pox, so fatal and so general amongst us, is here made entirely harmless by the invention of engrafting, which is the term they give it.”
Reports and discussions on the first smallpox inoculations in England, following the “Royal Experiment” of 1721.
Key Places
Birth region of Charles Maitland, who trained there before practising surgery.
Capital of the Ottoman Empire where Maitland, attached to the British embassy, performed his first inoculation in 1718 on Lady Montagu's son.
City where Maitland carried out the first variolation in Great Britain in 1721 and conducted his decisive experiments.
Prison where the “Royal Experiment” took place in 1721, with six prisoners condemned to death successfully inoculated.
London parish whose orphaned children were inoculated in 1722 to confirm the method's effectiveness.
Typical Objects
Small sharp instrument used to make a superficial incision in the skin and place the smallpox matter into it. It was the central tool of variolation.
Matter taken from the pustules of a patient with a mild form of the disease, kept on a thread or piece of cotton and introduced into the incision of the person to be inoculated.
In Constantinople, the smallpox matter was sometimes carried in a walnut shell. Maitland describes the preservation and transport of this infectious matter.
A case holding lancets, scalpels, bandages and threads, which the surgeon carried for his house calls, which were common at the time.
A printed booklet in which Maitland published the account of his inoculations to inform and persuade the medical community and the public.
Cloth used to cover and protect the incision after inoculation, while the reaction developed over several days.
School Curriculum
Vocabulary & Tags
Key Vocabulary
Daily Life
Morning
A practicing surgeon, Maitland often began his day by visiting his patients, either at their homes or in institutions. Surgery at the time was a manual trade, distinct from that of university-trained physicians.
Afternoon
The afternoon might be devoted to treatments, bloodletting, dressing wounds and, during inoculation campaigns, to preparing the smallpox matter and carefully monitoring the inoculated patients.
Evening
In the evening, he wrote up his observations, corresponded with other practitioners and prepared the reports intended to convince the medical community of the merits of inoculation.
Food
The diet of a well-off man in 18th-century England included bread, meats, stews, beer and wine. Inoculated patients were often placed on a preparatory regimen, considered necessary at the time before the procedure.
Clothing
Maitland wore the dress of an 18th-century gentleman and practitioner: a justaucorps coat, waistcoat, breeches, stockings, a powdered wig and a tricorne hat for going out.
Housing
He lived in a half-timbered or brick townhouse, typical of London and British cities of the period, where he could also receive and treat certain patients.
Historical Timeline
Period Vocabulary
Liens externes & ressources
Références
Œuvres
Première inoculation à Constantinople
1718
Première variolisation en Grande-Bretagne
1721
L'« Expérience royale » de Newgate
1721
Inoculation des orphelins de Westminster
1722
Mr. Maitland's Account of Inoculating the Small Pox
1722
