Edward Jenner, English Physician

Edward Jenner vaccinates a young child on its mother's lap. Edward Jenner (May 17, 1749 - January 26, 1823) was an English physician and scientist who was the pioneer of smallpox vaccine, the world's first vaccine. His work is said to have saved more lives than the work of any other human. In Jenner's time, smallpox killed around 10 percent of the population, with the number as high as 20 percent in towns and cities where infection spread more easily. In 1821 he was appointed physician extraordinary to King George IV, and was also made mayor of Berkeley and justice of the peace. A member of the Royal Society, in the field of zoology he was the first person to describe the brood parasitism of the cuckoo. He died in 1823 at the age of 73. Jenner's vaccine laid the foundation for contemporary discoveries in immunology. In 2002, Jenner was named in the BBC's list of the 100 Greatest Britons. Cropped lithograph attributed to Jean-Louis Tirpenne, 1820/1830

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1749 1821 1823 Appointed Attributed Berkeley Britons Brood Cropped Cuckoo Describe Discoveries Easily Extraordinary Immunologist Immunology Infection Inoculate Inoculating Jean-louis Jenner Jenners Laid Microbiologist Parasitism Percent Saved Smallpox Spread Vaccinates Vaccinating Vaccination Vaccine

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