From Workhouses to Welfare States: European History from 1648-1948 through the Development of Welfare
By Zak Dawson
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Period: to
Modern Europe
This timeline spans the period of Modern Europe running from 1648 to 1948. -
Establishment of the Hôpital Général des Pauvres in Paris
This image from 1730 marks the area of the General hospital in Paris. The Hôpital was established in 1656 by a royal edict and incorporated into expanding state structures. The Hôpital is significant to the development of welfare in Modern Europe as it is an example of the workhouses and hospitals that served as the first forms of state-associated welfare. Being incorporated into the monarchy, and being run by the clergy, these hospitals reflected absolutism and the old regime. -
Bureaux de Bienfaisance
Depicted in the stamp are various people lined up at a Bureaux de Bienfaisance, most likely in wait for the material aid these bureau's were set up to provide. These institutions were set up during the French Revolution and marked an important change in the provision of welfare from being provided by religious and charity funded institutions to more secular and state funded ones that provided material aid directly to citizens. It was the earliest example of popular state provided welfare. -
Sickness Insurance Law
Passed in 1883 by Bismarck, the Sickness Insurance Law provided coverage for German workers making inadequate pay for up to 13 weeks. The funding for these services was provided through the state, with the money being levied from the workers themselves. The passing of this bill marks the culmination of years of political struggle by Socialist party's following the Paris Commune and the industrial Revolution. It marks the beginning of effective state adoption and provision of welfare. -
Founding of the British National Health Service
Depicted in the image is a leaflet given out by the NHS prior to the implementation of the program on July 5, 1948. The NHS is a welfare institution in the UK that provides citizens with full health care that is covered almost entirely by the government. The foundation of the NHS marks the final arrival of the welfare state after years of political struggle following world war one and Europe wide realization of the possibilities of economic intervention following World War two.