B.C. 1750 In Babylonia, King Hammurabi issues his code of justice, which includes a requirement that the people help one another during times of hardship.

B.C. 1200 In Israel, the Jewish people are told that God expects them to help poor and disadvantaged people.

B.C. 500 Philanthropy, from the Greek word for "acts of love for humanity," is institutionalized in the Greek city–states. Citizens are encouraged to donate money, which is used for the public good. Parks are built, and food, clothing, and other goods are kept in public facilities to be used for people in need.

B.C. 300 In China, the Analects of Confucius declare humans to be social beings bound to one another by Jen, a form of sympathy that is often expressed through helping those in need.

B.C. 100 In Rome, the annona civica tradition—in which patrician families distribute free or low-cost grain to all Roman citizens in need—is well established.

A.D. 30 Jesus Christ teaches that people’s love for one another is God’s will. He emphasizes the importance of giving to those who are less fortunate ("Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my brethren, ye have done it unto me").

313 Christianity is legalized by the Roman emperor Constantine. The more affluent converts can donate funds openly, and the church is able to use these funds to care for poor people.

400 "Hospitals" are developed and extended throughout India. These facilities provide shelter for poor and disabled homeless people and resemble almshouses rather than modern hospitals.

542 Hospitals similar to those in India have spread to China and the Middle East and now make their first appearance in Europe. The first of these, the Hôtel Dieu ("house of God") is established in Lyons, France, and is staffed primarily by religious workers and volunteers.

600 With the fall of the Roman Empire, Pope Gregory organizes programs to help poor people; the church replaces the state as the "safety net."

650 The followers of the Prophet Muhammad are told they have an obligation to poor people and that paying a zakat ("puri-fication tax") to care for poor people is one of the Five Pillars (obligatory duties) of Islam.

787 Clergy establish the first modern foundling hospital (orphanage) for abandoned children in Milan, Italy.

1084 Almshouses for poor and disabled people, similar to the hospitals in France, are established in Canterbury, England.

1100 The Roman Church issues the Decretum, a compilation of its canon law, which includes an elaborate discussion of the theory and practice of charity. It states that rich people have a legal and moral obligation to support poor people.

1140 Norman King Roger II decrees that only physicians with licenses issued by the government may practice medicine.

1215 King John of England signs the Magna Carta, which establishes some human rights (for the nobility).

1348 The social system of feudalism begins to break down, partly because of bubonic plague, which kills nearly one-third of the population of Europe. Without the protection of the barons and lords, the serfs and peasants are at the mercy of economic and military threats.

1349 The Statute of Labourers is issued in England, requiring people to remain on their home manors and work for whatever the lords want to pay. Begging and almsgiving are outlawed except for older people and those unable to work. For the first time, a distinction is made between the "worthy poor" (older people, disabled people, widows, and dependent children), and the "unworthy poor" (able-bodied but unemployed adults).

1452 The first professional association is formed in Regensburg, Germany, for midwives.

1526 Juan Luis Vives, a Spaniard living in northern Europe, develops a plan for organized relief. The plan includes registering poor people, raising private funds to help them, and creating employment for able-bodied poor people. Many of his ideas were later used in European cities and influenced the Poor Laws in England and colonial America in the next century.

1529 The city–state of Venice enacts a poor law requiring licensing for people seeking alms and some public service work in order to get the license.

1531 England’s first statute dealing with poor relief is issued. The statute empowers local justices to license certain people (older and disabled people) to beg in their own neighborhoods and to give harsh punishment to any unlicensed beggars. To implement this law, the justices developed criteria and procedures for deciding which persons to license. Thus, each applicant was evaluated by representatives of the justices.

1536 The Henrician Poor Law, also known as the Act for the Punishment of Sturdy Vagabonds and Beggars, is established. The government of Henry VIII classifies types of poor people and establishes procedures for collecting voluntary donations and disbursing funds. The law requires that these procedures be carried out at the local rather than the national level. It also acknowledges that the state rather than the church or volunteers must play some role in caring for poor people.

1572 England can no longer depend on voluntary contributions to care for its poor people. A national tax, the Parish Poor Rate, is levied to cover these costs. This is accompanied by a register of people needing relief. Funds left over from poor relief are used to create jobs for able-bodied people.

1601 The Elizabethan Poor Law is established. Built on the experiments of the earlier Henrician Poor Law (1536) and the Parish Poor Rate (1572), this legislation becomes the major codification of dealing with poor and disadvantaged people for more than 200 years. It also becomes the basis for dealing with poor people in colonial America. The Poor Law keeps the administration of poor relief at the local level, taxes people in each parish to pay for their own poor parishioners, establishes apprentice programs for poor children, develops workhouses for dependent people, and deals harshly and punitively with able-bodied poor people.

1625 Father Vincent de Paul (canonized as St. Vincent de Paul in 1737) establishes seminaries, religious orders, and charitable organizations to care for the poor people of France and is the founder of organized charity in Europe. In many of those nations that do not become Protestant during the Reformation, the church rather than the state retains more responsibility for the care of poor people.

1642 Plymouth Colony enacts the first poor law in the New World, based on the Elizabethan Poor Law of 1601.

1650 The influence of Luther, Calvin, and others has become established and manifested as the Protestant ethic, a philosophy that becomes influential in England, parts of Europe, and the American colonies. It emphasizes self-discipline, frugality, and hard work and leads many of its adherents to frown on those who are dependent or unemployed.

1657 The first private welfare organization in America, the Scots’ Charitable Society, is established in Boston.

1662 The Law of Settlement and Removal is established in England as one of the world’s first "residency requirements" in determining eligibility to receive help. Municipal authorities are authorized to help only poor local citizens and to expel from their jurisdictions anyone else who might become dependent for assistance. This law causes authorities to evaluate people as to the likelihood of their becoming poor. Thus, although the law is basically harsh and punitive, some efforts to look at the causes of poverty are codified.

1679 Writ of habeus corpus is instituted in England.

1690 John Locke’s Essay Concerning Human Understanding is published, argu-

ing that all human knowledge comes exclusively from experiences and

perceptions.

1697 The workhouse system is developed in Bristol and soon spreads throughout England and parts of Europe. The system is designed to keep down poor taxes by denying aid to anyone who refuses to enter a workhouse. These institutions are usually managed by private entrepreneurs who contract with the legal authorities to care for the residents in exchange for using their work. Residents—including very young children, disabled people, and very old people—are often given minimal care and are worked long hours as virtual slaves.

1711 David Hume’s Treatise of Human Nature uses the experimental method in problems of mental functioning and human nature.

1729 Ursuline Sisters of New Orleans establishes America’s first residential institution for orphaned children.

1773 The colonies’ first hospital for mentally ill people is established in Williamsburg, Virginia.

1782 The Gilbert Act is passed in England, enabling humanitarians, appalled by the exploitation of workhouse residents, to institute reforms in many English jurisdictions. Many workhouses are closed, assistance to poor people in their own homes is established, and children younger than six are placed with families. Many private entrepreneurs are replaced by municipal employees as managers of the remaining workhouses.

1790 The first publicly funded orphanage in the United States is established in Charleston, South Carolina.

1795 The Speenhamland system is inaugurated. In the English district of Speenhamland, a "poverty line" is developed, and some workers are made eligible for subsidization whenever their wages are below this amount. The amount is based on the price of bread and the worker’s number of dependents. As prices increase or wages decline, the public treasury makes up the difference.

1798 The U.S. Public Health Service is established.

1798 Thomas Malthus publishes his Essay on the Principle of Population as It Affects the Improvement of Society.

REPRINTED FROM THE SOCIAL WORK DICTIONARY, 3rd Edition
by Robert L. Barker,
published by NASW Press, 1995
National Association of Social Workers

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