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Abortion and contraception have been widely available throughout the history of Western Civilization, despite ethical concerns. Plato and Aristotle both argued in favor of compulsory abortion under certain circumstances, though Hippocrates expressly disapproved of the practice. Under Roman law, life was said to begin at birth. Abortions were thus legal, though regulated to protect the rights of the father. References to abortion were included in the writings of Ovid, Seneca, Juvenal and Pliny, who included a list of abortifacients (drugs that induce an abortion) in one text. Early Christian philosophers, including St. Augustine, Ivo of Chartres and Gratian, disapproved of abortion when it broke the link between the sexual act and procreation, but argued that abortion of what Ivo termed an 'unformed embryo' did not constitute homicide.
Religious authorities have taken various positions on abortion throughout history (see Religion and abortionMany religions place legal or moral limitations on active abortion for various theological reasons. Judaism Judaism holds that the fetus is not yet a full human being, and thus killing a fetus is not murder. Abortion, when necessary, take place before the). In 1588Events May 12 Day of the Barricades in Paris. Duke Henry of Guise seizes the city, forcing King Henry III to flee. May 28 The Spanish Armada, with 130 ships and 30,000 men, begins to set sail from Lisbon heading for the English Channel (it will take until, Pope Sixtus VSixtus V ne Felice Peretti ( December 13, 1521 August 27, 1590) was pope from 1585 to 1590. Born at Grottammare, in Marche. He was reared in poverty; his father was a gardener, and his having been a swineherd in his youth is less than shocking today. adopted a papal bull adopting the position of St. Thomas Aquinas that contraception and abortion were crimes against nature and sins against marriage. This verdict was relaxed three years later by Pope Gregory XIVGregory XIV ne Niccolo Sfondrato ( February 11, 1535 October 16, 1591) was Pope from December 5, 1590 October 16, 1591. He was born a native of Cremona and succeeded Urban VII on December 5, 1590. As a monk he had been eminent for the decency and sobriety, who pronounced that abortion before 'hominization' should not be subject to church penalties that were any stricter than civil penalties. Common law positions on abortion in individual countries varied significantly from country to country. English common law considered abortions before 'quickening' - when the movements of the fetus could first be felt by the mother - to be morally and legally acceptable.
Many Western countries began to make abortion illegal in the 19th centuryAlternative meaning: Nineteenth Century (periodical ( 18th century — 19th century — 20th century — more centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 19th century was that century which lasted from 1801- 1900. Events The Little Ice Age ended. Anti-abortion forces were led by a combination of conservative groups opposed to abortion on moral grounds and medical professionals who were concerned about the danger presented by the procedure and the regular involvement of non-medical personnel in performing abortions.
It became clear in the following years, however, that illegal abortions continued to take place in large numbers even where abortions were expressly illegal. It was difficult to obtain sufficient evidence to prosecute the mothers and doctors, and judges and juries were often reluctant to convict. Many were also outraged at the invasion of privacy and the medical problems resulting from abortions taking place illegally in medically dangerous circumstances. Political movements soon coalesced around the legalization of abortion and liberalization of existing laws.
By the early 20th century, many countries had begun to legalize abortions when performed to protect the life of the mother, and in some cases to protect the health of the mother. Under Vladimir LeninVladimir Ilyich Lenin ( Russian: ), original name Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov ( Russian: ) ( April 10 ( April 22, New Style), 1870 January 21, 1924), was a Russian revolutionary, the leader of the Bolshevik party, the first Premier of the Soviet Union and the, the Soviet Union legalized all abortions in 1920, but this was fully reversed in 1936 by Joseph Stalin in order to increase population growth. Iceland was the first Western country to legalize therapeutic abortion under limited circumstances, doing so in 1935, and the earliest country to do so without recriminalizing it later. Only a handful of countries - mostly in Scandinavia decriminalized abortion before Britain in 1967. Others soon followed, including Canada ( 1969), the United States ( 1973 in most states), France ( 1975), West Germany ( 1976), New Zealand ( 1977), Italy ( 1978) and the Netherlands ( 1980).