History Today: When blood transfusion was performed for the first time in France

In today’s times, a huge number of people depend on blood transfusions.

Those that need it can range from accident victims to people with blood disorders like Thalassemia.

While these transfusions are a common practice in today’s world, that was not the case in the 17th Century. Back then, it was unheard of.

But all changed when the first successful blood transfusion took place on June 15, 1667, in France.

French physician Jean-Baptiste Denys performed it to transfuse 0.35 litres of a lamb’s blood into a 15 year-old-boy who had been severely weakened by a prolonged fever and repeated bloodletting.

If you are a history geek who loves to learn about important events from the past, Firstpost Explainers’ ongoing series, History Today will be your one-stop destination to explore key events.

More from Explainers

History Today: How US Army was founded 250 years ago History Today: How Bhutan became the first country to go tobacco-free

On this day in 1917, the US Congress passed the Espionage Act, just two months after it formally entered World War I. ‘All the President’s Men’, the first definitive book about the Watergate scandal, was published on this day in 1974.

Nearly two months later then-President Richard Nixon resigned from office.

The first blood transfusion was performed

One of the most pivotal moments in medical history took place on this day in 1667 when French physician Jean-Baptiste Denys performed what is widely considered the first fully documented blood transfusion to a human.

Faced with a 15-year-old boy suffering from a severe, two-month fever,  Denys and his assistant first tried the traditional method of “letting blood.” When this proved ineffective, they opted for an experimental blood transfusion from a live animal, a technique they had been exploring for years.

Connecting a tube from a lamb’s artery to a vein in the boy’s arm, they transferred approximately 340 grams of blood. After the procedure and a period of rest, Denis noted the boy awoke feeling “cheerful enough” and subsequently made a full recovery.

Editor’s Picks

1

What is Signal, the app Trump’s team used to discuss secret war plan? Is its use against the law? 2

Presidents of the United States: Richard Nixon, a leader shadowed by war in Vietnam and Watergate

Denys later performed another successful animal-to-human transfusion on a labourer. These early attempts at xenotransfusion (transfusing blood from one species to another) were experimental and often met with controversy and mixed results, with some subsequent patients experiencing severe reactions and even death. The scientific understanding of blood compatibility, including blood types, would not emerge for centuries.

Despite the inherent risks and the eventual ban on animal-to-human transfusions due to adverse reactions, Denys’s courageous experiments on June 15, 1667, marked a crucial early step in the long and complex history of blood transfusion.

US Congress passes Espionage Act

A landmark federal law was enacted on June 15, 1917, with the US Congress passing the Espionage Act, just months after it officially entered World War I. The law was enacted in view of widespread concerns about national security, espionage and growing anti-war sentiment.

Under President Woodrow Wilson , Attorney General A. Mitchell Palmer was a key enforcer of the Espionage Act. This legislation effectively made it an offence to transmit information designed to hinder the US armed forces’ conduct of the war or to promote the adversaries’ cause.

Convicted individuals were liable to a $10,000 fine and 20 years in prison. Furthermore, it made it illegal to make false statements intended to interfere with military operations, cause insubordination, disloyalty, or obstruct military recruitment.

The Espionage Act was reinforced by the Sedition Act of the following year, which imposed similarly harsh penalties on anyone found guilty of making false statements that interfered with the prosecution of the war, insulting or abusing the US government, the flag, the Constitution or the military,  agitating against the production of necessary war materials or advocating, teaching or defending any of these acts.

It is still relevant today. The Julian Assange case is one of the most recent cases where the Act has come into effect. In June 2024, Julian Assange, the founder of WikiLeaks, pleaded guilty to a single count of conspiracy to obtain and disclose national defence information, a violation of the Espionage Act.

‘All the President’s Men’ was published

One of the most ground-breaking non-fiction books ‘All the President’s Men’ was published on this day in 1974.

The book was a detailed account of the investigative reporting of the Watergate scandal. This release occurred just months before President Richard Nixon’s resignation, making it an incredibly timely and impactful exposé on the unfolding Watergate scandal.

Authored by Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein, the book told the behind-the-scenes story of the Watergate scandal beginning with the 1972 burglary of the Democratic headquarters at the Watergate Complex , and revealing the full scope of the saga.

It revealed the involvement of officials like HR Haldeman and John Ehrlichman and famously introduced the mysterious anonymous source, “ Deep Throat, ” whose identity remained a secret for over 30 years.

With this book, the authors became household names.

The Denver Post termed All the President’s Men, “One of the greatest detective stories ever told.” Time magazine called the book “perhaps the most influential piece of journalism in history.” The New York Times dubbed it a “fast-moving mystery, a whodunit written with ease.”

This Day, That Year

• On this day in 1944, US Marines attacked Saipan in the Mariana Islands.

• Arlington National Cemetery was established on this day in 1864.

• George Washington was named Commander in Chief of the Colonies by the Continental Congress in 1775.