STIs in history: wartime figures, old cures and myths

For a very long time. Historians often date the first big outbreak of Syphilis in Europe to 1495, after the French army invaded Naples. Where it came from is still debated. The best-known theory is that sailors returning from Christopher Columbus’s first voyage to the Americas brought it back, but some researchers think it was in Europe earlier.

Gonorrhoea has a long history too. Its nickname, “the clap”, was first recorded in English in the 1580s. Read more in “The clap and other STI names through the ages”

Before antibiotics, treatments for STIs were often useless or dangerous:

• Guaiacum, a wood from South America known as “holy wood”, was probably the first major treatment for Syphilis. Large amounts were shipped to Europe, but it fell out of favour because it didn’t work.
• Mercury was used to treat Syphilis from the 16th century into the early 20th. Patients swallowed it, rubbed it into their skin or breathed in its fumes, and treatment could last months or even years. It made people sweat and drool heavily, and could cause organ failure, nerve damage, tooth loss and skin ulcers.
• Salvarsan, an arsenic-based drug developed in Paul Ehrlich’s laboratory, went on sale in 1910. It’s often described as the first real cure for Syphilis.

A popular saying of the time sums up the mercury years: “One night with Venus, a lifetime with Mercury.”

STIs were a major problem for armies in the First World War:

• An estimated 5% of everyone who served in Britain’s forces caught an STI.
• There were more than 400,000 hospital admissions for venereal diseases in the British Army between 1914 and 1918, and each one could take a soldier away from duty for weeks.
• Canadian troops had some of the highest rates. In 1915, hospital admissions for venereal disease in the Canadian Army in the UK reached 222 for every 1,000 men, and over the whole war nearly 1 in 9 Canadian soldiers caught one.

British soldiers were given a booklet warning them to avoid sex and alcohol, called “A Cause of Military Inefficiency”.

In 1913, the government set up a Royal Commission on Venereal Diseases. It reported in March 1916, and estimated that about 1 in 10 people in Britain’s cities had Syphilis, with Gonorrhoea even more common.

Its recommendations led to Britain’s first network of STI clinics.

• In July 1916, the Public Health (Venereal Diseases) Regulations told local authorities to set up clinics offering free, confidential diagnosis and treatment, with central government paying 75% of the cost.
• The Venereal Disease Act 1917 banned anyone who wasn’t medically qualified from treating STIs, and banned adverts for so-called cures.

The clinics mainly used Salvarsan to treat Syphilis, until penicillin arrived.

Penicillin changed everything. It was developed during the Second World War, became available to the public in the UK in 1946, and by 1947 was the standard treatment for Syphilis. The Science Museum says it cut Syphilis cases in the UK by 90% within 10 years.

Today, Chlamydia, Gonorrhoea and Syphilis can all be cured with antibiotics. But the story isn’t over:

• In 2024, more than 13,000 cases of Syphilis were reported in England, the highest number since the 1940s. Infectious Syphilis diagnoses then fell by 13.5%, from 9,553 in 2024 to 8,262 in 2025.
• Gonorrhoea is becoming resistant to antibiotics. Cases resistant to ceftriaxone, the main treatment, more than doubled in England from 13 in 2024 to 29 in 2025.
• There’s no cure for HIV, but with treatment most people with HIV can live a long and healthy life.

Some popular stories about STI history don’t stand up:

• Lists of famous people with Syphilis often name rulers, writers and dictators, but most of these claims are speculation. The composer Franz Schubert is one of the few cases historians treat as known.
• The Ebers Papyrus, an Egyptian medical text from about 1550 BC, is often said to describe an STI. We couldn’t find a museum or scholarly source that confirms it.
• Stories about ancient cures, such as burning Herpes sores with a hot iron, also lack reliable evidence.

The real history is strange enough without the myths.

Many STIs cause no symptoms, so testing is the only way to know. Better2Know offers:

• Peace of Mind: tests for Chlamydia, Gonorrhoea and Syphilis from 14 days after sex, with results in 2 days. You can book it at one of our clinics or order a home test kit.
• Full Screen: tests for 7 infections, adding HIV, Hepatitis B, Mycoplasma and Ureaplasma, from 28 days after sex, with results in 3 days (5 days for the home test).
• Platinum Screen: tests for 12 infections, including Herpes 1 and Herpes 2, from 28 days after sex, with results in 3 days.

If you test before 45 days, a negative HIV result needs a repeat test. A Syphilis test in the first 3 months after sex can miss the infection, so you may need a repeat test. Not sure which test you need? Our Patient Care Team is available 24/7 on 020 7099 0955.

When did Syphilis first appear in Europe?

The first major epidemic is usually dated to 1495, after the French army invaded Naples in 1494. Historians still debate where it came from.

How were STIs treated before antibiotics?

Mainly with mercury, which was toxic, and with remedies such as guaiacum wood that didn’t work. Salvarsan, an arsenic-based drug, became the first effective treatment for Syphilis in 1910.

When did penicillin become available in the UK?

It became available for public use in the UK in 1946, and by 1947 it was the standard treatment for Syphilis.

STIs have been around for centuries, and for most of that time the cures were worse than useless. Britain’s first STI clinics opened during the First World War, and penicillin finally made Syphilis reliably curable. Today, most STIs are easy to treat, but many cause no symptoms, so testing matters as much as ever.

Book a Peace of Mind test at a clinic near you or order a home test kit. Our Patient Care Team is available 24/7 on 020 7099 0955.

Not in the UK? Choose your country from the selector at the top of the page for local tests and prices.

This article originally appeared on 15 April 2022 and was last updated on 1 October 2026.

This article is general information and not a substitute for personal medical advice.

Sources

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3. Science Museum, How was penicillin developed?, 23 February 2021. https://www.sciencemuseum.org.uk/objects-and-stories/how-was-penicillin-developed
4. Science Museum Group Collection, ‘A Cause of Military Inefficiency’, booklet on STIs, England, 1914 to 1918. https://collection.sciencemuseumgroup.org.uk/objects/co140859
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