Tattoos were popular among British aristocrats, of all people:
The playboy prince [Prince Bertie, later Edward VII] was first tattooed in 1862 in the Holy Land with the ‘Jerusalem Cross’ design. … Indeed between 1870 and 1890 larger intricate tattoos were very much the preserve of the upper classes – even women joined in. The New York Times in 1879 noted:
… that in England it is regarded as a customary and proper thing to tattoo the youthful feminine leg.
Members of the social elite gathered in drawing rooms to disrobe partially and show off their expensive and painfully acquired body art. Skilled artists were hard to find. Winston Churchill’s mother Jennie had a dainty snake etched strategically on her wrist; she could cover it up with a diamond bracelet. Rumour has it that her son followed suit with an anchor on his forearm.
The Dish 