In England, proof is obligatory, having been done in London since 1802 and Birmingham since 1813. Bristol, although it is a manufacturing center, does not have a proofhouse; in Belgium, a proofhouse was established in 1810. In America, proof is not obligatory, and it is the same in France, where there are however several special proofmarks in Paris and St. Etienne. (These?) latter, begun in 1717, became part of the regulations in 1782.