Final answer:
The first drug treatment for malaria in Europe was quinine, derived from the bark of the cinchona tree. Taking it before exposure could prevent people from contracting the disease.
Step-by-step explanation:
The first drug treatment for malaria in Europe was quinine, which comes from the bark of the cinchona tree. It had been used for years to treat malaria and in the 1840s it was discovered that taking it before exposure could prevent people from contracting the disease. Quinine was in high demand in Europe, but cinchona trees only grew in the Andes, so attempts to plant them elsewhere often failed.