THE BLACK DEATH

1347-13511347 1351

C i t f th E t th Bl k D th Coming out of the East, the Black Death reached the shores of Italy in the spring of f y p g f1347 unleashing a rampage of death across E d d i d d hi Europe unprecedented in recorded history. By the time the epidemic played itself out y th ti th pid i p y d it f t three years later, anywhere between one

d h d f E ' l h d and two thirds of Europe's population had fallen victim to the pestilence fallen victim to the pestilence.

Th O i insThe OriginsUsually thought to have started in China or Central Asia, the y th ght t h t t d i hi t A i , th plague had reached the trade city of Kaffa in the Black Sea by 1346 From there black rats carried it onto merchant ships 1346. From there, black rats carried it onto merchant ships

bound for Italy. It then spread throughout the Mediterranean and ravaged Europeand ravaged Europe.

Did Y Kn ?Did You Know?In 1346, the Tatars (Mongols) laid siege , g gto Kaffa. While surrounding the city, the Tatars came down with plague. The Tatars decided to use this to their advantage. They started loading their catapults of the infected, dead bodies and began flinging them over the city walls.An outbreak of plague in the city soon followed. It has been speculated that this operation may have been responsible for the advent of the Black Death in Europe.

The Culpritsh p

H Did It Sp ad?How Did It Spread?Towns were dirty places with Towns were dirty places, with narrow filthy streets.W di l b k i h Middl Waste disposal back in the Middle Ages was very crude. People

ld i l d h i h would simply dump their trash out the window and onto the streets. TThe filth that littered streets and gave rats the perfect environment to breed and increase their numbers.

H Did It Sp ad?How Did It Spread?T i l b hi d l li i h Typical bathing and cleanliness in the Middle Ages was not very good.I f l ll l h d In fact, most people typically only washed their hands and face; limiting baths to once ll d E ta year, usually around Easter.

Additionally, people tended to sleep on b d f h h ’ l d l beds of hay or sheep s wool and rarely would have been changed or cleaned.B f hi l ld f h Because of this, people would often have problems with bedbugs, lice and fleas.

H Did It Sp ad?How Did It Spread?Having no defense and no Having n defense and n understanding to the cause of the pestilence, the men, women and children caught in its onslaught were bewildered, panicked, and f ll d dfinally devastated.Also, the disposal of bodies was

d d h l d d very crude and helped to spread the disease even further as those h handl d th d ad b di s did who handled the dead bodies did

not protect themselves in any way.

What Was th Bla k D ath?What Was the Black Death?Th Bl k D th i t i d i t th ifi The Black Death is categorized into three specific

types of plague caused by the same bacteria, yersinia pestis:

- Bubonic Plague (infection in the lymph nodes, or buboes)

P P ( )- Pneumonic Plague (the infection in the lungs)

S i i Pl ( h i f i i h bl d [ l h - Septicemic Plague (the infection in the blood [also the most deadly of the three])

Bubonic PlaguegThe bubonic plague was the most commonly seen form during

h Bl k D h Th l f b b l h the Black Death. The classic sign of bubonic plague was the appearance of buboes in the groin, the neck and armpits,

which oozed black pus and bled. The term 'bubonic' refers to the characteristic bubo or enlarged The term bubonic refers to the characteristic bubo or enlarged

lymphatic gland. It had a mortality rate of thirty to s v nt fiv p nt and s pt s in l din a hi h f v seventy-five percent and symptoms including a high fever, headaches, painful aching joints, nausea and vomiting, and a

l f l f d f f h h d h general feeling of discomfort. Of those who contracted the bubonic plague, 4 out of 5 died within eight days.

B b ni PlaBubonic Plague

B b ni PlaBubonic Plague

Pn m ni PlaPneumonic Plague

Pneumonic plague was the second most commonly seen form during the Black Death, with a mortality rate of ninety d ring the Black Death, with a mortality rate of ninety to ninety-five percent. Symptoms included fever, cough,

d bl d ti d t A th di d and blood-tinged sputum. As the disease progressed, your lungs basically start to liquefy and the sputum

became free flowing and bright red.

S pti mi PlaSepticemic PlagueSepticemic plague was the least common of the three

forms, with a mortality rate close to one hundred f , h y h d dpercent. Symptoms were high fevers and purple/black ki t h Y bl d ld i l t d it j b skin patches. Your blood would simply not do its job of bringing oxygen to your body and also would not clot. As a result, your skin started to die and you tended to bleed uncontrollably all over your bodytended to bleed uncontrollably all over your body.

Did Y Kn ?Did You Know?Black Plague still exists around the world Black Plague still exists around the world today, especially in Third World or developing nations where trash and pollution are prominent and vermin like pollution are prominent and vermin like rats exist.However, there are even cases of it

t d i th U it d St t h reported in the United States each year.While this is a very serious illness, it is easily treatable nowadays with commonly

l bl b M l available antibiotics. Mortality rate is about 8-10%.In most cases, a patient who quickly q yseeks medical care and treatment makes a full recovery.

Path f th PlaPath of the PlagueThe plague traveled on trade routes and caravans. Its h p g d d d .path of death was generally from south to north and

t t t i th h It l F E l d east to west passing through Italy, France, England, Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Poland, Finland, and eventually reaching as far as Greenland. If the

plague had just stayed in one city the containment plague had just stayed in one city, the containment might have spared Europe. Unfortunately, the plague

h l fl hspread when people fled to other cities.

Eff ts t St p th PlaEfforts to Stop the PlagueCities were hardest hit In crowded cities it was not Cities were hardest hit. In crowded cities, it was not

uncommon for as much as fifty percent of the l dpopulation to die.

Although governments had medical workers try to Mprevent the plague, the plague persisted. Most

medical workers quit and journeyed away because d k q d j y d ythey feared getting the plague themselves.

Eff ts t St p th PlaEfforts to Stop the PlagueThere were; however methods that did work For example There were; however, methods that did work. For example,

in Milan, city officials immediately walled up houses f d t h th l i l ti ( th found to have the plague, isolating everyone (even the healthy along with the sick) inside of them. Venice took

sophisticated and stringent quarantine and health measures, including isolating all incoming ships on a , in ding i ting in ing hip n

separate island. P l di d h h f i Mil d V i h People died anyway, though fewer in Milan and Venice than

in cities that took no such measures.

Plague DoctorsPlague DoctorsA plague doctor's duties were often limited to visiting victims to verify limited to visiting victims to verify whether they had been afflicted or not. Surviving records of contracts drawn up Surviving records of contracts drawn up between cities and plague doctors often gave the plague doctor enormous latitude g p gand heavy financial compensation, given the risk of death involved for the plague doctor himself. Most plague doctors were essentially volunteers, as qualified doctors

( )had (usually) already fled, knowing they could do nothing for those affected.

Plague Doctorsg- A wide-brimmed black hat worn close to the head. At the time, this hat

would have been identified a person as a doctor and may have also been used as partial shielding from infection.

- A primitive gas mask in the shape of a bird's beak. The beak of the mask was often filled with strongly aromatic herbs and spices to overpower the miasmas or "bad air" which was also thought to carry the plague. The mask l i l d d d l i hi h th ht t k th also included red glass eyepieces, which were thought to make the wearer

impervious to evil.

A l n bla k v at Th v at n b th pla d t as t k d - A long, black overcoat. The overcoat worn by the plague doctor was tucked in behind the beak mask at the neckline to minimize skin exposure. It extended to the feet, and was often coated head to toe in suet or wax. xt nd d t th f t, nd w ft n t d h d t t in t w x. The coating of wax likely served as protection against respiratory droplet contamination.

Pla D t sPlague Doctors

Pla D t sPlague Doctors

M nks in th Bla k PlaMonks in the Black PlagueMany people also turned Many people also turned to the monasteries where the well educated and the well educated and always helpful monks would try to care for the would try to care for the sick.

This in turn infected k d th b t monks and they began to

die off as well.

The Death TollThe Death TollIt is difficult to accurately estimate the number of people killed by th Bl k D th M ti th Ch h d k k t d the Black Death. Many times, the Church and monks kept records

of the census and populations, but as the sick poured into their t i k th lv i f t d d th i d monasteries, monks themselves were infected and their records were

also lost or destroyed. At best, it can be estimated that between 1/3 d 2/3 f E p p p l ti d i t d b th 1/3 and 2/3 of European population were decimated by the

disease. (25-50 million people out of 75 million)

In fact, the bodies piled up so fast, the people were unable to provide proper Christian burials. Instead, they threw them in pits and p p , y p

burned them. This adds to the confusion of how many people died.

C ns q n s f Th Bla k D athConsequences of The Black Death

How did the Black Death effect European civilization? It not only affected Europe's population and also

its economy as well Changes in the size of its economy as well. Changes in the size of civilization led to changes in trade, the

h h h hchurch, music and art, and many other things.

Da k H mDark HumorThe Black Death crept slowly into the everyday lives of people The Black Death crept slowly into the everyday lives of people.

The abundance of death was used for laughter. Funeral i d j k I h i h processions were used as jokes. It got to the point where

deaths were nearly ignored altogether. Citizens looked for causes and the developmentally delayed, deformed and crazy

people outside town were the perfect candidates.

B d? G th t t th t h l t Bored? Go throw some stones at the crazy person to help stop the plague.

A tArtThe damage to art is irreparable. Carving was changed. Coffins had

pictures of corpses on the lid, usually showing a very flattering likeness of the body inside wearing their best clothes. Some of these dated around 1400 showed bodies with about half of their flesh and shredded garments. A few of the sculptures showed

worms and snails munching on the diseased. Painting was effected too. There are a number of paintings containing people socializing

with skeletons. Artists abandoned old ways of painting things idolized by the Christian religion. They were so depressed by the death that surrounded them that they began to paint pictures of

sad and dead people.

Ma ab A t f m th Middl A sMacabre Art from the Middle Ages

E n mEconomyFields went unplowed as the men who usually did this were victims of the disease. Harvests would not have been brought in as the manpower did not exist. Animals would have been lost as the people in a village would not have been around to tend them. Therefore whole villages would have faced starvation. Towns and cities would have faced food shortages as the villages that surrounded them could not provide them with enough food. Those lords who lost their manpower to the disease, turned to sheep farming as this required less people to work on the land. Grain farming became less popular –this, again, kept towns and cities short of such basics as bread.

E n mEconomyOne consequence of the Black Death was inflation – the price of f d h d h f h I f food went up creating more hardship for the poor. In some parts of England, food prices went up by four times.

How did peasants respond?

Those who s rvived the Black Death believed that there was Those who survived the Black Death believed that there was something special about them – almost as if God had protected them. Therefore, they took the opportunity offered by the disease f , y pp y ff yto improve their lifestyle.

P t ld d d hi h th k th t l d Peasants could demand higher wages as they knew that a lord was desperate to get in his harvest.

Th Ch hThe ChurchMany people could not comprehend Many pe ple c ld n t c mprehend

why God was punishing them.Th h h h Ch h They sought answers that the Church

could not provide.Many people turned their back on the

Church.h h.As a result of death in the church,

itt l l t l t d written language was almost lost and whole churches were abandoned.

J s and th Bla k PlaJews and the Black PlagueB J l ibl Because Jews were less susceptible to the Black Plague than their

i hb (lik l h l f neighbors (likely the result of Jewish ritual regarding personal h i ) J d f hygiene), Jews were accused of poisoning Christian wells, were h h b h f h thought to be the source of the plague. As this image illustrates, J ll d t t d d Jews were expelled, tortured and murdered for the supposed "crime."

J s and th Bla k PlaJews and the Black Plague

Jews are seen burning in hell in a medieval German in a medieval German

manuscript. The devil is on h i h Th i i i the right. The inscription on the cauldron reads

"Juda," or Jews.

Did Y Kn ?Did You Know?N l h hild ff d h i ll b l Not only were the children effected physically, but also mentally. Exposure to public nudity, craziness, and (obviously) abundant death was premature The death of (obviously) abundant death was premature. The death of family members left the children facing pain and anguish at an early age Parents even abandoned their children at an early age. Parents even abandoned their children, leaving them to the streets instead of risking the babies giving them the dreaded "pestilence". Children were g g pespecially unlucky if they were female. Baby girls would be left to die because parents would favor male children h ld h f l that could carry on the family name.

Did Y Kn ?Did You Know?Children during the Black gDeath suffered greatly. A common nursery rhyme is c mm n n rsery rhyme is proof.

Ring a-round the rosyPocket full of posiesAshes, ashes!Ashes, ashes!We all fall down!

Did Y Kn ?Did You Know?Ring around the rosy: rosary beads give you God's help or

l h k l f h possibly the round, bruising marks left on the bodies.

A pocket full of posies: used to stop the odor of rotting A pocket full of posies: used to stop the odor of rotting bodies which was at one point was thought to cause the plague, it was also used widely by doctors to protect them pl g , it w l d wid ly by d t r t pr t t th from the infected plague patients.

A h h h h h b d h d d h b i Ashes, ashes: the church burned the dead when burying them became to laborious.

We all fall down: dead.