Black Death

"The Black Death" alone was not the only factor that was responsible for the social and economic change although it was the most important (Ziegler 234). Even without "The Black Death" continued deterioration in Europe would have been likely. The social and economic change had already set in well before 1346. For at least twenty-five years before "The Black Death," exports, agricultural production, and the area of cultivated land had all been shrinking. "The Black Death" contributed a large part to all of this destruction and led to important changes in the social and economic structure of the country (Ziegler 234-235). The plague touched every aspect of social life (Herlihy 19). There was hardly a generation that was not affected by the plague (www.jefferson.village.virginia.edu). Families were set against each other - the well rejecting the sick (www.byu.edu). Families left each other in fear. Many people died without anyone looking after them. When the plague appeared in a house, frightened people abandoned the house and fled to another (www.jefferson.village.virginia.edu). Due to this, the plague spread more rapidly because people were not aware that being in the same house with the infected person had already exposed them to it. Physicians could not be found because they had also died. Physicians who could be found wanted large sums of money before they entered the house (www.jefferson.village.virginia.edu). When the

The Black Plague, one of the most devastating out breaks in history, is an historical event brought about with a great depression throughout Europe. This plague brought out the worst in mankind during the time the plague ran its course. How do people behave, when there environment becomes life threatening? (Herlihy, 18). The Black Death accounted for nearly one third of the deaths in Europe. Due to the death of many people there were severe shortages in labors, during these dreadful times. There were riots throughout Europe, and the great mortality brought on by the plague ripped society apart. Individuals were fearful searching for explanation, but in the end the plague gave rise to the survivors such as

Sickness times a thousand equals the Black Death. In our world, many disasters have occurred, causing terrible damage emotionally, physically, and mentally. However, I believe that the Black Death is the worst disaster to have occurred throughout our world’s history. It all started in 1348, when trading ships from different countries around Europe settled at the port of Messina, Sicily. Once the ship dropped their anchor many of their sailors were found dead, and the few surviving carried with them the deadly disease so dangerous that it would quickly lead to death. Scientists researched and concluded that the disease started from Central Asia (Mongolia), when fleas on rats boarded the many ships from Europe. The fleas got on the sailors’ skin and started killing them instantly. However, many thought that the disease had originated from the Far East and was spread along many major trade routes. When the people of Sicily finally started finding out what was causing the death, they closed their port and trading system with other countries. (Wikipedia) The ships were forced to anchor somewhere else in other countries, which allowed the disease to spread even more quickly. I believe that the Black Plague was a disastrous event that affected all aspects and the future of European and Central Asian society, their political and economic environment, and their future advancement to medicine.

The black death affected the Europeans in numerous ways, short and long term effects were both seen. A short term effect of the the plague was that when the black death pandemic spread through Europe commerce and trade practically stopped and there was a substantial rise in the price of goods. Because the death toll from the black death was so high, the surviving workers pushed for improved living conditions and higher wages. In order to live past the plague days many people were forced to wear masks with herbs at the end of them to help protect themselves from the airborne disease. After the plague had taken its toll Europeans lives changed dramatically, the majority of people did not have much existing family or friends left and almost all

In fourteenth-century Europe, the Black Plague disrupted most of European society devastating many. The Black Plague was devastating to European society economically, demographically, and morally. The plague spread as devastatingly as it did because of the continuous spread via trade, and inadequate medical knowledge. One of the major consequences of the plague was anti-Semitism.

The plague had a lot of effects on society. One example is the Nobles, before the plague they were the rulers and they were rich. After the plague they had less power because there was less Nobles. Another example was the Peasants, before the plague they were poor and worked for the Nobles. After the plague they had gained a little bit of power because there weren’t as many Nobles. It also affected the population by 25 million people. The cities were crowded before the plague and after there weren’t many people some cities were even abandon. The food was even a problem before the plague because there wasn’t enough so the prices were high and the only people that could afford it was the Nobles. After words the prices went down because there was plenty of food but not enough people.

Amongst the devastation and despair the Black Death left in its wake, it also brought with it some much-needed change to the way medieval Europeans were living. Although it ended many innocent lives, it also began a new era of social and economic living. In the years following the first outbreak of the plague, medical knowledge and awareness of hygiene dramatically improved, as did the living and working conditions of the workers. Other benefits included the rapid growth of Europe’s middle class and thus the fall of the feudal system, the loss of the church’s supreme authority, and the increase in economic power for medieval women.

A major impact for this period of time was the “Black Plague” or also called Black Death. This Phenomena was a bubonic plague that wiped out 1/3 of Europe’s population. The plague was considered one of the deadliest pandemics in the history of humankind. 75 million people around the world lost their lives to this plague noting the biggest number of people being located in Europe. The “Black Plague” played a major role in the economic history of the Western Civilization due to so many people dying, Europe was declining rapidly. There were shortages of labor providing a fertile ground for economic diversification and innovation in technology. There was famine and pestilence, which would eventually lead to the capital accumulation intensification in the urban areas, stimulating the growth of trade and industry.

When the plague was consuming most of the European population, priests, monks, and nuns cared for any who had the plague. They also took the responsibility to bury the dead. This caused the population of the clergy to suffer, showing that all of society was affected by the plague, whether it was caring for others, or suffering themselves. The economy was also affected. Before the plague started to spread, most of Europe was experiencing the affect of overpopulation. With overpopulation came the need for food, land, and anything else needed for survival. When the plague hit Europe, the population naturally decreased meaning labor did as well. This caused the price of most all foods went up, yet also caused wages to go up as well, bringing in

Similarly to the Great Famine, rich people were not affected by the plague, they did not have to worry about bugs such as fleas or rodents. They had clean houses, fresh, clean clothes, and linen. The plague was devastating it killed nearly 1/3 of the people in Europe. Furthermore, the 2/3 left in Europe still had to eat, and because the population had gone down by 1/3 prices for food go down once again. More than enough food is being produced and with the low prices people had extra money.

As insensitive as it sounds, not all the effects of the black death were negative. Because of the mass amount of people dying, a lot of positions were left open in both the church and the workforce so people could now to rise or fall in social class. Also, because of mass depopulation it became harder for landowners to find workers, this allowed peasants to demand higher wages. The depopulation, as a result of the black death, led to an oversupply of goods and products, so prices dropped. For example, in England because of the mass of amount people dying, the population decreased and as a result there was a “severe shortage of labour and a surplus of agricultural land which resulted in a rise of wages for the landless class and a decline in rent for Rural tenants.[...] and women filled vacancies in the job market.”(Dobson, 22)

In order to understand the significance the Black Death played in bringing about the decline in population in the second half of the fourteenth century, a number of issues need to be considered. To begin with, the Black Death’s significance should be looked at, including its victims, the rural and urban population, and recovery in the 1350s. Also, we have to look at the impact of later plagues, and the age and gender specificity of them. However, we should also look at other factors that affect the population, such as fertility and change in marriage trends. Given the particular question we should also look at the pre plague population to get a better understanding of the population in general. It is only by studying these issues that we can

European economy seemed to be altering its course of direction and favoring the peasants. Although some scholars believe that the plague wasn’t a big impact according to the readings towns populations fell. trade decline, the serfs left the manor for better wages, and many more effects (The Hundred Years’ War and the

Food prices, for example, were rising because most of the farmers died as a result of the plague and there was no one left to take care of their crops. As a result, people died of starvation as there was barely anything left to eat in certain countries. People started to realize how valuable life is, and how it can be taken away so

Although believed to be one of the most cataclysmic pandemics in human history- the Black Plague had an arguably beneficial impact on Europe’s political, social, and economical lifestyle. It significantly changed how the country developed socially, economically, and population wise. Although beneficial to Europe’s social standards and economy- the number of deaths rooted from the Black Plague negatively impacted the growth of European countries. Although an uncontrollable disease that took nearly 50 million lives (Benedictow, Ole J. "The Black Death: The Greatest Catastrophe Ever.