Cause And Effects Of The Black Death

Black death was a bubonic plague, which took the lives of millions of people in the mid 1300s. This plague was caused by a bacterium called Yersinia pestis, which lived in fleas. Therefore, transmitting the bacteria to its rodent hosts every time they would feed. The bacteria then killed the rodents leaving the fleas without hosts to feed on and in result they would feed on the humans. (Bailey 7-12) Most people who were infected would last two to three days before they died, no longer than two to three weeks. The plague moved rapidly, medical researchers believe it could have moved as fast as eight to twelve miles a day. The plague was first encountered in China and it spread through Asia and into Europe in a

The Bubonic Plague, also known as the Black Death, was a fatal disease that affected millions of people. Originated from China, the Bubonic Plague spread throughout Europe and made its way to Italy in 1347. (document 1) The Black Death, which covered the body with dark and livid spots, was difficult to treat. No one knew how to treat the disease nor how it began to spread.

Sometimes the missteps of the medical community went so far as to cause inadvertent harm. Jacme D’agramont, physician and professor, writes in his “Regiment de preservacio a epidimia o pestiliencia e mortaldats” of the dangers of bathing because it opens one’s pores and “through these pores corrupt air enters and has a powerful influence upon our body and on our humors.” (Aberth, 1186). The entire period was wrought with novelty cures and hypotheses about overcoming the plague, and so often these approaches failed that eventually the people would find solace wherever they could. Even art had a voice in coping with the Black Death. Much of the art was not only therapeutic for the artists and those who enjoyed them but they serve as an insight into the shared setiments of the time. These pieces understandably emphasize death and its inevitability as a primary theme. While the real victor over the plague turned out to be time, this perspective on conflict serves as a testament to the long-suffering determination of humanity to survive and thrive.

As was we all know that The Black Death is one of the tragic events in world history and it has effected many civilizations in early 1300s. This has made many devastating trends within Europe’s borders and raged with many diseases, and other infections. Not only this pandemic event has effected many people, but it has transform Europe’ political, religious, and cultural practices. The Black Death became an outbreak and painful change to western civilization in which it marked history

The plague was a catastrophic time in history, and happened more than once. It took millions and millions of people’s lives. It destroyed cities and countries, and many people suffered from it.

The Black Death was one of the most devastating worldwide diseases in human history. The plague originated in central Asia and was brought to China by traders and Mongols from 1334-1347. Mongol protection of the trade may have caused the disease to spread along the “Silk Road” to Crimea. During a Mongol siege against Caffa in 1347, the Mongolian army began to die. The Mongols catapulted the dead bodies into the city where the fleas on the corpses were released into Caffa. In the year 1347, October, Genoese traders escaped from the city and sailed to Messina, an Italian port, unaware that they were infected by the disease. Eventually, everyone on the ship died and a “ghost ship” made it to port. Seeing no activity on board, the ship was

In document 2 it states, “To cure these infirmities neither the advice of the physicians nor the power of medicine appeared to have any value or profit; perhaps either the nature of the disease did not allow for any cure or the ignorance of the physicians . . . did not know how to cure it; as a consequence, very few were ever cured; all died three days after the appearance of the first outward signs, some lasted a little bit longer, some died a little bit more quickly, and some without fever or other symptoms.” This shows that many people died quickly because the physicians did not understand how to deal with the rapid spreading of this disease and how to treat it. Also, document 6 states “Medieval physicians wore outfits made of cloth or leather to protect themselves from the plague. The bird-like beak contained spices and vinegar-soaked cloth to mask the stench of death and decay.” This indicates the common belief back then that the smell of the dead bodies was spreading the disease. This also demonstrates the ignorance physicians had about germs which was a big part of why the plague affected so many people in such a short amount of

The people weren’t sure how they were catching the quickly spreading disease, and the doctors of this age couldn’t find a cure. This disease is estimated to have killed thirty to sixty percent of Europe’s population. The total world population is believed to have dropped from four-hundred and fifty million down to three-hundred and fifty million, which is a hundred million people or possibly more. The plague resulted in a series of religious, social, and economic outburst, which had great effects on European history.

One of the main reasons that the plague was so devastating was the close proximity to one another and then the low levels of sanitation in addition. During this time period people bathed, but not regularly and toilets were nonexistent. Most waste was thrown out into the streets. While these conditions were around even before the plague was a whisper one heard, it only furthered the ability of many to become infected. Coming into

The Plague or ¨Black Death¨ was a virus that spread across Europe killing about 60% of the population. The plague's origin was at the time unknown and this brought about many questions. At this time, people did not have basic necessities such as proper hygiene and medicine. Therefore there was fear, superstitions as well as conspiracy, and there were also some who realized that they could gain from the deaths of those around them.

The Black death was able to drastically change many countries and regions. The black death was able to topple political regimes and religious regimes that had been in power for many years. The populations of countries shrunk due to the Black Death. The epidemic left a third of Europe’s population dead. In China the population went from 120 million to 80 million over the course of a century because of the death. Farmers were affected which led to famine because of the inability to produce food. Without food it led to rising prices, work stoppages and unrest. Because of the issues that the Black Death was causing countries needed to be able to make drastic changes in order to revive their nations. In China, the families that were ruling started to claim that their power was coming from the divine calling. Many other countries tried similar things to attempt to regain confidence in their country. In Europe, the struggles that the death was causing gave rise to new models and new forms of governance that attempted to turn around the country. Some of the changes that were caused because of the death were able to help the countries. The Black Death was able to bring radical political change to many countries while forcing governments to asses all of their policies and make sure that they are the right ones for their country. Therefore, the Black Death could be seen as having a mixed legacy as it did kill an unbelievable amount of people but it also forced countries to reexamine

The causes of the Black Death – the flea, the rat, and the bacillus Yersinia pestis– have been labeled the “unholy trinity” (Boeckl). The flea is able to live in environmental conditions of about 74° Fahrenheit and 60% humidity (Ibid). Before the Black Death reached Europe, they were experiencing those same types of weather conditions. The rat flea, Xenopsylla cheopis and the human flea, Pulex irritans, are both capable of transmitting plague (Boeckl). Sometimes, an infected flea cannot ingest blood because Yersinia pestis obstructs its digestive tract. The blockage causes a flea to regurgitate into a bitten host rather than ingest the host’s blood, thereby infecting the host with plague (Boeckl). Unable to eat, the famished flea will bite with more frequency, accelerating the spread of plague. A flea can be carrying Yersinia pestis without it blocking the flea’s digestive tract, in which case the flea does not transmit plague when it bites a host. Also, Yersinia pestis can only enter a victim through a bite, as the bacilli cannot pass through intact skin (Gottfried).

The Black Death, also known as The Black Plague, is one of the most tragic and deadly pandemics to have occurred throughout all human history. It was introduced to Europe in 1347, when a series of trade ships docked at a Sicilian port after voyaging across the Black Sea from the city of Genoa, Italy. Over the next several years, the disease spread throughout all of Europe, killing countless men, women, and children in its path. While many at the time believed The Black Death to be a punishment from God for all their past sins, the disease was actually caused by bacteria known as Yersinia pestis. This bacterium is typically transmitted by “being bitten by a rodent flea that is carrying the plague bacterium or by handling an animal infected with plague.” When people encountered this bacterium, symptoms of illness began to show very quickly. Giovanni Boccaccio, an Italian author, lived through the plague and experienced its effects on the city of Florence, Italy firsthand. In his detailed account of the event, Boccaccio described some symptoms of the illness, saying “it began both in men and women with certain swellings in the groin or under the armpit. They grew to the size of a small apple or an egg, more or less, and were vulgarly called tumors.” These tumors, among other repulsive and painful symptoms, were a clear sign of upcoming demise to the people of Europe, and nearly all citizens who caught the illness died within days of contracting the disease. Over twenty

The Black Death occurred in many different geographical areas, had serious political effects, and was caused by scientific findings. The Black Death was the greatest catastrophe ever in world history, known as the Bubonic Plague, resulting in the death of an estimated one-hundred-million people. This Plague occurred within Central Asia (China), Europe, and Empires in these areas.  It also had serious political effects amongst the Roman Church, causing a non-stable government, and ending feudalism. The scientific findings of the Bubonic Plague include what bacteria it was, how it was contracted, and certain symptoms.

The people of the town would throw food at you if they saw you in town and you were ill with the Plague. No one in the towns wanted the Plague so they thought if they killed the people that had it; the dieses would eventually go away. Some people would steal the cloths off the dead people and sell it just to make a little money, even if thought that would help spread the Black Plague.