Giovanni Williams
14 October 207
#4
During the next few years, the European economy slowly improved, and agricultural and manufacturing production eventually reached pre-famine levels. This return to normalcy was suddenly ended in the year 1347 by a disaster even worse than the Great Famine.Since the failure of Justinian's attempt to reconquer the lands of the Western Empire in 540-565, Europe had been relatively isolated, its population sparse, and intercommunication among its villages slight. It was as if the continent were divided up into a number of quarantine districts. Although many diseases were endemic, contagious diseases did not spread rapidly or easily. So the last pandemic to strike Europe had been the one brought to the West by Justinian's armies in 547. By the 14th century, however, the revival of commerce and trade and the growth of population had altered that situation. There was much movement of people from place to place within Europe, and European merchants travelled far afield into many more regions from which they could bring home both profitable wares and contagious diseases. Moreover, the diet, housing, and clothing of the average men and women of Western Europe were relatively poor, and a shortage of wood for fuel had made hot water a luxury and personal hygiene substandard. The Black Death seems to have arisen somewhere in Asia and was brought to Europe from the Genoese trading station of Kaffa in the Crimea . The
The disease was first introduced in Asia, but then quickly spread to Europe due to Europeans traveling because of trade routes. The disease which is carried by fleas and rats were a big threat. They were a big effect of the plague, and the deathly illness soon became airborne and the death rate skyrocketed to almost 100 percent. According to Europe slides part 2 slide 6 it states, “People got infected by fleas biting them or from rats. The disease traveled from Asia to all over Europe. The trade routes let in the disease. The rats traveled and spread the disease all over Europe. Stated from Document A on sources from Marchionne di Coppo di Stefano Bonaiuti it says, ” In all the city there was nothing to do but to carry the dead to a burial.” The black death was a major part in how medieval europe became
The Black Death arrived in Europe by sea in October 1347 when 12 Genoese trading
The black death arrived in Europe in October of 1347. It was brought by twelve Genoese trading ships that docked at the Sicilian port of Messina after a lengthy expedition through the Black Sea. The people that were gathered on the docks to meet the twelve ships were greeted with a terrifying surprise: the majority of the sailors that were on they ship were dead, and the ones that were still alive were somberly ill. They had fevers, were unable to hold down food, and were delirious from pain. They were covered with big black boils that oozed pus and blood. The illness was named the “Black Death” because of the black boils.
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
Causing so many deaths this disease will forever be known as the Black Death. The Black Plague, also known as the Black death, came to Europe in 1347 and ended in 1351. There are many different stories about how the Black Plague came to be. Some people believe that the black plague was spread by sailors coming from a journey through the Black Sea. They were heading to a port in the Mediterranean to trade their goods. When the boat docked, many people went towards the boat to see what these men had brought. To their surprise, almost all of the sailors were dead; those who were not dead were extremely sick. Boils that oozed blood and pus were all over their bodies, along with other symptoms including
The Black Death, also known as the Bubonic plague, was a serious pandemic that killed more than one-third of Europe’s population. Between 1347-1352, the Black Death had “reportedly killed more than 20 million people.” The plague originated from Asia before traveling throughout Europe and the Mediterranean by fleas infested rats transported through ships. The infested ships had then landed in European ports such as the following: “Genoa, Venice, Messina, and other more.” Thus, the starting the pandemic by the spreading of the highly contagious bacterial infection disease around Europe along with their imports and exports.
The bubonic plague, also known as Black Death, is a prime example of the diseases transported throughout the Silk Roads. It is believed that this disease originally started in south China and was spread to northern China via Mongol warriors and Chinese travelers, eventually spreading westward along the Silk Roads and trade lanes to the Arabian Sea and the Indian Ocean. The bubonic plague is caused by the Yersinia pestis bacterium and is spread by flea bites. Usually, fleas prefer to live on rats, but the large decrease in rat population due to the Little Ice Age caused the fleas to seek new hosts. The disease was previously localized to Mongolia and central Asia because of the nomadic lifestyle, but they could survive in sacks of grain and clothing and with the increase of trade along the Silk Roads, the fleas quickly made their way across the Mediterranean. Europeans were not prepared for this type of catastrophe and consequently suspended their daily lives. Many people abandoned their houses, churches and schools closed, and the sick were quarantined inside their homes while bodies of the deceased were piled in the streets and buried in mass graves. In some cases, the infected were burned along with their belongings in an effort to destroy the disease. By the end of the initial outbreak, almost 40% of Europe's population had died and trade had been brought to a halt. The Black Death had profoundly changed the political, social, economic, religious, and cultural foundations of modern Europe (Acrobatiq,
In October 1347, twelve Genoese trading ships sailed to the port of Messina having with them a certain, unexpected disease known as The Black Death. Many sailors were already dead, some alive but close to death. Beginning with what they had from the plague were huge boils that oozed blood and pus. Onto the future, The Black Death spread all through Europe and killed more than 20 million people. Rumors had been spread which everyone called "A great Perstilence .
In the mid 14th century, a devastating plague swept across the known world. This pandemic plague is most commonly known as the Black Death but has other alias such as The Great Pestilence and The Great Plague. The background essay states, “In five shorts years, it would kill between 25 and 45% of the populations it encountered.” The background essay also mentions “it would be the worst natural disaster and the single most destructive natural phenomenon in the history of the world.” This cataclysmic event drastically dwindled population sizes of Europe and the Middle East, breaking down civilizations, and leaving behind terror in survivors mindset.
The black death first appeared in the Middle East and Europe in 1348. The black death swept through Asia and continued west and northwest through North Africa, Europe and the Middle East (Document 1). The black death was transmitted via fleas living in the fur of the black rat. The black death actually refers to the bubonic, pneumonic and septicemic plagues. The most common of these three strains was bubonic. Some symptoms
A highly contagious disease, the Bubonic Plague, spread swiftly throughout European trade routes. It is believed that the disease originated in China, and spread to Europe via the Afro-Eurasian trade network. The great contagion of the black death is reflected in Document 1. The first record of the black death in Europe was on June 30th, 1347,
Through history there have been devastating events during time periods, which eventually lead to positive outcomes, after all the sorrow comes the miracle everyone hoped for. As they say “there is always a light at the end of the tunnel.” As a matter of fact that is what happened during The Fourteenth century, it was one of the most devastating centuries, filled with horrible events, the outcome of those events led to the reshaping of Europe and Asia through trends and events. In Europe, during the Fourteenth Century, the population was soaring and there was surplus in the food supply.
The Black Death found its way into Western Europe through the trade routes from Asia to Europe. The rats, or more specifically the fleas on said rats, would ride the ships into the heart of Europe, spreading the plague to the unaware citizens. The reason it spread so quickly was due to the intense overpopulation of Europe in the Late Middle Ages. During this time, the population actually outnumbered the food supply and available jobs; therefore, Western Europe was left poor and hungry. Faced with economic depression, overpopulation, famine, and bad health, the immunity of Western Europe suffered greatly, leaving it wide open to contagion. Naturally, cities and places with high population densities faced the most risk of infection.
The pandemic known to history as the Black Death was one of the world’s worst natural disasters in history. It was a critical time for many as the plague hit Europe and “devastated the Western world from 1347 to 1351, killing 25%-50% of Europe’s population and causing or accelerating marked political, economic, social, and cultural changes.” The plague made an unforgettable impact on the history of the West. It is believed to have originated somewhere in the steppes of central Asia in the 1330s and then spread westwards along the caravan routes. It spread over Europe like a wildfire and left a devastating mark wherever it passed. In its first few weeks in Europe, it killed between 100 and 200 people per day. Furthermore, as the weather became colder, the plague worsened, escalating the mortality rate to as high as 750 deaths per day. By the spring of 1348, the death toll may have reached 1000 a day. One of the main reasons the plague spread so quickly and had such a devastating effect on Europe was ultimately due to the lack of medical knowledge during the medieval time period.
The plague of the black death was a panic and disaster in Western Europe because it leads the death of ⅓ of the population. It quickly spread all over the continent, destroying full towns and cities. Moreover, the plague reached its peak of destructions in 1349, which was a “wretched, terrible, destructive year, the remnants of the people alone remain.” Life before the black death arrived for the serfs it was unpleasant and short. Nevertheless, Europe before the black death arrived was successful and the trade at the time was strong. The spread of the plagues was traumatic and unexpected because it spread so quickly.