preview

Effects Of The Black Plague On Society

Good Essays

The Black Death was the name given to a plague that occurred in the mid 13th century which caused at least a third of the world’s population to perish. During the years in which the plague spread across Europe, many aspects of life for the people that lived were altered forever. This epidemic was like no other in history and had an unprecedented outcome. The effects of the Black Plague on society were substantial resulting in great changes of social classes through role reorganization, changes in belief systems, and ways that society interacted. Before the Black Plague came to Europe, there was a great famine during the early years of the 13th century. According to the Cole text, the famine was a result of the population tripling in the previous 300 years(238). Even though there were was more food available than ever before, it was still not enough to feed the population of Europe. The famine was the first round of death that would occur during the 1300s. Following this famine, a new evil would soon come over the people of medieval Europe. This evil was the bubonic plague or the Black Death. It was highly prominent in 1347 through 1350, but continued to have outbreaks for hundreds of years after. The plague originated from China and quickly spread across Asia into the area surrounding the Black Sea. It almost immediately started to spread to the north and west along the heavily traveled trade routes. These trade routes ran through densely populated urban areas that let

Get Access