How Did The Bubonic Plague Affect European Society

The Black Death caused millions to die, but the Black Death also led Europe to the Renaissance. The Black Death caused an economic boom, it changed Europe’s views on religion and increased Europe’s interest in the arts. Lower-class citizens benefited from the Black Death. It opened up people’s eyes about religion. Then, it spread creativity in Europe. Everyone was suddenly interested in art. The Black Death changed Europe in a profound way.

"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

When many people think of the Black Death they only think of the aspect of sick people dying. Although that was the tragedy that occurred, the whole picture includes social and economic changes within Europe. Since the population rapidly decreased due to the disease causing many to perish, the aftermath involved population regrowth, which also brought many changes along with it. Although a time of great loss, the Black Death allowed for the laboring class to financially benefit, causing financial distinctions amongst social classes to diminish. It also allowed for the rights of the lower class to increase and financial suffering for the middle class. The Black Death resulted in a push in the direction of modern Europe.

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 black plague occurred throughout Asia, the middle east, and Europe throughout the fourteenth century. During this time millions of people died of starvation and famine. The black plague started when the fleas from rodents to humans. The black plague broke out in China and made its way west until it reached western Europe.

Another reason the Black Plague affected the economy was how so many people died. The continent had enjoyed some 200 years of prosperity, and then 70 of cold. Result: too little food for too many people. By 1350 one-third of them, especially in the swollen cities, would be dead. In Europe in three or four years, 50 million people died. The population was reduced from some 80 million to

The Bubonic Plague was an epidemic which tore through a developing and growing Europe. The lasting impact included the onset of the Dark Ages. The reasons why the Bubonic Plague was so devastating to European society include low sanitation quality, the continuing decline of public morale and the overall large number of lives lost. Each individual factor continued to depress the city allowing the plague to take complete advantage.

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)

The Bubonic Plague or the Black Death has been in the history books since the medieval times. This deadly disease has claimed nearly 1.5 million lives in Europe (Gottfried). The Black Death hit Europe in October of 1347 and quickly spread through most of Europe by the end of 1349 and continued on to Scandinavia and Russia in the 1350s. Not only did the plague effect the European population by killing one-third to two-thirds (Gottfried), it also hurt the social and economic structures of every European society.

After the Black Death the peasant’s wages and work changed due to the deaths caused by the bubonic plague. The Black Death killed many people of all classes meaning a huge population decrease. The decrease in population caused a lack of workers. ‘Peasants could demand higher wages as they knew that the lord was desperate to get in his harvest’ (Trueman, 2015)explains that demand of workers grew meaning the lords would be desperate and try to provide to meet the peasants needs in order to find themselves a laborer to work their crops and land. This allowed peasants to have freedom of choice in their work and wages as they could choose who they worked for and were able to leave lords to find a nicer lord. The peasants were able to demand pay

Historians believe that the Black Death had an overall positive impact upon society by forcing the people to make technical innovations and changes that helped bring in the modern era. Because of the extreme loss of lives, Labor shortages became a great factor of the 14th century. People had to learn how to work the same and produce the same as they were before without the lives of many that were lost. They had to advance whatever they did to a better method to improve production. Better machines of manufacture were being made, such as the printing press.

The Black Death, according to Joseph P Byrne, was “a deadly epidemic that spread across Asia and Europe beginning in mid 1300’s.” It did not take long for the plague to make a big impact on the world. “By the spring of 1348, the Black Death, also known as Black Plague, spread to france, The Alberium Peninsula, and England, following trade routes and hitting big cities first before spreading to the countryside,” states Gail Cengage. In the 19th century, Europe was devastatingly hit with this epidemic that affected them greatly then and now. The Black Death in Europe affected 19th centuries economics, population, and literature. Its effect on Europe is an interesting topic that shaped history and our lives today. This topic is widely covered as Molly Edmonds writes her findings from other sources. These sources will be used to describe the effect the Black Death had on Europe.

The Black Death led to the recovery change of culture. People became optimistic and humanistic. Life became worth living and improving. The economy started to grow again. But that was after it had struck. The plague traveled easily via trade routes by fleas, which were on rats, which were on carts and ships. It ended the manor system because with fewer workers around, the serfs could demand more pay. The Bubonic plague killed over twenty-five million people, which was approximately one third of Europe’s population. People lost faith in the church because the popes and priests had no power to stop the plague. Only once it had died out and left the other two thirds of the population helpless, could people start rebuilding their lives (Hint hint). Without people to tend them, the crops had become obsolete, leaving the survivors with nothing to eat. The first few years were hard on the peasants who depended on the crops as a

There was a major economic impact, which later lead to major changes. Agricultural prices dropped after the Plague, this endangered the fortunes and power of those whose power was based on the land. Since the Black Death resulted in such a serious amount of death, wages rose dramatically. As a result in the shortage of labourers and workers, the Aristocracy (the highest people in the social class) began to lose much of their power and status. However, the shortage in workers not only lead to a higher wage but it also gave labourers a chance to improve their condition of employment, therefore, also helping to increase the numbers of workers. In addition, social impacts of the Plague were felt immediately after the worst of the outbreaks of the Plague started to decrease. Peasants had a favourable outcome after the great population loss, they had better living conditions as they were able to take over more of the city and they were receiving more wages as well. It was also possible for the Peasants to move about and rise higher in life. Despite that, as the population growth resumed, the Peasants were again faced with deprivation and famine. According to Wikipedia “Consequences of the Black Death” (“Consequences Of The Black Death". En.wikipedia.org. N.p., 2016. Web. 12 Nov. 2016.) The Plague’s great population reduction brought cheaper land prices and also left vast areas of farmland unattended. This helped the Peasants to thrive, by helping them to producing more food. The vast areas of unattended farmland provided new sources of employment for the Peasants, for example, a Peasant could be employed by an Aristocrat (lord) and they could then work for them and have a sufficient source of income. The Lord’s made the land available mostly for pasture, helping to put more meat on the market, and in the long run, helping the consumption of meat and dairy. The Black Death had a