The Plague - The Black Death Essay

Imagine one half of the world 's population by wiped out in a space of less than a ten years. You probably cannot imagine such an event occurring; it seems unreal. Yet, this very thing happened in the between the years 1347 and 1351 in Europe. This massive destruction of human life was known as the Black Death. This Black Death was an ecological disaster on a global scale. The effects of the plague on human and certain animal populations from East Asia to as far west as Greenland were catastrophic. All facets of society, from peasant to king were affected; no one was safe. All of society was affected; nothing would ever be the same. Thus, there were many economic, social, and political effects of the Black Death.

The Black Death (or Black Plague) was an epidemic that ravaged Europe in the fourteenth century leading to a vast change in economy, social ranks, and the church structure. The cause of so many people dying devastated the labor production causing shortage, also resulting in the less fortunate being able to claim land and animals. The church was weakened by the black death because; many of the clergy died, therefore, many uneducated people joined the church.

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.

The plague was caused by a bacterial infection carried by the fleas of rodents. When the fleas come into contact with humans the outcome can be devastating and horrifying. The Bubonic plague, also known as The Black Death, is one of the most well-known plagues in history. Between 1347 and 1353, Europe experienced a merciless outbreak of the plague and in just a few years, one third of the world’s population was struck down by the Black Death. Whether it is the many different symptoms, bizarre methods of treatment, or life after the plague, The Black Death, in all its morbid glory, is fascinating.

In short, the Black Death was an aptly named apocalyptic event that engulfed Europe. Terrorizing the entirety of the population to the brink of madness, it swept through all of Europe bringing to a halt the economic progress that had been made in the previous forty years. The population and trade peaked in 1340, just eight years before the plague. After the plague died out, it was estimated that the population had, in fact, been halved. Recovery from this epidemic showed great strength in the whole of

Before the traumatic effects of the Black Death occurred, European society was thriving; technology was advancing, society was becoming more sophisticated, and the population was increasing rapidly. Because of the plethora of individuals, food production was barely keeping up with the demand for it ("The Black Death Arrives”). Numerous towns and cities had populations of over 50,000 (McKitterick, Rosamond.). Citizens’ outlooks on life were optimistic, as they did not anticipate the drastic change of events so suddenly. Around 1348 the plague struck Europe. The disease was predicted to kill 1.5 million people out of 4 million. Unfortunately, those affected had a minimal chance of survival due to there being an insignificant amount of medical knowledge about the plague. Once infected by the disease, the average life-span was three days. Six out of every ten Londoners had lost their life to the Black Death by the Spring of 1349. The plague spread effortlessly between people, animals, and towns because they were all near one another. Because of this compact environment,

The Black Death was one of the most severe diseases in Europe. Many people who were infected died, and that was almost equivalent to 20 million people! There was so much death that it wiped out 1/3 of the population. The plague killed so many people that it affected the military, affecting the war, affecting the basic structure of feudalism. The plague didn’t just affect England, but so much more. Between 1320 and 1360, vast areas from China and Europe were devastated by the plague (Gottfried 205). The plague had affected almost 1/3 of the world and had caused millions of deaths. The deaths were occurring more frequently until 25 million people were dead by the late 1400's. This is affecting more than living conditions: the population was decreasing. The outbreaks of the plague were varying from a large population infestation to something as small as a single person breathing. The outbreak was occurring often, it was not just a one-time event. The epidemic began to slow down after about 1351. It had killed at least 25 million people in Europe and the Near East- one in three persons. In 1361, the second outbreak swept the land and killed so many.

Around 1339 in northwestern Europe, the population was beginning to outgrow the food supply and a severe economic crisis began to take place. The winters were extremely cold and the summers were dry. Due to this extreme weather, very low crops yielded and those that grew were dying. Inflation became a common occurrence and as famine broke out, people began to worry. The time period of approximately 1339 to 1346 is now known as the famine before the plague. These seven bad years of weather and famine lead to the greatest plague of all times. In 1347, endemic to Asia, The Black Death began spreading throughout Western Europe. Over the time of three years, the plague killed one third of the population in Europe with roughly twenty five million people dead. The Black Death killed more Europeans than any other endemic or war up to that time, greatly impacting the Church, family life, and the economy. These three social pillars were changed forever.

Because of the fact that many people in England did not know precisely what was causing the Black Death to transpire, they also did not know how to cure it. In “The Black Death”, many thought that they needed to be sin free or that God needed to forgive them for their sins. This was true for people who resided in England during the time of the Black Death as well. Because they believed that the Black Death was God’s punishment, the only way to cure them of the plague was through God’s forgiveness. The article “Black Death” states, “By this logic, the only way to overcome the plague was to win God’s forgiveness.” Nevertheless, doctors in England would try different procedures to cure victims of the plague as well. The doctors would use

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.

Europe encountered many different devastations during the thirteenth century, the most alarming to occur was the Black Death. The Black Death was a widespread epidemic of the Bubonic Plague that passed from Asia and through Europe in the mid thirteenth century. Europe began to run low on food due to the colder winters and dry summers creating low harvest resulting in a poor economic situation. The first signs of the plague were seen in Europe around the fall of 1347 from bacteria infested rats traveling among the trade routes (Theilmann and Cate 372). In England, the population fell from approximately 4.8 to 2.6 million between 1348 and 1351 (DeWitte and Slavin 37). The Black Death had a large influence on European culture.

The Black Death resulted in the death of over 25 million people and one third of Europe’s people from 1347 to 1352. This disease originated in China in the early 1330’s and started to spread to Western Asia and Europe through trade. The bubonic plague, aka Black Death, affects rodents mostly but fleas can transmit disease to people. Once a one person is infected, it was easily transmitted. The plague caused fever and swelling of the lymph glands. It also caused red spots on the skin, but then turned into black spots. During the winter the plague seemed to vanish, but came back and happened in waves. The aftermath of the Black Death had a major impact on, literature, religion, and the economy.

Many European cities in the 14th century were dirty and grimy, which were favorable circumstances for bacteria and viruses to multiply. It reached the point where “So many street cleaners and carters died that cities became choked with garbage…” (Corzine, 1997). That garbage, along with other wastes and filth, only accumulated. The sanitation of these cities was already poor, but the littered streets only increased the rates of infection. Rats thrive in unkempt places, and with the new surge of rats, came a new surge of fleas that hosted the Black Plague bacteria. Common folk did not have an abundant amount of living space, many were poor and had little room. However, many of these people also owned livestock, and, “Many shared their homes with their pigs, horses, chickens, and goats” (Senker, 2006). The rats that were contaminated by fleas lived alongside these animals, and fleas would jump from one animal to the next. Hence, the disease was transferred to humans inhabiting the same space. These living conditions, in addition to the filthiness, contributed to the heightened infection

The Black Death took a huge part in China, Italy, France, Paris, and Europe more countries causing so many lives. As a result, of a disease those cause many families to leave their loved ones behind. The worst not being able to drink the water from the river most people infected in a week’s time. Not just people villages was wiped out around the 1350's was a server time for the people in those areas if you were infected you did die. Within in five years over 25 million people died. A living nightmare for people there seemed to be no way out or cure for the

The Black Death, the most severe epidemic in human history, ravaged Europe from 1347-1351. This plague killed entire families at a time and destroyed at least 1,000 villages. Greatly contributing to the Crisis of the Fourteenth Century, the Black Death had many effects beyond its immediate symptoms. Not only did the Black Death take a devastating toll on human life, but it also played a major role in shaping European life in the years following.