Black Death (the Plague)

594 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Medieval Period

During the late Middle Ages there were many progresses made such as many new inventions and art and literate was at a peak. With these very important improvements of the late middle ages there was a problem that nothing could be compared to, the black death. During this time period the Black Death was a major factor in Europe from when it swept threw from 1300 to 1450. Many people said it was the end of the world because of the plague’s effects on the European people and Europe in general.

The plague was brought to Europe by cargo from China. In this cargo there were rats that had flea’s on them that carried this plague, and this little flea’s caused one of the most devastating epidemics in the history of the world. The people of Europe were already in bad times before the plague due to economic depression and agricultural expansion had reached its limits. Then in 1347 the plague struck, once infected by the plague a person would develop enormous swelling in there groin or armpits, black spots would appear on there legs, then diarrhea would occur and the victim would die between the third and fifth day. The plague was not only transmitted by the flea’s, the plague was also transmitted by air and if a person was infected that way he would cough up blood and then die within 3 days. By the end of the plague around two-thirds of Europe’s population was dead, and the people that did survive had a ve...

Show More
Related

  • Black Death

    1315 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Black Death, also known as the Black Plague, or the Bubonic Plague killed one third of the population of Europe during its reign in the 13th and 14th centuries. The arrival of this plague set the scene for years of strife and heroism. Leaving the social and

    Read More

  • Analyze The Effects Of The Black Death Dbq

    437 Words  | 1 Pages

    The effects of the Black Death on Medieval Europe were that the economy fell, faith in religion decreased, and the demand for labor was high. The Black Death was a deadly disease that devastated Medieval Europe. This bubonic plague killed 1/3 of the European population, crippling the economy and faith in religion. One effect that the Black Death had on Medieval Europe was that the economy had fallen. (FELL)The economy had taken a blow because of the fact that most of the workers had either died, or ran away from their lords and manors.

    Read More

  • The Black Death and The Song Ring Around the Rosie

    1296 Words  | 3 Pages

    The Black Death fundamentally changed the way that medieval society operated. Outdated systems like manorialism collapsed and an ideological revolution occurred within the sciences. While these changes did come at a high cost, their benefits to society were immense, and they helped medieval Europe become a more modern society. Had the Black Death not occurred, many scientific advancements would have been stalled and obsolete economic systems would have been sustained. In conclusion, by destroying what had previously been accepted, the Black Death caused a reshuffling of the socioeconomic and scientific practices of medieval Europe.

    Read More

  • The Effects of The Black Death on the Economic and Social Life of Europe

    1343 Words  | 3 Pages

    " In less than four years the disease carved a path of death through Asia, Italy, France, North Africa, Spain and Normandy, made its way over the Alps into Switzerland, and continued eastward into Hungary" (Microsoft Bookshelf, page 1). After a brief respite, the plague resumed, crossing the channel into England, Scotland, and Ireland, and eventually made its way into the northern countries of Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Iceland and even as far north as Greenland. In other words, the plague touched almost the entire known world. So much death could not help but tear economic and social structures apart.

    Read More

  • Diseases and Hygiene Issues in England: The Black Death Plague

    1172 Words  | 3 Pages

    The plague started from central Asia where it made it’s way through the Silk Road in 1346, reaching a place called Crimea, close to the black sea. It was here, most likely, where the rats then went on board the merchant ships. As the ships sailed throughout the Mediterranean and Europe, so did the plague. During this time an estimate of 30% to 60 % of Europe’s total population were killed.

    Read More

  • Comparing the AIDS Epidemic and The Plague

    694 Words  | 2 Pages

    The destruction and devastation caused by the 'Black Death' of the Middle Ages was a phenomenon left to wonder at in text books of historical Europe. An unstoppable plague swept the continent taking as much as eighty percent of the European population along with it (Forsyth).

    Read More

  • Causes and Lasting Effects of the Black Death

    653 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Black Death was an infectious disease that spread through medieval Europe and Asia. In medieval times from the 5th to the 15 century, most cities did not have a board of health so the streets were filled with garbage, waste and sewage. People lived in close, cramped houses surrounded by dirt roads. There were no hospitals, the old and sickly were brought into wooden huts with no doctors or medicine or anything. When the Black Death hit it was a catastrophe. People had never seen anything like it. People went delirious and within 8 days they were dead. In some towns more than half the people were killed. It was estimated that anywhere between 30 and 60 percent of the population died. Over 75 million people were killed in all. There are many causes and lasting effects of the Black Death, one of the causes was the fleas. Some lasting effects were new inventions and it took Europe out of the middle ages.

    Read More

  • The Plague - The Black Death

    1428 Words  | 3 Pages

    The plague was spread by fleas, which were not effected by the disease. Fleas first infected the rats, which lived off garbage and sewage. The rats then spread the infection to the humans. Rats were a common sight in the cities, due to the poor sanitary conditions, so no one suspected them (www.tartans.com). In the winter the plague seemed to disappear, but only because fleas were dormant then. Each spring, the plague attacked again, killing new victims (www.byu.edu). The effects of the plague were devastating. After just five years, twenty-five million people were dead - one third of Europe's population. Once people were infected they infected others very rapidly. As a result, in order to avoid the disease, many fled to the countryside where the lower population density helped to decrease the speed at which the disease spread (www.tartans.com). From a person's time of infection to his or her death was less than one week (www.home.nycap.rr.com). The plague became known as "The Black Death" because of the discoloration of the skin and black enlarged lymph nodes that appeared on the second day of contracting the disease. The term "The Black Death" was not invented until after 1800. Contemporaries called it "the pestilence" (Cantor 7).

    Read More

  • The Black Death

    1757 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Bubonic Plague or the Black Death is till known today as one of the worst disasters to ever happen not just in Europe, but in the entire world. At the time before the plague, Europe’s population was about four hundred million people. After the four years of the Black Death, Europe was down to about three hundred and fifty million people. This plague was absolutely devastating to all of Europe. It was especially bad in Mediterranean Europe, Spain, Italy, and the South of France. It was said to have killed about 75% to 80% of the population. It had its least dramatic effects in Germany and England only killing off 20% of their population, which is still an incredible number.

    Read More

  • How Did The Black Death Affect Medieval European Society

    858 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Black Death changed the medieval European society totally in a positive way. In medieval Europe before the plague, European countries had the manorialism, which the society was divided into distinctive sections. Peasants and serfs had to live in a manor and listen to their lords. They needed to work for the lord and got

    Read More

  • Bubonic Plague Dbq Essay

    1587 Words  | 4 Pages

    Sweeping through Western Europe during the fourteenth century, the Bubonic Plague wiped out nearly one third of the population and did not regard: status, age or even gender. All of this occurred as a result of a single fleabite. Bubonic Plague also known as Black Death started in Asia and traveled to Europe by ships. The Plague was thought to be spread by the dominating empire during this time, the Mongolian Empire, along the Silk Road. The Bubonic Plague was an infectious disease spread by fleas living on rats, which can be easily, be attached to traveler to be later spread to a city or region. Many factors like depopulation, decreasing trade, and huge shifts in migrations occurred during the Bubonic Plague. During Bubonic Plague there were also many different beliefs and concerns, which include fear, exploitation, religious and supernatural superstition, and a change of response from the fifteenth to eighteen century.

    Read More

  • Positive and Negative Results of The Black Plague

    853 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Black Plague, perhaps one of the worst epidemics in history, swept its evil across Europe in the middle of the 14th century, killing an estimated 20 million people. This major population shift, along with other disasters occurring at the time, such as famine and an already existing economic recession, plunged Europe into a dark period of complete turmoil. Anarchy, psychological breakdowns, and the dissipation of church power were some of the results. As time passed, however, society managed to find new ground and began its long path of recovery. The plague, as catastrophic as it was to medieval Europe, had just as many positive effects that came with this recovery as it did negative effects prior. An end to feudalism, increased wages and innovation, the idea of separation of church and state, and an attention to hygiene and medicine are only some of the positive things that came after the plague. It could also be argued that the plague had a significant impact on the start of the Renaissance.

    Read More

  • Death And Disaster In The 14th Century

    1284 Words  | 3 Pages

    This affected more than just Europe, it really hurt countries in the Middle East and China. The Black Death was spread by the Mongols and passed into Europe through black rats and fleas. Ships were known to arrive in Europe with many dead bodies and only rats living. Symptoms of the Black Death included puss filled abscesses that ended up turning your whole body black. It is believed that after receiving symptoms of the deadly disease people would only survive a few days. It was feared that the entire population would be wiped out by this devastating plague. People of this age believed the plague had meaning and was related to God, there were different perceptions of why the Bubonic plague happened, although some believed God caused it, others strongly believed that it was not possible for God to commit an act that would cause so many issues to the world and its society. The population that survived the Black Death were traumatized by the events and also affected negatively economically. An effect of the plague was a shortage of labor which caused a shortage of supply and increase in demand of workers and laborers. The whole of Europe had changed because of this event and things such as revolts. Protests, and up rise started to occur in cities all over Europe. The Black Death changed the attitudes and thinking of the people of Europe

    Read More

  • The Impact Of Black Death On Society

    902 Words  | 2 Pages

    The Black Death plague had disastrous consequences for Europe in the 14th century. After the initial outbreak in Europe, 1347, it continued for around five years and then mysteriously disappeared. However, it broke out again in the 1360s and every few decades thereafter till around 1700. The European epidemic was an outbreak of the bubonic plague, which began in Asia and spread across trade routes. When it reached Europe, a path of destruction began to emerge.

    Read More

  • Argumentative Essay On The Black Death

    1003 Words  | 3 Pages

    It was a bubonic plague that came from Asia and spread by black rats infested with fleas. The plague spread like a wildfire because people who lived in high populated areas were living very close to each other and had no idea what was the cause of the disease or how to cure it. The signs of the “inevitable death” where blood from the nose, fever, aching and swellings big as an “apple” in the groin or under the armpits. From there the disease spread through the body in different directions and soon after it changed into black spots that appeared on the arms and thighs. Due to the lack of medical knowledge, no doctors manage to find a remedy. Furthermore a large number of people without any kind of medical experience tried to help the sick but most of them failed “...there was now a multitude both of men and of women who practiced without having received the slightest tincture of medical science - and, being in ignorance of its source, failed to apply the proper remedies…” (Boccaccio). The plague was so deadly that it was enough for a person to get infected by only touching the close of the

    Read More

More about Black Death (the Plague)

Open Document