Black Plague

Living in Europe in the middle of the 1300’s would have been heartbreaking and dreadful. Not only were the living conditions very poor but there was an unknown disease that was wiping out a large percentage of European population. One cannot imagine the fear of wondering whether you or someone you loved was going to catch this deadly disease. No explanation would make a person feel safe from catching it or dying with it. The people of Europe just lived their lives as best they could realizing that nothing they do could ever stop this. They did not have the power to stop this it was far too beyond them. This unknown disease is known as the Bubonic Plague.

The plague was passed among many rodents by fleas. Most of the rodents were rats. Fleas living on the rat‘s blood would eject the disease into the rat causing it to die quickly. When there were no rats left around, the flea would search for a new host, such as a human. When an infected flea bit the human the bacteria multiplies quickly causing death within a few

Days. One a person obtains this disease they can easily spread it among other humans by bacilli coughed or sneezed in to the air or by human fleas.

The plague had struck other parts of the world before it was first reported in Europe. The disease had been found in China and throughout India around 1332. Nomadic horsemen may have carried the plague westward between China and the Black Sea, where it apparently spread into Russia. Rumors had spread to Europe about the strange and terrible things happening in the East. Europeans began fearing this plague not knowing of its origin or cause. Eventually, the same unusual things started to occur in Europe and the plague was then reported to be in Europe.

As the bubonic plague spread across Europe it was called many names. Italians were dying by the thousands so they called it the Great Death. The Spanish called it Moroccan Fever, while Moroccans called it Mountain Fever. Most Europeans called it the Italian Fever or Italian Pestilence. It was not until later when the plague was called the Black Death. Black in Latin means dreadful, unlucky, and gloomy. This and

because of black spots on the skin of many plague victims led the people to associate the word black with the plague.

There a...

... middle of paper ...

... servants or even people they loved. Poor people living in crowded, dirty towns and cities fled from those who came down with the disease. Wives abandoned sick husbands; parents deserted their diseased children. The sick were left to die and the dead was left unburied. Things in Europe were getting worse by the day. Until the day that so many died off that the few left were healthy.

Before the plague, Europe had been severely overpopulated and almost in a great economic depression. Most of the land that could be farmed on had been abused. This made it difficult to grow food. After the plague ran its course food shortages grew even worse. Many of the survivors were reduced to eating cats and dogs. Some went too more extreme by eating their own children. The plague had seemed to solve the problem of population but it made worse the food and economic situation.

Life for these people went on but was not enjoyed. Changes were to come but it seemed to take forever. Fear, horror, and death was known well by most of these people and the sorrow and despair for these people will never be forgotten.