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The Black Death Epidemic Plague Analysis

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Medical knowledge in the Middle Ages was very limited and underdeveloped compared to modern standards. Throughout three waves of plague during the fourteenth century, the first one being The Black Death, an estimated 75 to 200 million people were killed. The Black Death (Yersinia Pestis) was an epidemic plague and demographic disaster that killed at least one- third of Europe’s population between late 1347 and the 1350s (“The Black Death, 2016). Every family would have been affected, causing widespread despair, fear and devastation among the population. It was transmitted to humans through infected rat fleas and although similar, it was much more contagious and deadlier than bubonic plague (Routt, & Whales, 2008). The extremity of the Black …show more content…

This enormous fall in population also became a long-lasting issue that underlined many economic problems and developments (Benedictow, 2005). In addition, who died greatly influenced the economy and subsequent recovery. “The plague’s preference for urbanite over peasant, man over woman, poor over affluent, and, perhaps most significantly, young over mature”, proves that not only the weak and old members of society were affected (Routt, & Whales, 2008). The European economy was already struggling before the plague, approaching the limits of expansion due to unprecedented population growth and widespread famine (Levack, Muir, & Veldman, 2013 chapter 11.1). The Black Death marked the end of a long period of growth in terms of both population and economy of Europe. The recovery did not carry the total population of Europe to its pre-plague levels until the middle of the 16Th century. The repeated outbreaks of the plague prevented a quick recovery of the population (Pamuk, 2007; The black death and its consequences 293). The post-plague period was a time period of modernisation that eventually contributed to the transformation from a medieval to an Early Modern …show more content…

In most regions, nine out of ten people relied on the soil to make a living. The decrease in the prices of agricultural goods was a lasting outcome, but along with higher wages, fixed rents and even ownership of land, peasants could still survive despite low grain prices. Over time, peasants accumulated greater purchasing power and their living standards improved. Another effect was large amounts of villeins settling in cities. The population loss led to the desertion of villages and the less desirable and attractive fields were abandoned. Between 1350 and 1500, over 1000 villages in England completely disappeared. In the cities, the population had suffered more from the Black Death. Moreover, the workforce had been more affected, so that cities had to attract workers from the countryside (Routt, & Whales,

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Change in European Understanding of Plague in the 1348 versus 1352 Known as the “Black Death,” one of the most devastating plague pandemic wiped out approximately 30 to 60 percent of the European population, peaking in between 1348 and 1350 . It caused massive religious, social, and economic, upheaval in the European society causing great changes in the European culture and lifestyle1. Finally, when after three and a half years the first wave passed in 1351, it spared few regions causing devastation in towns, rural communities, families, and religious institutions . The plague was reportedly first introduced to Europe via the ports of Caffa and Sicily in 1347, when several Italian merchant ships returned from a trip to the Black Sea, one of the key links in trade with China .

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The plague then started to infect thousands and thousands until 35% of Europe’s population was deceased. This reduced the world population in total to seventy-five to one hundred million people. Massive loss of life was caused. For a short time war stopped and trade declined. Many of the serfs died, so the remaining ones demanded higher wages.

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All plagues strike by uprooting individual lives and society as a whole. Nevertheless, the particular circumstances regarding the government, and religious and cultural beliefs in the affected lands influence the specific results of the tragedy, as witnessed through the Black Death and smallpox. Although both diseases led to drastic economic changes, they caused different overturns of religious beliefs, and only the Black Death resulted in the creation of public health services and the marginalization of groups of people. A lack of labor precipitated alterations to the economy--the end of feudalism in the case of the Black Death and the creation of the Transatlantic Slave Trade in the case of smallpox.

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The Bubonic plague ended up being catastrophic, and so devastating to European society because it caused changes in attitude towards religion, changes in population, and an increase of antisemitism. The Black Death spread so quickly through Europe that people did not even have time to process what was going on. As seen in the map “The Bubonic Plague spreads through Europe,”

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The historical pandemic of the Black Death (1347-1352), which killed 25 million people, greatly impacted the European history of the Middle Ages. Originating from China and Inner Asia, the infection of the bacterium Yersinia pestis had widely spread, rapidly infecting those who encounter the infected. The main cause of the spread derived from flea-infected rats on boats or the fleas on the bodies and clothes of the travellers. People at the time had limited understanding of the world, so they believed that the Black Death had an association with supernatural forces such as God’s punishment for sin and demonic acts, along with performing medical procedures that were futile for the disease. The era was highly affected by the plague,

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Europe in the fifteen hundreds was a dangerous, local, hierarchic, tradition-bound, slow moving, and poor filled with the tasks of providence, salvation and community. Europe during the fifteen hundreds were a dangerous place; disease, famine, and violence all prevented the population of the era to live a long life. One of the major killers during the time was disease. Disease and plagues killed major parts of the population, the bubonic plague, for example, claimed the lives of perhaps a third of Europe’s population in five years.

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In 1347, Europe had just been infected by the Black Death. This epidemic killed over 2/3 of Europe’s population and lasted for over five years. The pathogen that caused the Black Death was Yersinia Pestis which causes many forms of plague. The Plague originated in central and south Asia then traveled through trade routes like the Silk Road, all the way to Sicily The Black Death killed most of Europe’s population, thus ending Feudalism by having not enough serfs and workers to run fields and farms. The land owners started to offer more for their work and labor, making the lower class more wealthy, and providing more jobs.

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The subject that I have chosen to focus my report on is the groundbreaking social commentary present in the 1966 television show Star Trek. The original series takes place in the 23rd century on a ship called the USS Enterprise. In this imagined future the earth has unified under the United Federation of Planet, which is founded with many altruistic Principles. In this future of humanity evils such as poverty, racism, sexism, authoritarianism, imperialism, classism, and war are eradicated. With the absence of these negative aspects of human society the principles of an Egalitarian, peaceful society stand unhindered.

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Often as a result of overpopulation, pandemics—like swine flu and ebola, for instance—have affected life on Earth for centuries; one of the most well-known, and possibly the most unforgiving epidemics was the Bubonic Plague, also known as the Black Death . Although the first symptoms of the Plague trace back to the Mongol Empire in 1331, the disease first struck Europe in Venice and Genoa during the winter of 1348. In the following years, the Bubonic Plague spread rapidly throughout Europe, killing roughly a third of its population. It is suggested that the rapid spread and extreme severity of the Black Death was partially due to the weakened immune system of the Europeans, which had been caused by the Great Famine, a period of food scarcity that affected Europe from 1315 to 1322. Additionally, the lack of knowledge about the spread of

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During the mid-fourteenth century, a plague hit Europe. Initially spreading through rats and subsequently fleas, it killed at least one-third of the population of Europe and continued intermittently until the 18th century. There was no known cure at the time, and the bacteria spread very quickly and would kill an infected person within two days, which led to structural public policies, religious, and medical changes in Europe. The plague had an enormous social effect, killing much of the population and encouraging new health reforms, it also had religious effects by attracting the attention of the Catholic Church, and lastly, it affected the trade around Europe, limiting the transportation of goods. As a response to the plague that took place

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The Start Of Something Devastating During the the Renaissance the Bubonic plague killed millions of people in Europe. The plague “is a severe and potentially deadly bacterial infection that affects humans and mammals”( Centers for Disease Control and Prevention). In 1347 the plague first arrived to Europe it was something never seen before but heard of. People had theories of what was the cause of the plague but they were wrong not only did the bubonic plague bring death to most of the European population but it also caused an economic depression.

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According to Ole J. Benedictow “Inevitably [the Black Plague] had an enormous impact on European society and greatly affected the dynamics of change and development from the medieval to Early Modern period. A historical turning point, as well as a vast human tragedy, the Black Death of 1346-53 is unparalleled in human history.” It was one of the most devastating diseases in history

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It was the Spring of 1348, and the citizens of Europe were malnourished due to limited food supplies for such a large population. This made them more susceptible to the outbreak of the Black Death. The Black Death originated in Asia, then moved westward into Sicily. From Sicily, the plague crept its way up through Europe infecting millions of people, in total killing more than one third of Europe’s population. In fact, over fifty percent of the population of Siena died, along with fifty percent of Paris, eighty percent of Florence, and over two thirds of Venice.

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Economic and Social Consequences of the Black Death The Black Death was no modest disease it swept all over Europe during the dark ages , had immense and annihilating effects and is in fact one of the most disastrous and destructive pandemics in human history. It rapidly spread through Medieval Europe during 1347-1351 killing more than one third of the population. In the midst of Italy’s overpopulated cities 50 to 60 percent of the population died while villages were completely swept of their people in England and Germany (Spielvogel World History and Geography 248-249). The Black did not only bring the tragedy of killing millions but it also came with many consequences such as economic inflation and extreme social distinction ("Social and Economic Effects of the Plague").After the intense shock of the Black Death, Europe’s economically declined, its internal affair were instable and its social systems

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Did the Black Death break the Malthusian Deadlock that was hanging over England in the 14th century? Did the people really create a better country after this horrendous plague? These exemplify some of the intriguing questions asked about the Black Death. The essay examined a variety of factors from population to the economic factors regarding the Black Death.

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