BLACK PLAGUE
It was the
worst of times…
It was…well, the worst of times.
How so, you ask…
Whitechurch:- John le Strange died - 20th August
1349. - His oldest son, Fulk, died - August 30
(2 days before inquest)- Before an inquest could be held on
Fulk's estate, his brother Humphrey died. - John, the third brother, survived
- inherited worthless land because all tenants were dead
Plague Recurrences Avg. 30-45% of the general
populace died 1348-50
Some villages, 80% or 90% of population died (in Kilkenny death-rate = 100%
1350 not the end
Plague recurred in 1361-64, 1368, 1371, 1373-75, 1390, 1405 and continued into the fifteenth century
How the plague spread around Britain The Black Death killed between 30-45% of
the population between 1348-50. 1317: Great Famine in England May 1337: Declaration of the Hundred
Years War by Edward III. June 1348: Black Death arrives at
Melcombe Regis (Weymouth) Aug 1348: Black Death hits Bristol Sept 1348: Black Death reaches London Oct 1348: Winchester hit Jan-Feb 1349: Plague spreads into E.
Anglia and the Midlands.
April 1349: Plague known in Wales. May 1349: Halesowen hit. 18th June 1349: Ordinance of
Labourers July 1349: Plague definitely hits Ireland. Autumn 1349: Plague reaches Durham.
Scots invade northern England and bring back plague with them.
Spring 1350: Massive outbreak of plague in Scotland.
Sept 1350: First pestilence dies out. 9th Feb 1351: Statute of Labourers
1361-64: Second Pestilence: 'The Plague of Children'
1367: Birth of Richard II in Bordeaux. 1368-69: Third Pestilence 1371-75: Fourth Pestilence (variously
dated 1371 or 1373-5) 1381: The Peasant Revolt The plague returned in a series of
periodic local and national epidemics - only finally ended at end of the 17th century.
Symptoms1) Rise of buboes2) Convulsions3) Rise of temperature (101
to 107)4) Vomiting5) Splitting Headache &
Giddiness6) Intolerance to light7) Pain in the lower
abdomen, back and limbs8) Insomnia, apathy, and
delirium.
9) Eyes turn red 10) Blood dark, thick, greenish pus 11) Skin begins to turn black (blood & pus)12) Tongue swells and is covered with a white fur except on tip 13) Later tongue turns dry and fur becomes yellow or brown14) Constipation usual but if diarrhea is worse 15) Death anywhere from 24 hrs. to days from ruptured boils or takeover of bacteria
Most common way spread: coughing, spittle
End Result…Peasant Feels…
Like he’s having a melt down…
Medicine in Middle Ages is not exactly helpful People felt a little let
down – so they
1)Ran away2)Tortured + killed
Jews3)Beat themselves –
flagellants4)Soaked boils in
vinegar – hot onions5)Let blood6)Lanced buboes7)Stopped bathing8)Stopped breathing
fresh air9)Abandoned their
families
Living Conditions No running water Rushes on floors health hazard
Clay floor strewn with straw – bottom layer sometimes left undisturbed for 20+ yrs.
Harbored vomit, expectorate, urine + feces (human, dog, etc…), ale, fish remnants, etc…
It gets even better…
Amputations cauterized with pitch Teeth pulled no anesthetic Childbed fever – high mortality rate Dysentery (bloody flux) Syphilis Tuberculosis Influenza
Life Expectancy
30-50% died before adulthood Mid-40s = usual life span if
didn’t die in war & maintained good health
65 burials (400 to 1000 A.D.) from Anglo-Saxon cemeteries in England and found none who lived past 45
Kings did better – 48 – 51 yrs.
Into this mess was born an intellectual giant…
Geoffrey Chaucer – born c. 1340-43 in London
Affluent merchant class family (wine)
Mixed with royalty his whole life.
Died age 60 + first poet to be interred in Poet’s Corner at Westminster Abbey
The Father of English
Literature
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