The Black Death
The Black Death, also known as the Bubonic plague or black plague, struck Europe in the mid-1300s. The Black Death was extremely contagious, however people at the time were unaware of how diseases spread, and they couldn’t figure out how to contain it. The Black Death was a very deadly disease and almost no one who contracted it survived. The high transmission and mortality rates of the Black Death created widespread panic.
How did it get to Europe?
At the time of the Black Death, Italy was the center of trade in the western world. Italy is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea and is at the crossroads of three continents (Europe, Asia, and Africa). This centralized location allowed Italy to make a lot of money off of trade, however trade also brought the plague to Italy and the rest of Europe.
The plague came to Italy from Asia. For a long time, people thought the plague was carried by rats that lived on trading ships, however it was later proven that the plague was carried and transmitted by fleas that lived on the rats. Once the plague arrived in Italy, it was only a matter of weeks before it would spread to the rest of Europe.
How did doctors attempt to treat the plague?
Doctors did what they could to treat the Black Death, but they did not have the knowledge that we have today. Doctors often wore long, pointy masks filled with herbs because they believed these would prevent them from catching the plague while treating their patients.
For treatment, doctors rubbed herbs, onion, and even chopped up snakes on the boils caused by the Black Death. Herbs were often used to purify the air in houses where plague patients lived.
To treat the fevers that were caused by the plague, doctors had patients sit close to fires or open sewers believing that would cause the fevers to break. Sick patients were told to drink vinegar and even to eat certain minerals. Some of these minerals, such as mercury and arsenic, we now know to be highly toxic.
What effect did it have on Europe?
No one was safe from the plague, as rich and poor suffered alike. Between a third and a half of the population of Europe died from the Black Death. Since people in cities lived closer together, the effects of the plague were much worse causing many people to flee to the countryside. This mass exodus caused a major social upheaval throughout Europe.
Some people even believed that the plague was a punishment sent from God. This misguided belief led to attacks on non-Christians, especially Jews, who were blamed for the cause of the Black Death.