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This page has been created by Irene Paradela (2ºF).

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= = =Old Newspaper: Black Death.=


 * **What was the Black Death?**

The Black Death was one of the most terrible pandemics that human history has gone through. Having wiped out almost one third of Europe´s population, the Black Death is a clear example of a devastating disease in history.

The Black Death was an epidemic of bubonic plague, a disease caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis that circulates among wild rodents where they live in great numbers and density. Such an area is called a ‘plague focus’ or a ‘plague reservoir’.



Plague among humans arises when rodents in human habitation, normally black rats, become infected. The black rat, also called the ‘house rat’ and the ‘ship rat’, likes to live close to people, the very quality that makes it dangerous (in contrast, the brown or grey rat prefers to keep its distance in sewers and cellars). Normally, it takes ten to fourteen days before plague has killed off most of a contaminated rat colony, making it difficult for great numbers of fleas gathered on the remaining, but soon- dying, rats to find new hosts.

After three days of fasting, hungry rat fleas turn on humans. From the bite site, the contagion drains to a lymph node that consequently swells to form a painful bubo, most often in the groin, on the thigh, in an armpit or on the neck. Hence the name bubonic plague.

The infection takes three–five days to incubate in people before they fall ill, and another three–five days before, in 80 per cent of the cases, the victims die. Thus, from the introduction of plague contagion among rats in a human community it takes, on average, twenty-three days before the first person dies.


 * **When and why did the Black Death appear in Europe?**

In October 1347 twelve trading ships docked at the sicilian port of Messina after a long journey through the Black Sea. Most of the sailors abroad the ships were dead, and the ones who were still alive were so sick that couldn´t eat anything, had really high fever and suffered too much pain. But the strangest thing was the fact that their skins were covered with black boils which expelled blood and pus (that´s where the name of the disease comes from). Sicilian authorities inmediately banned them to dock there, but it was too late; over the next five years the Black Death spread through Europe and killed about 20 million people.


 * **Why did the Black Death spread so quickly in Europe?**

Even before the "death ships" arrived to Italy, Europeans had heard about a terrible disease coming from the Near and Far East, as in the 1340s the disease had struck India, China, Persia, Syria and Egypt. However, they weren`t prepared for such a devasting disease as the Black Death was. People in the Middle Ages thought that the disease was a punishment of God for their sins. Bur the real cause was the lack of sewage in feudal cities.

All of the dirty water was thrown to the streets, thus making them much filthier, and contributing to the appareance of animals like rats, which carried fleas. These animals brought a lot of dirt to the cities, where life quality became much worse. The big quantity of rats and fleas carrying lots of diseases running along the streets of the cities helped to the spread of the Black Death.

However, evidence produced by forensic scientists and archaeologists in 2014 from human remains in the north of the City of London suggests that fleas could not actually have been responsible for an infection that spread so fast - it had to be airborne. Once the disease reached the lungs of the malnourished, it was then spread to the wider population through sneezes and coughs.




 * **Why did the Black Death have such a big impact on society?**

The Black Death had a huge impact on society. Fields went unploughed as the men who usually did this were victims of the disease. Harvests would not have been brought in as the manpower did not exist. Animals would have been lost as the people in a village would not have been around to tend them.

Therefore whole villages would have faced starvation. Towns and cities would have faced food shortages as the villages that surrounded them could not provide them with enough food. Those lords who lost their manpower to the disease, turned to sheep farming as this required less people to work on the land. Grain farming became less popular – this, again, kept towns and cities short of such basics as bread. One consequence of the Black Death was inflation – the price of food went up creating more hardship for the poor. In some parts of England, food prices went up by four times.

Those peasants who survived the Black Death believed that there was something special about them – almost as if God had protected them. Therefore, they took the opportunity offered by the disease to improve their lifestyle.

Feudal system stated that peasants could only leave their village if they had their lord’s permission. Now many lords were short of desperately needed labour for the land that they owned. After the Black Death, lords actively encouraged peasants to leave the village where they lived to come to work for them. When peasants did this, the lord refused to return them to their original village.

Peasants could demand higher wages as they knew that a lord was desperate to get in his harvest. So the government faced the prospect of peasants leaving their villages to find a better ‘deal’ from a lord thus upsetting the whole idea of the Feudal System which had been introduced to tie peasants to the land. Ironically, this movement by the peasants was encouraged by the lords who were meant to benefit from the Feudal System. To curb peasants roaming around the countryside looking for better pay, the government introduced the **Statute of Labourers** in **1351** that stated:

// No peasants could be paid more than the wages paid in 1346. No lord or master should offer more wages than paid in 1346. No peasants could leave the village they belonged to. //

Though some peasants decided to ignore the statute, many knew that disobedience would lead to serious punishment. This created great anger amongst the peasants which was to boil over in 1381 with the Peasants Revolt. That´s why it can be argued that the Black Death was to lead to the Peasants Revolt.


 * **Symptoms of the Black Death.**

Contemporary accounts of the plague are often varied or imprecise. The most commonly noted symptom was the appearance of buboes (or gavicciolos) in the groin, the neck and armpits, which oozed pus and bled when they were opened.

Ziegler comments that the only medical detail that is questionable is the infallibillity of the approaching death, as if the bubo discharges, recovery was actually possible. This was followed by acute fever and vomiting blood. And, as the name says, the appearance of black dots on the skin of the victim.

Most victims died from seven or eight to twenty three days after the initial infection. However, this didn't mean that nobody could survive, as some people were able to survive after the Black Death.




 * **How many people were affected?**

Knowledge of general mortality is crucial to all discussions of the social and historical impact of the plague. Studies of mortality among ordinary populations are far more useful, therefore, than studies of special social groups, whether monastic communities, parish priests or social elites. Because around 90 per cent of Europe’s population lived in the countryside, rural studies of mortality are much more important than urban ones. Researchers generally used to agree that the Black Death swept away 20-30 per cent of Europe’s population. However, up to 1960 there were only a few studies of mortality among ordinary people, so the basis for this assessment was weak. From 1960, a great number of mortality studies from various parts of Europe were published. These have been collated and it is now clear that the earlier estimates of mortality need to be doubled. No suitable sources for the study of mortality have been found in the Muslim countries that were ravaged. According to the extant complete registers of all households, the rent or tax-paying classes constituted about half the population both in the towns and in the countryside, the other half were too poor. Registers that yield information on both halves of the populations indicate that mortality among the poor was 5-6 per cent higher. This means that in the majority of cases when registers only record the better-off half of the adult male population, mortality among the adult male population as a whole can be deduced by adding 2.5-3 per cent.

Detailed study of the mortality data available points to two conspicuous features in relation to the mortality caused by the Black Death: namely the extreme level of mortality caused by the Black Death, and the remarkable similarity or consistency of the level of mortality, from Spain in southern Europe to England in north-western Europe.

The data is sufficiently widespread and numerous to make it likely that the Black Death swept away around 60 per cent of Europe’s population. It is generally assumed that the size of Europe’s population at the time was around 80 million. This implies that that around 50 million people died in the Black Death. This is a truly mind-boggling statistic. It overshadows the horrors of the Second World War, and is twice the number murdered by Stalin’s regime in the Soviet Union. As a proportion of the population that lost their lives, the Black Death caused unrivalled mortality. This dramatic fall in Europe’s population became a lasting and characteristic feature of late medieval society, as subsequent plague epidemics swept away all tendencies of population growth. Inevitably it 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.
 * **How did the Black Death come to an end?**

Several reasons contributed to the plague's end:

The most popular theory of how the plague ended is through the implementation of quarantines. This entailed staying out of the path of infected individuals, rats, and fleas. The uninfected would typically remain in their homes and only leave when it was necessary. Those with the financial resources would traditionally escape to the country, far away from the Black Death-infested cities, and live in the comfort of a lavish estate. In cases where infected persons were sharing living quarters with healthy persons, the entire household was quarantined together; this may have been effective in controlling the disease in Milan, Italy, where some families were walled up in their homes and left to die.
 * **//Quarantine.//**

Even religious officials did their utmost to quarantine themselves from possible infection. Because their roles required them to interact with the public, many found creative ways to fulfill the demands of their jobs while protecting their health. One bishop in Germany, for example, offered communion to his congregants via a long pole.

Practicing proper hygiene also likely played a role in the abatement of the Black Death. Before the pandemic struck, personal hygiene was lackluster at best. It was common to consume contaminated water. People did not wash regularly, and the dead were buried in mass graves.
 * **//Hygiene.//**

During the years of the Black Death, however, people began to practice better personal hygiene. More people washed, and though bacteria had yet to be discovered, this cleanliness removed the microorganisms. People began to boil drinking water. As the bodies piled up it became more efficient to burn them, again inadvertently preventing the further spread of disease.

The need for clean, pure air was another important factor in ending the sweep of the Black Death. Over time, the plague became pneumonic, or airborne, passing from person to person without flea hosts. Many people sought environments in which the air quality was uncontaminated by disease. One way of inhaling pure air was to sit between two burning fires. As the bacteria were destroyed in extreme heat, this may have provided some protection. Pope Clement VI was widely known to have torches placed around him to keep infection at bay.
 * **//Clean air.//**

Many households burned incense with the aim of purifying the quality of air; some of the favored scents were beech, camphor, lemon, rosemary, and sulfur.

Handkerchiefs doused in essential oils were a popular accoutrement for many venturing outside their homes. Pressing an oil-soaked cloth to their faces, people felt safer traversing the streets. The close proximity of the handkerchief to the mouth and nose could have prevented pneumonic contagion.

As the Black Death made its destructive path across Europe, Russia, and parts of the Middle East, people began to realize the dangers of traveling or leading a nomadic lifestyle. With each new destination came the possibility of infection. Travel slowly waned, and the Black Death ran its course as would-be travelers and migrants opted instead to stay within the safety of their own homes and communities.
 * **//Travel and migration.//**

People thought that loud noises could drive the infection out of a city or village. Town officials would ring church bells at designated times or fire cannons in the hopes of forcing the plague out of the community. Healers prescribed herbal tinctures to protect the uninfected and to help those who had been stricken. Healers also employed even more nontraditional models, such as talismans or charms, to keep the plague at bay.
 * **//Other factors.//**

A factor that may have influenced the end of the plague concerned the climate. When the first widespread cases of Black Death were reported great famines were gripping the world, especially Europe. In general the climate was becoming colder, creating a perfect breeding ground for bacteria. A shift toward warmer temperatures could have contributed to the decline of the Black Death.


 * Here's a video with more information about the Black Death:

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 * ===__**Prezi about the Black Death:**__===

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 * ===__**Voki:**__===

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Voki about the Black Death.


 * ===__**Interview.**__===

Here is an interview made to Ella, the eldest daughter of a craftsmen, whose sister and mother have been killed by the Black Death.


 * **Interviewer:** Hello, Ella, thanks for coming. How are you?


 * **Ella:** Hello, I'm fine, thanks.


 * **Interviewer:** So, what's life like in your city knowing there are so many posibilities of getting infected?


 * **Ella:** Well, it's true that life in this city isn't what it used to be before the Black Death came here. But it is also true that we cannot stay in our house all day just because of that disease, as we need to work and feed our families. We need to earn money to be able to buy food, goods and clothes. And as my mother isn't here anymore, I have to help my father with the rest of my brothers.


 * **Interviewer:** But don't you feel unsafe here with all the rats and dirtness there is everywhere you look around?


 * **Ella:** No, I think that has never happened to me. As I have grown up here, the rats and the dirtness are not a problem for me. I guess they are now part of my every day life.


 * **Interviewer:** And what about the dead people which are on the street?


 * **Ella:** Oh, well, it is awful to see all of those people dead because of the Black Death and realise that you can be the next one to die. Everybody can end up like they did, no matter wether they are Christians or Muslims, nobles or peasants; you can be one of them.


 * **Interviewer:** I believe it scares you to think that you can die so easily. Am I wrong?


 * **Ella:** Yes, I'm scared of dying and leaving my father alone in charge of my three brothers.


 * **Interviewer:** Is that all you are afraid of? I mean, don't get me wrong, but isn't there something else in your life which you live for?


 * **Ella:** No, of course it's not the only thing I'm afraid of. But I guess that is the main reason. I don't really have many things apart from my family and my job.


 * **Interviewer:** You told us that your mother and your younger sister died because of this terrible plague. When did it happen?


 * **Ella:** Honestly, I don't remember well when it was, but I believe it happened around a year ago.


 * **Interviewer:** I'm really sorry for that, Ella. Did they get infected at the same time?


 * **Ella:** No, they didn't. My mother came one day home after a tiring journey, and in the next days she started feeling worse. At first, we all thought that was just because of her exhausting job, but it actually wasn't. The days kept passing by, and she started to feel sick, vomit and lots of black dots started to cover her whole body. We didn't know what to do, as we weren't ready, so all we did was to stand there an watch how time passed by and she got worse and worse. It was horrible to see how my mother died so slowly and painfully.


 * **Interviewer:** And what about your sister?


 * **Ella:** She started to have all of the symptoms like three days after my mother died. I'm pretty sure she got infected because of all the time she wanted to spend close to my mother. She didn't want to leave her alone. She just wanted to stay by her side forever, but she knew she was losing her little by little. Then, it was exactly the same process. I couldn't believe I had lost my mother and my sister because of the Black Death. It's too hard for me.


 * **Interviewer:** Yeah, I imagine that's the worst part of all. You're really brave. Do you think a cure may exist?


 * **Ella:** That's a hard question. But, unfortunately, I think there is no cure. And, in case there was a cure, I'm sure that it would be too expensive for most families and it would also be too late. The Black Death has spread now so much that it's too late to try to stop all the pain and chaos it has caused among us. I think the only cure that exists is time. Time is be the only thing that may cure all the wounds the Black Death has caused.


 * **Interviewer:** And do you think population will one day be able to recover from these terrible disease?


 * **Ella:** I think so. Maybe some time would be needed to forget all the horrible things that have happened, but I hope and believe the population will recover soon.


 * **Interviewer:** Thank you, Ella. It has been a great experience to be here with you. Goodbye.

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 * ===__**Advertisement.**__===

Advertisement about the Black Death:


 * ===__**Newspaper article: How the Black Death arrived to Europe.**__===

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Newspaper article: