Death
THE Black BLACK DEATH
BY XXXXXXXXXX
A RESEARCH PAPER
No one was exempt as it swept in off the shores and into the countryside laying its burden of death and pestilence. 300 years prior to Europe had prospered readily for about
the beginning of the 1300s, but a series of natural disasters occurred. Poor harvests and famine were common and as the prosperous years came to a close, economies were in recession at the onset of the Black Death. take a step backward. There have been plagues throughout recorded history, but the none were of Europe, on a whole, would
magnitude nor had the far reaching effects that the Black Plague had. Its namesake came from symptomatic hemorrhages that turned black. Though most people associate the
Black Death with the middle ages, forms of the Bubonic Plague have been known in China as early as 224 BC. epidemic in the Gobi Desert in the 1320s. reduced to 90 The Black Death embarked on a journey as an By 1400, China's population of 125 million had been
million. Southwest Asia and Europe followed suite with strikingly similar losses in their population base. Asian Steppe, In 1347, the Kipchaks who were nomads from the Euro-
were thought to deliberately infect a European city with the disease. The Kipchaks had laid siege to a Genoese trading post in Crimea. defenders, they Hoping to weaken the Trading
used a catapult to lob infected corpses into the compound. vessels from Crimea
subsequently brought cargo infested with the disease burdened rodents and crew west. Starting in Sicily in 1347, it began a four year reign of terror traveling as far as Greenland. During this four year period it is believed Europe lost one full third of its population.
The effects the Plague had on the economy and the laws governing the state were severe. England is a perfect example. so severely decreased that the commoner had the was significant By 1349, the population had been This
upper-hand on the land-lords.
in that they were able to demand a higher wage and the markedly in their mobility if one lord did not suit their needs. cultivate and yield
increase
Without the manpower to
crops, the land-lords were in effect held without influence. The Parliament came to
there rescue by imposing penalties and laborers and limit
restricting the movement of the
the wages. Although this was effective at the time and serf's services continued, it resulted in a revolt some 30 years later. Plague was somewhat surprising. so surprising. The end economic result of the
Prices dropped and wages increased. The latter not
Although not proven, the deflation of goods decreased because of a significant decrease in population. This gave rise to a replace the status quo new social relationship that would
of centuries. A higher standard of living resulted for the lower class. Higher wages and a lower cost of living advancement. By our usually come with an opportunity of social
standards, the advance was minimal, but considering the conditions of the time, it was considerable. The laws that the English Parliament had passed to govern the lower class were not only a sign of changing times, but proof that a new era and social class were emerging. Much of the Christian religion we see today was shaped from views developed by society at that time. were far from Various forms of religious behavior developed, but One of the most gruesome replications were the
what we recognize today. resurgence of
Flagellants. The Flagellants were convinced that the end of the world was at hand and the Plague was the wrath of God. They traveled in organized bands, bound by vows to abstain from all physical pleasures and to endure tortures and whippings for 33 days, in memory
of the 33 years of the life of Christ. believe the cause of the Plague was God's wrath on a wicked Man. their own wickedness. in today's
In truth most Christians did Many said they were doomed by
There were also others who believed themselves condemned and with the thought, since tomorrow we die, let us
wording "Partied Hard" eat, drink, and be merry.
The Catholic Church was injured both physically and emotionally. Avignon, which had been the home of the Papacy for nearly a century lost greater than half of its monks. Consequently, religious purity for was not only a the dying was hard to come by.
In
This
result of the priests trying to fulfill their duties and becoming infected, but also by those who sought to stay away. Pope When recognizing what was happening around him,
Clement VI realized that nothing would be gained from his death and sought refuge in his chambers spending days sitting between two roaring on fires either side of him. One note of consolation to the medical field, was all this was done on the advice of the Papal physician. He survived as well as most of the upper class did by simply having the means to do so. People recognized the loss of the cleric alongside the peasant, lady of the court, and child. It did not distinguish evil from good, but took the lives of all. Overall there was a negative effect on the popularity of the church. between faith and reason developed giving rise to Religious reformer John A struggle
religious, social, and political unrest.
Wycliffe, in England and John Huss, in Bohemia were leaders of a couple of many sects that challenged Catholic Church's behavior and doctrine. decades later, these Although
complaints eventually led to the formation of the Protestant Church. The state of medical knowledge had in truth, caused more harm than repair. The crucial role of rodents and fleas were never identified until centuries later. Wild theories ranged from the blaming of Jews who were thought to be ritually poisoning wells to the belief that the sickness was carried on the warm, moist southerly breezes. Treatments included the practice of bleeding patients to release evil spirits. wound more often resulted in another viscous opening for the disease to enter. physician maintained that the disruptiveness of sickness away, One The
malodorous places such as latrines would drive the Bottom line, the only cure
while others maintained it was the cause. or better stated, the
only defense was isolation based on medical knowledge at the time. Monarchs, Lords, Kings and even the Papacy were spared only being alone was the key to survival. Surprisingly, in all the references there was little to be found referring to the Arts and the beginning of the Renaissance Period. reading titled One volume of recommended through the revelation that
Plague and Pestilence in Literature and Art, Raymond Crawfurd, Clarendon Press, 1914 was referenced, but was not available. that were negative Undoubtedly, there were effects
and positive. Negative in meaning that the depiction of death became more morbid after the Plague. A fair example can be found on a wall of the cemetery close to Camposanto (Pisa Cathedral) in Pisa. "Triumph of Death", Like Pieter Bruegel, The Elder's painting,
1562 (attached), this fresco by Francesco Traini, is also called "Triumph of Death", 1350 (Roy T. Matthew and F. DeWitt Platt, The Western Humanities, Second Edition, Mayfield Publishing Company, 1994). intangible skeleton, to Death relinquished its identity as an A black flowing shroud with a scythe for regalia worn by
become a vision of the macabre. gathering souls.
Death no longer took on the stately representation of knights and ladies of the court. higher moral
Post-Black Death art during the Renaissance also depicts a
standard. For example, Giovanni del Biondo's vision of John the Evangelist, renders him overwhelming Avarice, Pride, and Vain-glory. Plague had was to The direct effect the
clear away the blurring veils where Gothic Art had taken a foothold. Humanity was brought back to earth by their own mortality. reawakening, resurrection, nature. or renewal of reality The Renaissance was a
showing life in a more pragmatic
The Plague still maintains its identity today. reported throughout the world. Thankfully, rarely in North America. the 70 to 90%
Cases are still
Mortality has dropped from The loss of life in
experienced in the 14th century to 3 to 5 % today. those
four short years of history was immense. that struck Europe
A plague of
the proportions A thought that
would be compared to the effects of a nuclear war today. chills my bones to the core. Just imagine how a react to a disease government of
today's society would
with no cure that spread with the same rapidity and executed with the same effectiveness. The answer lies just one unknown virus away in our own evolution cycle. Will humanity survive?
BIBLIOGRAPHY Zeigler, Philip, The Black Death, John Day Company, New York, 1969 McNeill, William H., Plagues and Peoples, Anchor Press/Doubleday, 1976
Mee, Charles L, How a Mysterious Disease Laid Low Europe's Masses , Smithsonian,. 1990 Canning, John, 100 Great Events That Changed the World, Hawthorn Books, 1966 Strayer, Joseph I., Dictionary of the Middle Ages, Magill, Frank N., Great Events From History: Series, Salem Press, 1972 Microsoft Encarta 95, Reese, 1904
Ancient and Medieval
Microsoft Corporation, 1994
Roy T. Matthew and F. DeWitt Platt, The Western Humanities, Second Edition, Mayfield Publishing Company, 1994
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