The Black Death
History: KS3, topic 2.6.1
The Black Death in Britain - 1348
The Black Death was a mixture of bubonic plague (spread by fleas on black rats) and pneumonic plague (airborne spread by coughing/sneezing). The plagues could cause death within 2 days of the first symptoms.
Spread of the Black Death
- The disease began in Asia and spread to Europe on merchant ships.
- At the time, people thought that the epidemic was caused by supernatural things, e.g. the position of the stars or God’s anger.
- They also thought it was due to natural reasons, e.g. bad air or an imbalance of bodily fluids.
Fleas
- It was actually caused by bacteria in fleas’ stomachs!
- These fleas passed on the disease to rats, who passed it on to humans.
- As many people lived close to each other, the disease spread quickly.
Remedies for the plague
- Suggested remedies for the Black Death included prayers to satisfy God.
- Some people tried to use herbs to keep them safe from bad air.
- Others tried 'purging' (vomiting and bloodletting) to try to keep their bodily fluids balanced.
- Others tried to move away or avoid those who had become infected.
Stopping the Black Death
- Some people thought that they could catch the plague from dead bodies. Towns like Winchester tried to build cemeteries away from people's homes.
- Other towns like Gloucester tried to stop anyone outside the town entering, but this did not succeed. Towns tried to set up quarantine zones, but they didn’t usually work.
- Ships were quarantined and had to wait 40 days before unloading in Britain.
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