Europe, throughout its history, had been affected by different waves of plague, but there was one that stood out above the rest. The Black Death of 1348, the most devastating in human history, also known as the black death or bubonic plague. With more than 50 million deathsBetween 60% and 80% of the European population disappeared due to this terrible disease, a pandemic from the 14th century during the Middle Ages.
Background of the Black Death
The antecedents of the Black Death take us to the year 1346. Two years earlier, news had begun to reach Europe of a terrible and deadly epidemic that had broken out in China and spread through India, Mesopotamia, Syria, Persia, Egypt, and Asia Minor.
The news that arrived was of devastation, entire towns depopulated. In the fourteenth century, the Pope had his residence in Avignon, in such a way that when Pope Clement VI received the news that came from the East, he showed interest in the subject, even gathering reports where a number of victims was calculated higher than the 24,000,000 people.
It must be said that at the beginning of the fourteenth century, the concept of contagion was not known, so the news more or less went unnoticed by a society engrossed in its daily life. But a year later, in 1347, the plague makes presence in Italy. The origin was the Venetian and Genoese ships that came from the Black Sea, which moved the plague from the East to Europe.
Shortly thereafter, the Black Death had spread through France through Marseille and even to North Africa. Without knowing how it spread, the black rats continued to sail on ships and infect any territory where they landed. The black plague reached Spain, France, Italy, Scotland, Ireland, England, Switzerland, Flanders, the Netherlands, spreading to Hungary.
The ships are transporting the plague to Norway, where an infected ship appeared with all its dead crew inside. From Norway it spread to Sweden, Denmark, Prussia, Russia, Iceland and Greenland. a curious case was Immunity in Bohemia.
the black plague was declared extinct in 1361leaving an estimated amount greater than 85 million people dead. It has been and is considered the most devastating pandemic in the history of mankind.
It infected practically all known territories but did not affect sub-Saharan Africa or the American continent (it had not yet been discovered). Left entire cities emptypopulations where the resistance and strength of each individual made the difference between life or death.
What is the Black Death
Put in antecedents, it is convenient to know what is the black plague. Also known as bubonic plague or Black Death is caused by bacteria Yersinia Pestis. Rodents as they can be the rats They are the ones that carry and, therefore, transmit the disease.
Fleas carried by infected rats, they can search for new hosts, such as humans, dogs, cats, etc. When a person is bitten by these fleas that carry the bacteria, or when they become infected through contaminated materials, through skin wounds, contagion occurs.
Symptoms of the black plague
Symptoms or manifestations of the black plague start with fever, nausea, thirst and tiredness. And although several theories have been put forward, the black plague was spread, above all, through flea bites. Of course, despite the seriousness of all of them, it was necessary to differentiate the symptoms of three types of black plague
- bubonic: It begins with inflammation and pain in the nodes of the groin, armpits or neck, reaching suppuration. These swollen glands were called carbuncles or buboes, hence the name bubonic plague. Symptoms such as headache, weakness, delusions and chills were common in those who contracted it. Tremendously painful.
- pneumonic: When it affected him respiratory system of the individual, it was called pneumonic. In this case, it caused strong expectorant coughs that could lead to, through the air, to the contagion of new individuals. The contagion was produced by the particles of saliva that were transmitted through the air.
- Septicemic: Occurred when this contagion passed into the blood through wounds, where the bacteria will grow and spread more easily. The skin was beginning to darken, showing some dark spots which were the obvious signs of having contracted the disease or Black Death. Both contagion through blood and contagion through the air, left no survivors.
How the Black Death Spread
Although we have already given some brushstrokes, it is worth remembering how the black plague spread. The disease began to affect Asian countries, which traded with the rest of Europe. It was easy for the epidemic to spread to all corners of Europe, although it arrived first Indiafrom where it spread to Mongolia, also locating some cases in Russia
The society came from a convulsive period of wars and confrontations but from the eleventh century, an era of prosperity begins, where the climate accompanied the harvests, giving excellent products. Feuds and lordships begin to be created, with which the cities begin to prosper. The population of the most important nuclei such as Paris or Florence is doubled and tripled. Guilds are created, a new social order is conceived, it is a time of prosperity until in the 14th century, climate change plays a trick on half the world.
A change in weather conditions causes crop failure, leaving a bleak landscape of famine. Prices rose, so that the poorest and modest peasants did not get to eat even a minimum amount of food, which weakened their body and their immune system.
Florence and Venice they were the first cities in Europe to suffer the devastating punishment of the Black Death. Its population was reduced by up to 80%, being absolutely decimated. This figure represents the death of 4 out of 5 citizens.
in Venice, a Santa María de la Salud church was erected, so that the virgin advocated for the Venetians. It is from this time when the black gondolas arise. The large number of deaths caused by the plague meant that trips to the island where Venice buries its dead were made with fishermen’s boats.
Someone decided to give solemnity to such a terrible event as the transfer of corpses through the canals. This is how the idea of painting the gondolas black arose, a custom that has remained over time until today.
Speculations on the Causes of the Black Death
This enemy that faced the society of the fourteenth century, had no name. He was a kind of gloomy phantom enemy, who roamed the cities. Obviously they shot Speculations about the causes of the Black Death
At the beginning of the epidemic, it received the name of plague or great mortality. It had to be given a name and a cause. Failing one, he soon had as many as three names: bubonic plague, Black Plague or Black Death, as we have seen before. Butwhat caused the black plague?
Vapor
Much speculation was speculated about the causes of the plague, with little results. Some believed it was due to a draft from the ground, and pointed out that recent tremors had released unhealthy vapors from the depths of the planet. In order to drive away these noxious airs, popular remedies such as bouquets of aromas and steam of spices in the interiors.
The stars
During the fourteenth century, medicine was content with the ancient classical doctrine, deformed by a theoretical dialectic and little experimental. No one dared, except in Italy and Spain, openly resort to Jewish and Arab science.
On the contrary, to explain the plague, it was preferred to invoke the conjunction of the stars and the mars bad reputation, Jupiter and Saturn. Apparently they were too close together.
The God’s anger
On its side, the Church and the moralists they believed that the Black Death was a manifestation of God’s wrath for the sins of man, so they called for a moral renewal of society. One of the proposals was a kind of cleansing through pain.
Small pilgrimages of bare-chested men paraded, whipping their backs as a sign of repentance. In addition to these flagellants, the fears of the time were reflected in the representations of the Dance of Deathin which a skeleton representing random death danced young and old, rich and poor, all without social or religious distinctions.
On the other hand, the Church also carried out a Witch huntin which they accused many inhabitants of agreeing with the devil so that everyone would get sick, mutilating and torturing hundreds of innocent inhabitants.
The Jews
Another serious speculation was the one that chose the Jews as guilty of the black plague. Groups were created to end the jewish communities. Fortunately, the Jewish community was also affected and this fact prevented a massacre of such dimensions.
However, from Germany to Catalonia, the Jewish aljamas were persecuted, accusing them of poisoning the water of the wells.
Consequences of the Black Death
Obviously, the consequences of the Black Death were dire. Consequences that devastated both Europe and Asia at a social and economic level. The abandonment of the field due to the reduction of the population that faced their crops, the regions dedicated to agriculture were abandoned, which caused production to drop by up to 40%.
The doctors who took care of the patients, called plague doctorsNot that they were the most reputable doctors. Were young and inexperiencedbut they dedicated their time to caring for the sick, for their recovery and their study.
They cared for them, wearing their pointed masks, like the face of a raven, to avoid contagion.
How the Black Death affected Spain and Europe
Despite the measures taken, such as whipping or aromatherapy, the Black Death swept through. The question is,how the Black Death affected Spain and Europe? How serious was the bubonic crisis? Well worse than anyone could imagine.
In absolute figures, the Black Death claimed more than 50 million lives across Europe. Of the more than 80 million inhabitants that was in the Old Continent, only 30 million left. And all in a span of 6 incredibly negative years (1347 to 1353)
- Spain – In the Iberian Peninsula it would go from 6 million inhabitants to just over 2 million. That is, 2 out of 3 citizens lost their lives, which represents 66% of the deceased population.
- France – In the neighboring country, it is estimated that casualties were around 65%.
- Italy – For its part, the entire transalpine country saw its population drop dramatically.
- Tuscany lost 63% of its population.
- Siena and San Gimignano, touched 60%
- Prato and Bologna reduced their demographics by 45%
- Florence, meanwhile,…