A Medieval Epidemic

Australia has been hit by serious flu viruses in the past and we have even had an outbreak of the Black Death (or to give it its medical name, the bubonic plague)! In 1900, 303 people in Sydney caught this disease and 103 died. By this stage in history people knew what caused the disease (unlike in 1348, when absurd and false theories abounded). A bounty was put on rats – sixpence a rat according to one Melbourne report. Poor and unemployed men became professional rat catchers. Here is a picture of them at work: Professional rat catchers, Sydney 1900 © State of New South Wales through the State Records Authority of NSW'

************** This picture is copyright to the State of NSW and is kindly provided by the State Records Authority of NSW, who allow free dissemination of knowledge. I love public authorities with that kind of attitude. That pile in the middle is dead rats. Ewwwww….

Go to this link to view other fascinating and gruesome pictures, including closeups of rat heaps, quarantine areas being demolished, etc:
LINK: Purging Pestilence

And marvellous Melbourne (or Smellbourne as one wag of the period called it) also suffered from a case of the disease; read about this mild case in Collingwood. The man who had the plague had a bubo and bacteriological examination established the nature of the affliction beyond doubt:
LINK: Case of the bubonic plague in Collingwood in 1900

Wh_blackplague www.phillipmartin.info Clipart of rat kindly provided by http://www.phillipmartin.info/clipart/

Anyway, back to the Black Death. One-third of the people of Europe died from this disease – and that was only counting the first time it struck them. In 1348 it struck a population without any immunity at all, a little like smallpox striking the native populations of South America and Australia.

The situation in medieval Europe made people particularly vulnerable to such a disease:

Sanitation was very bad. People didn’t know about bacteria and as you walked along streets you had to step over faeces. Cities stank. Rats had plenty to feed on thanks to the butchers working in public and leaving piles of offal on the streets. Fleas were also commonplace. Peasants expected to have fleas, for instance.

There was a great deal of poverty, malnutrition and poor health in a large percentage of the population. When the Black Death came it attacked a weakened population.The rate of mortality in untreated cases is reportedly around 40–60%. Presumably a healthy, well-fed person would have a better chance of survival than a poor, malnourished peasant – and Europe’s population was largely made up of poor, malnourished peasants.

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Watch pic kindly provided by http://desktoppub.about.com

According to a book from our school library, “The Death” by Amanda Braxton-Smith, some historians believe, based on evidence from digs in Ireland, that the average lifespan in the Middle Ages could have been about 25 years. This evidence suggests over half the women were dead by the age of 35 and one-third of the population had died before the age of 14. Of course, this may not be true of Europe as a whole but it gives an insight into medieval life (and death).

To read about the mortality rate of the plague, go to the link below. You should be aware that just to complicate matters there were three kinds of plague, and the prognosis (likely medical outcome) for each was different.

LINK: Details of the plague’s mortality rate (with extra information about rats, fleas and so forth)

Medical knowledge, at least amongst Christians, was woeful. While Islamic physicians were quite scientific in their methods, Christian doctors were ignorant of anatomy and other vital information. The Church was partly to blame. It controlled what doctors learned and it didn’t allow dissection of bodies. This meant that in one French medical school, for instance, there was only one practical anatomy lesson in two years. An abdomen was opened and looked at; that was it. The prescriptions of doctors at the time of the plague were dangerous rather than therapeutic. (Read the examples further down.)

Another problem was that the Church viewed disease as a punishment for sin. Some people believed that if you had leprosy it had been brought on by too much lust. In such an environment of blame and ignorance, you can imagine that careful scientific examination and rigorous observation of symptoms would be uncommon.

If doctors were ignorant, then the rest of the population, mostly illiterate, was even more so. It was a very superstitious period and wild rumours and prejudices rapidly took hold. This meant that instead of doing useful things like quarantining people, cleaning up filthy areas and burning plague-infested areas (all done by the Sydney administration in 1900), medieval people often reacted by blaming the innocent.

800px-FrenchJews1 Wikimedia Commons from 1901-6 Jewish Encyclopedia

From Wikipedia Commons, originally from the Jewish Encyclopedia, 1901–1906, and now in the Public Domain; picture titled, “French Jews of the Middle Ages”

The Jews were one group who were accused of poisoning wells and infecting people with plague. Historians have suggested this might have something to do with the fact that less Jews died from the plague. The Jewish holy book (Torah) gives advice on basic hygiene to stop the spread of diseases. This meant many Jews refused to use the unhygienic wells (located near the town sewage pit), choosing instead to drink from fresh water sources. It is likely this led to our led our superstitious Medieval friends blaming the Jews for the plague. Jews were massacred, tortured and even burned alive. It was horrific. Some writers believe it was the worst persecution of the Jews before the Nazis in the 20th century showed atrocious cruelty on an even greater scale and with all the technology of the modern world behind them. This type of massacre of a specific minority (in most cases used to refer to the killing of Jews) is called a pogrom.

Black_Death pd pic from wikimedia commons

“Woe is me of the shilling in the arm-pit; it is seething, terrible, wherever it may come, a head that gives pain and causes a loud cry, a burden carried under the arms, a painful angry knob…” – Jeuan Gethin (died 1349) – quoted in “The Death” by Amanda Braxton-Smith.

Picture in Public Domain from Wikimedia Commons. Check the buboes. The man in the background may be holding a bunch of herbs, which were erroneously thought to help ward off disease by filling the air or at least the person’s breathing space with healthy odours.

Added Information from Miss Taylor:

Here are some other crazy medieval ideas showing what people believed could cause and cure the plague:

Things that some people believed caused the plague:

File:Flat Holm Cross.jpg The alignment of Mars, Jupiter and Saturn, which were close together on the 24th of March in 1345. In Medieval Europe great importance was placed on astrology and the movements of the stars and planets. They also used this technique when planning and performing operations (apprentice doctors had to learn which days were “unlucky” to perform surgery).

File:Flat Holm Cross.jpg People wearing tight clothes….??

File:Flat Holm Cross.jpg Greedy traders and priests. This probably came from the belief that the plague was a punishment from God for all the sins of humanity.

File:Flat Holm Cross.jpg Children who disobey their parents. This might have just been said to scare children, but it is also possible that people believed this. Many young children died as they weren’t strong enough to fight off the disease.

File:Flat Holm Cross.jpg Earthquakes, floods, tidal waves and unusual weather (classic “God’s wrath” belief)

File:Flat Holm Cross.jpg Blockages and bad digestion in the body – more brilliant Medieval medicine at work.

What some people believed would cure the plague:

Durer's Praying Hands by an unknown studentPeople should seclude themselves from others and stay away from the infected air. (This wasn’t a bad idea, but it would have been difficult to put into practice. You can’t stay home for ever.)

Durer's Praying Hands by an unknown studentPeople should burn scented woods to purify the bad air and fill their homes with pleasant-smelling plants and flowers. (This is what happened to the pope, who sat isolated in a room with two fires all summer; he survived but one third of his staff weren’t so fortunate.)

Durer's Praying Hands by an unknown studentTranquility! Try to keep a tranquil mind while the world around you is ending.

Durer's Praying Hands by an unknown studentOpen and cauterize the buboes (burn them with a hot iron or caustic agent) and apply some substance to draw out the poison. One recipe for such a substance was a plaster made from gum resin, roots of white lilies and dried human excrement. Yurghh…

Durer's Praying Hands by an unknown studentTake soothing potions. Some of the recipes don’t sound very soothing though! Here was one: take an ounce (28 grams) of gold, 11 ounces of quicksilver, dissolve and let the quicksilver escape; add 47 ounces of water and drink. Somehow I doubt that many people would have had the wealth or resources to make this potion – which is just as well.

Durer's Praying Hands by an unknown studentSome doctors suggested people should bathe in urine. Others warned against bathing as it would open the pores to let in the disease.

Durer's Praying Hands by an unknown studentSome people thought the plague could be avoided by sniffing bad smells such as latrines (hole in the ground – used as a toilet). Following this theory, that the two bad smells counteract one another, some people put dead animals in their houses.

*************

The following writings are primary sources compiled in the text book: “Discovering the Medieval World” which was written by J. Eshuys, V. Guest and P. Phelan. You can find this book in the library and these sources on page 166.

**”The swellings should be softened with figs and cooked onions mixed with yeast and butter” -Guy de Chauliac (a famous Medieval doctor who apparently tried this method after becoming ill and after 6 weeks was cured, “by God’s grace”)

**”Toads should be thoroughly dried in the sun. They should be placed on the swellings. The toad will draw out the poison of the plague into its own body” -Another Medieval doctor’s advice.

**“Some people formed small seperate communities. They shut themselves up in houses where there were no sick, eating the finest food and drinking the best wine, avoiding all excess and pasing the time in music and such pleasures.”

**”Others thought the sure cure for the plague was to drink and be merry, to go about singing and amusing themselves, satisfying every appetite they could.”

-This last comment shows how the plague caused many people to give up all hope. Many people thought the plague was a punishment from God for their sins. However, because so many priests died and there seemed no end to the plague (remember everyone they knew was dying!) many people abandoned religion and lawful activity and spent their last days sinning; eating too much, swearing, gambling and drinking to excess!

File:Monk sneaking a drink.jpg
This cheeky monk image can be found here: Wikipedia Commons

What would you do if you were living in Medieval Europe and so many people around you were dying from a disease that no one could cure?

Miss Taylor says: I personally like the sound of eating all the finest foods in a house with no plague victims, but I think I would get sick of being isolated, especially if someone from my family was sick and wasn’t allowed in!

Leave a comment:

What do you think you would do if your city were suddenly besieged by a killer disease? Would you party (because tomorrow you could die), would you hole up in your house, would you go and live in the country or would you meditate twice a day whilst thinking pure thoughts? I’m sure you have many ideas that are not amongst my suggestions! Write a comment about what you might do. Remember that you live in Medieval Europe, so I don’t want to read any answers that say “I would buy a space ship and flee to the moon”.

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Frenetic typing student pic below kindly provided by www.animatedclipart.net

After leaving your comment, test your black death knowledge at this great quiz site:

1) First use the flash cards to make sure you are familiar with the terminology (try to learn the spelling of the tricky words, you will need it later!)
2) If you want a challenge: uncheck the box that says “both sides” in the top right hand corner. Clicking on the flashcard will reveal the answer!
3) Now you are free to try the buttons below. Try “test” for a fun test that involves multiple choice and true/false answers. Space race is a brilliant race against time game. Who can get the highest score in the class? This game kept Ms Green and me busy trying to get the fastest time!

Ms Green says: I am NOT happy! Ms Taylor beat me into oblivion with my own quiz. It shouldn’t be allowed!


The link to the site can be found here:
http://quizlet.com/2280769/black-death-flash-cards/

Book-animation-10 animated clipart netAnimated book kindly provided by www.animatedclipart.net

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15 Replies to “A Medieval Epidemic”

  1. Couldn’t sydney just use cats to kill the rats. It would be more cheaper and the rat catchers wouldn’t catch the plague. Wouldn’t it have been smarter to just use the cats

  2. You were wondering if i would party, move, hole up in my hopuse of meditate. I would definently party…sure perhaps there are many ways that people believed could ‘heal’ the disease but i wouldn’t believe them. Bathing in my urine?—ew much? who would believe such a thing? So i would definently party, for sure, 24 hours to live?? hop on the party bus ;). But of course death isnt something you should be celebrating. Perhaps the smartest idea would be to find a way to cure the disease…a way that AUTUALLY works, instead of just wasting my time. Oh well, i am vry grateful that i live in the 21st century not back then where we had the right equipment to stop it, hey, we survived swine flu didin’t we?

    HAHAH

    vienna 😉 ♥♦♪♫☻☺☼♠♣▒▒▒▓▓▓░░░

  3. I would medicate people with the plauge by making them drink apple juice with salt mixed in to it and the salt would cure there bubos!

  4. I would probably try to hide out with the “healthies” in a secluded cave or something and put lumps of dead animals around the place in the distance so the rats would be attracted to the meat. I would also wash a lot and make sure there were no rats in my house!

  5. I would evacuate to Antarctica! The extreme cold would kill the germs and ensure a safe environment.

  6. If I lived in that time, I would probably try to keep away from most people and rats. I wouldn’t want to be too isolated though, maybe wearing a mask so I could still see people. I would make sure that my family and friends were safe aswell.

  7. I would start to convince people with the plague to dispose of their own body.

  8. I would zap everyone with my magical powers and the plauge would be gone! Jks 😛 I would make everyone eat a beazoar and drink some wiggenweld potion. Okay, okay, ill stop now. I might put rotten eggs, onions, snail shells and tree sap. Who knows? 😀

  9. I would read, be happy, and write a hystorical diary entry that will be found by someone in the future…then die 😀

    But if i didnt get the plague then…i would run away (with family)and try not to get it…

  10. ASH:
    If i was a doctor i would probably have some fun with the patients by saying stuff like “run around the well like a chicken” or “Drink some yak’s milk.” or “rub butter and turnips on your buboes.” HEHE!!!

    TEGAN:
    if i got the plague i would probably pack up and move somewhere where i couldn’t infect anyone else. but if i didn’t have the plague i would run away before i got it.

  11. i have the plague? great! it’s good to get it out of the way

    **nods head confidently**

  12. If I got the plague, someone in the family, or someone in my town, I’d leave and go to the country-side, where i could meditate and try to get rid of it. Until I was sure it had past, I would isolate myself completly from the community.

  13. If I didnt get the plague I would;
    Build a shopping centre with a lab,
    Find a cure,
    Give it to my infected friends and family,
    Become queen,
    Create a law saying men should have the rights women have and women should have the rights men have.
    Exterminate the rats,
    Go down in history……

  14. Vell, Iv I got ze plague, I’z provavly vaze zin zurine. Zen I’d zrite blah blah zduvv on ze pice ov paper and hide it in za box zo have zin a museum.
    (say these, then they will be translated)
    anyway, I’d also skip skool (*gasp*), draw, draw, sleep, draw, historialize, historialitialixizitalize, and playyyyy.
    The incinerator… looks… steam…old…ish – kool to disassemble and create a giant rat killing, heating, toasting robotything.
    Without the plague, Me and my family may as well go straight to………
    well, right here in the future would be nice! Then I’d stay and become a famous guy whose in every (EVERY) book thing.
    me: }:%)

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