Transcript Where did the Black Death come from?

Where did the Black Death come
from?
How Did It Affect So Many People?
How did people try to prevent the plague?
It was thought that by
bleeding people, they could
get rid of the bad blood which
caused the plague.
“[Toads] should be placed on
the plague boil. The toad will
swell and draw out the poison
of the plague to its own
body…”
Flagellants were
people who believed
that if they whipped
and hurt themselves,
God would take pity
on them.
Guy de Chauliac
Do you think that any of these
methods would work?
5 of 19
© Boardworks Ltd 2004
What caused the plague?
The question that you are probably thinking
is this;
Q: Who or what caused the Black
Death?
A: This is your answer!
The Oriental Rat Flea!
How was the plague transmitted?
We now know that the most common form of the Black
Death was the BUBONIC PLAGUE! This disease was
spread by fleas which lived on the black rat. The fleas
sucked the rat’s blood which contained the plague germs.
When the rat died the fleas jumped on to humans and
passed on the deadly disease.
The Disease Cycle
Flea drinks rat blood
that carries the
bacteria.
Bacteria
multiply in
flea’s gut.
Human is infected!
Flea bites human and
regurgitates blood
into human wound.
Flea’s gut clogged
with bacteria.
Cures?
• Medieval people did not know about germs
causing disease. They did not understand
that plague was spread by rats and fleas.
They thought that people’s bodies were
poisoned.
• If the swellings burst and the poison came
out people sometimes survived. It seemed
sensible to draw out the poison.
Medieval cure number 1
The swellings should be softened with figs
and cooked onions. The onions should be
mixed with yeast and butter. Then open the
swellings with a knife.
Medieval cure number 2
Take a live frog and put its belly on the
plague sore. The frog will swell up and
burst. Keep doing this with further frogs
until they stop bursting. Some people say
that a dried toad will do the job better.
The Mortality Rate
35% - 70%
25,000,000 dead !!!
What were the
political,
economic,
and social effects
of the Black Death?
EFFECTS
• Disease is a major determinant of human history.
• Socially, and politically, Europe was turned upside down…
• The church and the nobility…the two powerhouses of the Middle Ages lose prestige
and power as a result of the plague.
• As a result the kings of Europe consolidate power…it is the beginning of the end of
Feudalism
• Kings use a bureaucracy to rule, raise taxes, pass laws..
• Serfs are in short supply…they can sell their labor to the highest bidder…their wages
go up!
• The decline in production led to higher prices which led to inflation
• The plague led to an overwhelming pessimism, to religious fanaticism, to suspicion of
travelers, and to intolerance of Jews.