Transcript Diapositiva 1 - The black Death: A Teacher's Lesson Plan

During 1348 to 1350 Medieval England was
attacked by an epidemic. This epidemic was
called the Black Death which is also known as
the black plague . It was given the name to refer
to a disease called bubonic plague.
This plague had attacked before but never this
bad
The Bubonic plague is referred to the disease's most
common form, which was the one that formed outside
the skin and had lumps and turned black.
They are painfully swollen lymph nodes that appear
around the groin, armpit, or neck.
How did it spread to England?
Carried from India on flea-infested rats riding on great
sailing ships of the new international trade.
Since towns and cities were so close together and over populated it was
easy to pass the disease.
If one person in your family caught the disease, everyone else would.
The bubonic actually became pneumonic (lungs) and you would suffer
chest pains because it was mainly in your lungs so it became
airborne.
Then it also became septicemic (bloodstreams) which it would go
through one’s blood stream and they died before they knew they
even had the disease.
England was in a Feudalism system it was based on the division of land by
the king to nobles and vassals in return for their military service. Land was
the main source of the economy and was dependent on the peasants who
worked on the land. Many European towns used the feudal system as a way
of keeping the underclass citizens in line and keeping the wealthy citizens
wealthy.
The Church also had
a lot of power on
many of the King’s decisions.
The Black Death hit Europe so hard and unexpectedly, there were
huge casualties on both sides of the social ladder!
The Black Death hit even worse for the peasants so peasants were
unavailable to work the land of the wealthy land owners like the
wealthy was use to.
This resulted in the feudal system no longer being the most feasible
option.
The end of feudalism allowed the peasants to be able to own their
own land, giving them more social standing.
Before the Black Death, European's were very loyal to the church.
With the arrival of the Black Death European began to see that perhaps the church was not as almighty
as they had once thought it to be. Why couldn’t they stop all this dying! Especially because it didn’t just
get the lower class but the wealthy too! This led to a decline in the church's authority which had been
the main authority to the King for European citizens.
The people of Europe were desperately looking for a reason as to why this plague had been brought
upon them. So for the Church to gain power they started the “Blame game.” Which refers to God’s curse
so let’s blame the
“Socially indigestible people”
The rise of hated for “different” people mostly because of reification of Christian doctrine.
The King, Church and people started blaming the “Socially indigestible people” which included:
•Jews – They were accused of poisoning the wells as well as why the Black Plague happen. Jews had to wear yellow stars and other
distinctive clothing. When found “guilty” they were herded into wooden building and torched or left to suffocate or starve. Estimation
of 90% of Jews were massacred their wealth if any confiscated by Christians
•Muslims- Muslims were expelled in growing numbers.
•Lepers- Lepers in order by King Philip were burned to death
•Disabled- were accused of witchcraft and burned
•Homosexuals- who used to be widely accepted were now condemned by the Church. Grouping them with arsonists, sorcerers and
Jews as criminal deserving execution.
•Women- Witchcraze (will talk about more in depth)
Most massacres were gone with the plague ending by 1351 EXCEPT for women. The survivors usurped the resources of the dead and
became nouveau riche, meaning the poor weren’t that poor because they gain riches of the dead.
Because of the Black Plague women were vulnerable to charges of witchcraft and their
treatment as witches became horrifying over the next 300 years hundreds of thousands of women
were accused of witchcraft and killed.
Then as the witchcraze rose women of every age, status and class!
Women who were healers, midwives or any women who worked on healing tricks were
metamorphosed into witchcraft. Women who were poor or there child died at infant. Beggar
women who asked for food or shelter and also prostitutes trying to survive.
Accused women were stripped, raped and tortured before trails.
During some of the trails most were tortured to confess and most confessed to avoid the pain.
Women were found guilty and burned before their children’s eyes and sometimes they would throw
in the children as well for example for the rest.
A few men where also tried as sorcery but the numbers didn’t compare to women.
A papal bull (church document by the Pope) Innocent VIII put the Inquisition in charge of witch
hunting. They came up with New and Creative test to try the witches like if in these test they
died they were innocent, but if they survived their were witches and had to be burned in the
cleansing fire to save their souls. Some women even started to commit suicide rather then undergo
the Inquisition.
At the end about 9 million were estimated to be killed.
Some towns were actually completely depopulated.
The Black Plague was a terrible epidemic that killed
millions! The Black Plague did cause the European citizens
to make changes that otherwise could have taken centuries
to make like the end of the feudalism system. It gave the
underclass citizens the opportunity to gain more social
standing which might or might not have happened. It also
changed the focus of the artwork and literature of the time
towards death, which ended up paving the way for the
enlightening events in the Italian Renaissance. It also
changed the way that European citizens viewed religion
taking away a large amount of the power the church held
over the people. So while the devastation the Black Death
brought will forever be remembered throughout history, so will
the changes it brought with it.
Cited Work
Annenberg, A. (2010, May 15). Medieval Life - Feudalism. History on the Net Main Page. Retrieved October 20, 2012,
from http://www.historyonthenet.com/Medieval_Life/feudalism.htm
Day, P. J. (2009). A new history of social welfare. Englewood Cliffs, N.J.: Prentice Hall.
Roark, J. L. (2007). The American promise: a compact history (3rd ed.). Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's.
The Black Death: Cultural Influence. (n.d.). The Black Death. Retrieved October 22, 2012, from
http://smsthebubonicplauge1.blogspot.com/p/global-power.html
Pictures used
Women burning: SOLID.LIFE.CHOICES. - History repeating itself.. (n.d.). SOLID.LIFE.CHOICES. . Retrieved October 22,
2012, from http://solidlifechoices.tumblr.com/post/10000956249/history-repeating-itself
Affected by the plague first slide: The Black Death: Cultural Influence. (n.d.). The Black Death. Retrieved October 22,
2012, from http://smsthebubonicplauge1.blogspot.com/p/global-power.html
Rat and ship pictures: Researchers in Britain Have Determined The Genetic Sequence of BubonicPlague Marilyn Chase /
Wall Street Journal 4oct01. (n.d.). Mindfully.org | Mindfully Green. Retrieved October 22, 2012, from
http://www.mindfully.org/GE/GE3/Bubonic-Plague-Sequenced.htm
Sick people in bed: hundredskilled. (n.d.). Top 10 Worst Plagues In History. Top 10 Lists - Listverse. Retrieved October 22,
2012, from http://listverse.com/2009/01/18/top-10-worst-plagues-in-history/