Black Death
What: Yersina pestis (Bubonic plague), deadly disease that attacks the lymph
nodes; 40-60% died after contracting it
Causes:
- spread to Europe via rats with diseased fleas on board trading ships from
Asia
- mal aria (bad air) believed to be the cause
When: 14th Century
Where: Italy, Germany, England, Scotland, Scandinavia
Other crises of the time: Europe weakened by 100 Years War (France),
Conditierri Wars in Italy, warfare disrupted trade. Also, overpopulation, and
climate change leading to mass starvation and food shortages
Signifiance and Effects:
- lead to Flagellants (Christian religious movement which emphasized
self-punishment, usually involving whips, for the purpose of mortifying the
body to save the souls of sinners)
- blaming Jews (accused of plague spreading through the wells), the poor, and
other outside groups for incurring God's wrath / bringing about sickness and
death
- 1/3 of total population in Europe = dead -- 50-70 million dead
- wealthy landowners retreated to countryside to escape plague in cities--a
rudimentary quarantine ("flee far, stay long, return slowly"); hence, the frame
narrative in The Decameron
- anti-clericism
- prices and taxes increase; wages decrease; revolts for better conditions,
wages because of work force shortages--crushed
- it was one of many factors in a population crash, economic depression, and
political unrest