The ‘Black Plague’ is also commonly described as ‘Black Death’, ‘Bubonic Plague’ and Simply ‘The Plague’
The Black Plague was a really bad disease, it is recorded in history as being the worst epidemic in human history and it ripped it’s way through the European towns and cities of the middle ages showing little if any mercy for it’s victims.
If you were unlucky enough to catch the ‘Black Plague’ it was pretty much game over for you as there was no cure in medieval times and treatments that were used by ‘Plague Doctors’ such as Blood-Letting with leeches had no effect whatsoever.
When these fleas bit any victim, the plague is transmitted to the victim as well.
The Black Plague killed so many medieval people that is started to destroy the economies of Europe – as there were not many people left to do the work that was required to keep the systems of towns and cities functioning.
Plague Doctor Methods Hand Bubonic Plague
Here are ’10 Truly Terrible things’ about the Black Plague!
A really nasty bacterium called ‘Yersinia pestis’ was behind the dreaded ‘Black Plague’.
Fleas carried the Black Plague and passed it onto humans when they bit them.
Rats carried the fleas and when they died their fleas looked for a human host .
There was simply no cure for the ‘Black Plague’ once you had caught it, you were done for.
The Plague caused large Buboes (swollen lymph nodes) to form which would burst open and ‘Smelly Pus’ would pour out.
A medieval doctor would wear a herb mask to protect against the Black death
Men, Women and Children’s feet would turn black and a short time later, fall off.
The Black Plague wiped out hundreds of million of people, devastating European economies.
Medieval towns were dirty and pretty disgusting – Ideal breeding grounds for rats which helped the disease to spread.
Houses of the dead were condemned and Black and Red crosses painted on the doors as a warning to others.
‘Bring out your Dead’ – many of the people hired to remove dead bodies caught the plague themselves and died.
This is Samuel Pepys who wrote the famous diary about the Black Death
