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The Black Plague

 

             Starting in 1348 there was a massive outbreak of the Bubonic or Black Plague. This led to an immense decrease in population as the plague spread. Within a few days 80% of those infected died, around 25 million died in all. Infected persons were locked in and avoided. The Black Plague's rampage through Europe was due to various problems.
             Throughout Europe the plague was allowed to spread in part due to sanitary conditions. Gui de Vouge a Dutch scholar stated "The plague and sickness in England were is due to the filth in the streets, and the urine and feces clogging all the city drains."(Document 8) Another thing that affected added to sanitary disaster was the fact that bathing was frowned upon, this led to people working hard, sweating, and then sleeping in all of that accumulating filth day after day. Another sanitary problem was the fact that they did not wipe themselves, the combination of feces and dirt made them highly susceptible to plagues. Finally there was the problem of people killing Jews in reckless hate (Doc 2) this caused more death and decaying bodies. Living conditions for all people peasants to nobility were horrible at this time. .
             Another reason to the spread of the plague was the lack of knowledge on the part of the physicians. Some physicians did not believed that the plague was a curse from god rather than natural causes (Doc 1) this may be because they did not want to believe that there was something that they could not cure. Some of the Catholics believed this as well and Pope Gregory X1 even said "It is only just and right that these Jews, these people who rejected Christ and fornicate with the Satan are butchered. They are the ones who poisoned the wells of good Christians and they should be punished."(Doc 7) Some Catholics simply wanted a quarantine to stop the spread but this to was aimed at the Jews.(Doc 4) Not all physicians believed that the plague was sent by God, and this led to cures that were absolutely absurd but people were scared.


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