The plague of the medieval century: the Black Death

The death of feudalism was brought about the great equalizer in the mid 14^th century: The Black Death, or Black Plague. What was the Plague? Where did it come from and what was the true impact of this deadly disease?

Before the sickness, feudalism was the way of the land in medieval Europe and much of the Mediterranean. Feudalism was the dominant social system in the Western World. Basically, the nobility held lands in rust for the royalty of their country. As part of the deal, nobles agreed to pledge men, arms, and money to the king when military was required. Nobles paid a fee (knight’s fees) per so many men-at-arms. The nobles held various ranks (Baron, Earl, Viscount, Marquis, Duke, etc.) as well as being knights of the realm. Many nobles had multiple properties, or holdings, and had those of lower ranking manage the lands on their behalf as vassals.

The actual land was worked by common folks, oftimes referred to as ‘peasants’ or serfs. The serfs were tied to the land and couldn’t leave without permission of the lord. Freemen were known and moved as they wished – as did specialized tradesmen (i.e. masons). Serfs had to work the lord’s land for a specified amount of time before they could work their own. They owed the lord labor and joined the ‘army’ in times of war under their lord’s banner. Many of the house servants came from the local villages.

Black Death was first documented in 541 A.D. in China. The Black Death arrived in 1337 by way of some Italian merchant ships arriving from a trade mission from China. The actual disease came from fleas carried by rats. When ships docked, the rats left the ships, as did sailors infected by the disease.

Poor sanitary practices allowed the infections to spread rapidly among the population base. The name ‘Black Death’ was coined after the black spots on the skin. Not everyone died. Some folks managed to survive the illness.

The signs and symptoms of the Plague manifested anywhere between two and seven days after exposure to an infected person or bite from carrier flea. There are three forms of this deadly sickness. The first is Bubonic Plague and its symptoms include painful and enlarged nymph lodes (called buboes) that would leak blood and pus, chills, headache, fever, and weakness. The next form is Septicemic Plague (the Black Death) which includes fever, weakness, abdominal pain, chills, bleeding, and shock. The third form is Pneumonic Plague and its symptoms include pneumonia-like symptoms.

The impact of the disease was felt for decades. Entire villages were wiped out. Feudalism went to the wayside as the common folk were decimated. Lords still rand their estates but how they treated the common folk changed. Due to a labor shortage, peasants demanded rights and higher wages. This led to revolts among the lower classes and eventual reforms. Even the Church wasn’t left alone. People questioned why this happened and why prayer didn’t save them.

Every spring the Plague reared its ugly head. It is estimated that 60% of the population, or around 25 million people, died in the first five years. As a contrast, the population of Europe in 1200 was around 59 million and in 1300 was 70 million. In 1347 the amount of people had grown to 75 million but in 1352 it had dropped to 50 million (there were about 48 million in 1100).

Today, doctors treat Plague with antibiotics and supportive treatment but in the ancient world, there was no cure. Break-outs still occur to this day.

Until next time, stay safe out there!