The Black Death

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The Black Death

• A Welsh poem (fourteenth century)
• Death comes into our midst like black smoke,
• A plague which cuts off the young,
• A rootless ghost which has no mercy for good
  looks.
• Woe is me of the mark of the armpit!
• It is throbbing, terrible -
• A head that gives pain and causes a loud cry,
• A painful, angry lump.
• Great is its throbbing like burning coal,
• A horrible thing of grey colour -
• Like the seeds of black peas, or broken bits of
  sea- coal,
• The early jewellery of black death,
• A black plague like pennies, like berries.

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Introduction to the Black Death.

• The Black Death was the name medieval people gave
  to the plague.
• It was a great disease and in the fourteenth
  century, no-one understood what caused the
  disease or how it spread.
• Historians think that one person in every three
  died of the plague between 1348 and 1351. By the
  end of 1350 nearly 2.5 million people had died
  because of the Black Death.

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Causes of the Black Death.

• Medieval people did not know what caused the
  Black Death.
• This shows that people did not understand hygiene
  as we do today!
• This was a major problem with the spread of the
  plague.

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Here are what people believed caused the plague
The evil planets of Mars and Saturn have moved
closer together. This has turned the air bad.
If we breath in the bad air we will catch the
plague.
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Historians now know the real cause of the Black
Death. Do you?

• God has sent the plague because he is angry with
  us. We have spent too much time gambling,
  fighting and drinking.

• The plague passes from person to person. Plague
  sores give off a terrible smell. If you breath
  this in you will catch the plague.

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• The disease was spread by fleas that lived on the
  black rat. The fleas sucked the rats blood
  which contained the plague germs. The fleas then
  jumped on to humans and passed on the plague.

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Symptoms of the Black Death.How long did it take
to die?

• DAY 1 Swellings called buboes appeared in the
  armpits and groins.
• DAY 2 The victim vomited and developed a fever.
• DAY 3 Bleeding under the skin caused blotches
  all over the body.
• DAY 4 The disease attacked the nervous system.
  The victim suffered spasms. The victim was in
  terrible pain.
• DAY 5 Most people now died. However, sometimes
  the buboes burst and a foul-smelling liquid oozed
  from the open boils. When this happened the
  victim usually lived!

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There were a number of cures that medieval people
foolishly thought would prevent the Black Death!
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RELIGIOUS CURES.

• People prayed to God and asked him for
  forgiveness.
• Many went on Holy Pilgrimages to Canterbury.

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CURES USING FLOWERS.
Ringaring aroses.

• You should carry a bunch of herbs and hold it to
  your nose at all times.
• Some people burnt sweet-smelling wood in their
  houses.

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Potions and Lotions!!!

• People burnt or buried the clothes of the plague
  victims.
• Live pigeons were to be cut in half and applied
  to the swellings.
• Victims put live frogs on the plague sore.
• Figs and onions were mixed together and placed on
  the buboes.

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WHAT DO YOU THINK WOULD HAVE CURED THE BLACK
DEATH?

• TASK
• Write down the different causes of the Black
  Death.
• Draw and label the symptoms of the plague.
• Design a medieval health leaflet showing the
  cures of the black death.

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