Black Death & Great Plague Flashcards
What was affected by the pneumonic plague?
Respiratory system
What was affected by the septisemic plague?
Circulatory system
When was the Black Death?
1348
What was the real cause of the Black Death?
Fleas on rats transported through trade links via ships into Europe via Asia, North Africa and Mongolia
What made symptoms of the Black Death worse?
Famine as a result of droughts weakened people’s immune systems
What were 10 symptoms of the Black Death?
Slurred speech, aching limbs, high fever, purple coloured skin, puss filled lumps, boils could grow to the size of a walnut then an egg, being delirious and crazed, vomiting blood, Black swelled lymph nodes (necks, groins), fatigue
What was a bubo?
Swelled lymph node
How quickly did death occur from the Black Death?
Usually within a week
Give 2 effects of the Black Death
Killed 1/3 of the European population 1347-1350, wiped our entire villages in a few days
Identify 5 things people thought caused the Black Death
Miasmas, God, Jews and minority groups poisoned water supplies, imbalance of the four humours, planets affected peoples bodies as they were made up of the same four elements (fire, water, Earth, air)
Identify 7 prevention methods of the Black Death
Services/processions at church at least once a day to ask for forgiveness and for god to end the disease, made and lit candles as offerings to god (in Barcelona made a candle 7km long), surround yourself by a worse smell to ward off bad air carrying disease, local authorities passed quarantine laws so anyone new to an area had to avoid everyone for 40 days, local authorities stopped large crowds by banning religious processions, stopped cleaning streets so stench of rubbish and dead bodies would ward off miasma, avoid too much eating and drinking and baths
Why was the government action against the Black Death ineffective?
The local government didn’t have any real power so couldn’t enforce the laws. Rich people moved freely and church continued as normal
When was the great plague?
1665
Identify 6 things which people thought caused the Great Plague
Blazing star or comet, conjunction of planets, god/sinning, miamas, person to person (especially servants), insects and invisible creatures (germs)
Identify 14 prevention methods of the great plague
Public prayers and confession of sin, days of fasting, not take a joint of meat off a butchers hand but off the hook themselves then put it in a pot of vinegar,in every parish there were two or more examiners to shut up houses of the sick, door of the house marked with Red Cross and ‘Lord have mercy upon us’, if any housekeeper removed herself before 28 days after someone’s died of the disease the house would be shut up until 28 days expired, surgeons joined with searchers of the body to make a true report of the disease, charms such as abracadabra annulets worn to ward off the plague, buried dead in graves at least six feet deep, well air bedding with perfumes and fire, do not sell corrupt fruits, kill all stray dogs and cats, sweep infront of door, no assemblies of people, execute beggars, ban coffee houses and cellars
