Britain 1066–1500
The Black Death
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Learning objectives
Learning objectives
What was the Black Death?
How did medieval people think it was spread?
How was the disease really spread?
What actions were taken to stop the spread of
the disease and were they successful?
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What was the Black Death?
Oh God, what terrible disease has arrived
at my village? We are all sick with
swellings and fever. The lucky ones are
those that die, for who can survive this
illness and be left to pick up the pieces of
this mad world. Surely God is listening to
my prayers. I am writing this in hope you
heed my warning and remove yourself
from all mankind. I am dying… and you
may be next…
Press play to listen to this text.
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What was the Black Death?
The Black Death is also known as the plague. In the
14th century it spread rapidly across Europe, causing a
massive reduction in the population.
People who caught the disease had swellings on their
bodies, sometimes as big as eggs. Then the black
spots would appear, which gave the disease its name.
A medieval description of the plague:
“…emergence of certain tumours
in the groin or armpits, some of
which grew as large as a common
apple. Black spots appeared on
the arm or the thigh…”
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The spread of the plague
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How did the plague spread?
There were two types of plague:
Bubonic plague was the more common and was carried
in the bloodstream of rats. Fleas bit the rats and became
infected. They then hopped onto other rats or humans, bit
them and passed on the disease.
Pneumonic plague was less common, but more
deadly. It was caught by breathing in the germs
released when an infected person coughed or sneezed.
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Symptoms of the plague
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How did the plague get to Britain?
The Black Death travelled along trading routes.
Merchant ships frequently
had rats on board.
The rats which got on the
boats in China and India,
where it is thought the
disease began, transferred
the disease to the sailors
on board.
When the ships reached ports in Europe, the disease
infected people working at the docks, who spread it further.
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What did people believe caused the plague?
“In the month of August 1348, after the
evening sun began to set, a very bright star
appeared above Paris … The star seemed
much nearer the earth than stars usually are … it seemed
to me … that the star stayed in one place … At last
darkness fell. Then to the amazement of all of us, the star
split up into many different rays. It shed these rays towards
the east, over Paris. The star then completely disappeared.”
Description of the plague reaching France
by Jean de Venette, friar.
What does this source tell you about how
people thought the plague began?
Why did many people blame God?
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What did people believe caused the plague?
Sent by God to punish
them for their sins.
The movements of the
planets.
Were any of these
ideas correct?
Being close to
infected people.
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Bad smells.
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How did people try to prevent the plague?
It was thought that by
bleeding people, they could
get rid of the bad blood
which caused the plague.
“[Toads] should be placed on
the plague boil. The toad will
swell and draw out the
poison of the plague to
its own body…”
Flagellants were
people who believed
that if they whipped
and hurt themselves,
God would
take pity
on them.
Guy de Chauliac
Do you think that any of these methods would work?
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Plague doctor
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The effects of the Black Death
Although it is impossible to discover how many people died
from the Black Death, it is estimated that around 1 in 3
people in England died as a result of the disease.
These coffins show the
percentage of priests that
died from the Black Death
in Exeter, Norwich and Ely.
Is the percentage of priests
that died likely to be higher
or lower than the percentage
of ordinary people?
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The effects of the Black Death
Monks and priests
were particularly
badly hit by the
plague, because they
were expected to visit
the sick and dying.
This illuminated letter
from an English text
made around
1360–75, shows
monks with the
plague being blessed
by a priest.
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The effects of the Black Death
To our grief the plague carried off so vast a
multitude of people of both sexes that no-one
could be found who would bear the corpses
to the grave. Men and women carried their own children
on their shoulders to the church and threw them into a
common pit.
William of Dene
Rents dwindled, land fell waste for
want of tenants who used to cultivate
it... many villages and hamlets were
deserted... and never inhabited again.
Ralph Higden of Chester
How did the Black Death affect ordinary people?
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Was the Black Death a complete disaster?
For the survivors, some good things did come out of the
Black Death.
Some historians think that
before 1348 England was
overpopulated – there were
too many people for the land
and resources available.
Many peasant farmers had barely enough land to feed their
families. Because there were so many people, food prices
were high and labourers’ wages were low.
If peasants complained about their duties, lords found it easy
to replace them with new tenants.
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Was the Black Death a complete disaster?
The reduction in population caused by the Black Death meant
that there was more good land for the survivors to farm.
In many areas, village populations were
greatly reduced. Some villages were even
deserted.
With so few labourers about, workers could
ask for higher wages. Villeins could
demand greater freedoms, as their lords
could not find new tenants to replace them.
Those who ran away from their lords could
easily find a new manor where there was
land and work for them on better terms.
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Was the Black Death a complete disaster?
At Woodeaton there were only two
farmers left and they would have
gone away if the abbot had not made a
new agreement with them to reduce their work service…
from the records of Eynsham Abbey, c.1385.
As soon as masters accuse their
workers of bad work … they leave
quickly and find jobs in new places at
higher wages. Masters dare not upset their workers…
from Introduction to a Law, 1376.
Why were workers in a better position after
the Black Death?
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Effects of the Black Death
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Preventing the plague
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The Black Death: multiple-choice questions
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