Mrs. Pichardo
Topic: Bubonic Plague (Black Plague)
Nyack High School
Grade: Global History 9R
Aim: What was the social, political and economic impact of the Black
Plague?
Enduring Idea: The outbreak of the Bubonic Plague had a lasting impact
on Europe as well as the rest of the world.
Learning Objectives:
The students will understand and be able to map the origin and diffusion of
the Black Death.
The students will understand the causes of and how the disease was
transmitted
The students will understand how the Black Death impacted the social,
political and economic status of Europe during the Middle Ages.
The students will understand the historical significance of the Black Death
Critical Questions:
Why was the Black Death such a devastating event in European History?
How did the Black Death affect people in Europe?
Could you compare and contrast the Black Death to any type of illness
today? Explain.
Analyze the impact of the Black Death in Europe?
Materials:
Modified Text with information about the Black Death
Flowers (Red and White)
Graphic Organizer
Worksheet with pictures of the Black Plague
Regents multiple choice questions
Ring a- Round the Rosy
Comparison population chart
Teacher Instructional Strategies:
Three students will be asked to personify a merchant, a pilgrim, and a
crusader. Their task is to make contact with as many students as possible in
a time frame of 30 seconds. The merchant will be carrying the Bubonic
Plague and will infect as many students in the class as time permits. The
three students are significant of 1/3 of the population in Europe that was
devastated by the plague. Infected students will receive a white flower as a
symbol of his or her death. The other students will receive a red flower.
Following this activity, students will be given a reading about the effects of
the Bubonic Plague. The text has already been modified for ESL students.
Students will read a paragraph and complete the mini-chart containing
reaction, question, opinion, connection and relate. I will discuss this chart
with the students immediately following their completion.
Individual: Students will analyze a quote by the Italian writer Boccaccio.
Group: Students will get in pairs and answer regents multiple choice
questions related to the Black Plague.
Whole Class: will complete a graphic organizer on the origins, diffusion,
causes, transmission, effects and impact of the Black Plague
Evaluation
Students will complete a ticket to leave. They have to remember five facts
about the Black Plague.
The Black Death
In the mid-1300s, a deadly disease swept through Europe, killing
millions of people. It was called the Black Death. This was because of
the black spots that appeared on victims’ bodies.
The Black Death was an outbreak of the bubonic plague. It came from
the Middle East. It arrived in southern Italy in the summer of 1347.
Spain and France were struck next. It reached England in 1348,
Germany in 1349, and Russia in 1350.
Reaction:
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Question:
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Opinion:
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Connection:
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Relate
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The disease was spread by fleas and rats. Rats were common on
merchant vessels. As ships traveled to distant ports to trade, the
infected rats came with them. The fleas bit the rats, feeding on their
blood. The fleas then jumped on to people, biting and infecting them.
People who caught the disease developed a high fever, nausea, and
muscle pain. They would also become confused. The lymph nodes
throughout their bodies became enlarged and very painful. (The
inflamed lymph nodes are called buboes. The term "bubonic" comes
from the word "bubo.") Some infected people eventually recovered.
But many more grew worse and died within a few days.
The people of Europe had no way to fight the disease. They did not
know what caused it. And their bodies had no natural immunity to the
illness. So it spread easily from house to house and village to village.
The effects were worst in cities. This is because the cities were
crowded and had poor sanitation.
Reaction:
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Question:
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Opinion:
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Connection:
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Relate:
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Religious Effects
Most Europeans were devoutly religious. When the Black Death struck,
it challenged their beliefs. Some people blamed God. They could not
understand why he would allow the Black Death to destroy society. So
they stopped going to church. The Catholic Church suffered in other
ways as well. About 40 percent of England's clergy died between 1348
and 1350. Similar losses likely occurred in churches throughout
Europe. Meanwhile, new religious groups arose in response to the
plague and its horrors. In many cases, these groups showed strange
behavior. The most notable of these groups was the flagellants. Its
members believed that the Black Death was a punishment from God.
They whipped themselves as a way of atoning for humanity’s sins.
They hoped that God would see this and lift the plague.
Reaction:
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Question:
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Opinion:
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Connection:
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Relate:
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Another religious development was even more disturbing. Many
Christians already hated and distrusted Jews. So when the Black Death
arrived, some people blamed the Jews. The common belief was that
Jews spread the disease by poisoning Christian wells. Few questioned
why the plague struck Jews just as often as it did Christians. Fear
seized large parts of society. Driven by it, Christians persecuted Jews
all over Europe. Thousands of Jewish men, women, and children were
tortured and killed.
Reaction:
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Question:
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Opinion:
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Connection:
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Relate:
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Economic Effects
The Black Death also affected Europe’s economy. Many workers died,
and this often left large landowners with too few workers to manage
their vast estates. Serfs (the peasants who worked the lands) and
other poor tenants could now charge for their services. They also
demanded, and received, the right to rent their plots of land. They
were no longer mere slaves to the soil and the lord of the manor. This
dealt the European manorial system a blow from which it never
recovered.
Reaction:
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Question:
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Opinion:
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Connection:
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Relate:
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Results of the Black Death
The full impact of the Black Death on medieval Europe is unknown.
Modern scholars believe that close to a third of Europe's population
died between 1347 and 1350. More than 50 million people may have
died. Later, smaller outbreaks of the plague added to the death toll.
Europe’s population did not approach its pre-plague size until at least
the mid-1400s.
Reaction:
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Question:
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Opinion:
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Connection:
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Relate:
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Name_________________
Mrs. Pichardo
Global History and Geography 9R
Black Plague
The Italian writer Boccaccio said victims often “Ate lunch
with their friends, and ate dinner with their ancestors in
paradise”
1. Explain the meaning of the Quote by the Italian writer Boccaccio.
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2. Explain what you see in the picture above
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Name_________________
Mrs. Pichardo
Global History and Geography 9R
Black Plague
Estimated Population of Europe from 1000 to 1352.
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1000
1100
1200
1300
1347
1352
38 million
48 million
59 million
70 million
75 million
50 million
How many people died in just under five years between 1347 and
1352?
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Ring a-Round the Rosy (1347-1350)
Ring a-round the rosy
Pocket full of posies
Ashes, ashes!
We all fall down!
What is the meaning of this child nursery rhyme?
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Name_________________
Global History and Geography 9R
Black Plague
Causes
Transmission
Effects
Social
Impact
Political
Impact
Economic
Impact
Mrs. Pichardo
Black Plague