Read more about building the old Globe Theatre. The Black Death was a plague pandemic which devastated medieval Europe from 1347 to 1352 CE, killing an estimated 25-30 million people. As the disease was spread by rodents and fleas, it did lessen its ill effects in the winters but used to spread its arms in the summers and springs again. Realizing that the Italian merchants had brought the disastrous plague to them, the people of Sicily threw them out of the city. Looking to physical health, many recommendations from Elizabethan doctors hinged on the theory that disease spread by way of a foul smelling miasma. Thus far we have examined only the large-scale responses to plague, but individual Elizabethans also took steps to protect themselves. There was a total lack of a structured sewage system in Elizabethan London. Elizabethan medical treatment for head pains was with sweet-smelling herbs such as rose, lavender, sage, and bay. The plague killed so many people. The Black Death, also known as the bubonic plague, was a disease that devastated Medieval Europe, between 1346 and 1352 it killed 45 million people, wiping out a third of Europe's population. Plague is an ancient disease that was described during Classical times as occurring in North Africa and the Middle East. Some doctors even tried treatment with arsenic, dried toad or lily roots. The symptoms for this plague were extremely painful and death was the most likely outcome in most cases. They had symptoms that included fever, unable to eat, pain that was so bad they became crazy. Going further, physicians urged Elizabethans to perfume both their clothes and their houses to discourage any infection, and to leave clothes out in the sun to air out after any contact with the infected. He is someone who writes essentially a morality tale at the end, tracing the beginnings of a citizen who decides he and his wife are going to flee from London to escape the plague. The Globe Theatre was built between 1597 and 1599 in Southwark on the south bank of London's River Thames, funded by Richard Burbage and built by carpenter Peter Smith and his workers. The 16th century wasnt one of the brightest for the people of the Elizabethan Era. A famine broke out, and it is now known as the famine before the plague. This caused food shortages, which began to worry the people. In the medieval year 1347, Italian merchant ships carried plague inflicted people when it entered Sicily Port after travelling to China. Marilyn Chase (Goodreads Author) (shelved 1 time as black-plague) avg rating 3.82 1,045 ratings published 2003. People could not go to Catholic services. The fleas could actually spread the bacteria on their own, without ever involving the poor rats. Modern genetic analyses indicate that the strain of Y. pestis introduced during the Black Death is . But the spread of the disease still continued Information about the Medical Profession during the Elizabethan eraThe Elizabethan churches administered to the Black Death (Bubonic Plague) victims but very little other help was given and food was rarely distributed. (Cultural) Medieval society did not know what caused the plague or how it spread. Information regarding the handling of the Bubonic plague (Black Death), symptoms, medical treatment and cure used during the Elizabethan era are fully described below. No one was sure how the Death spread, and this combined with the fast course the disease took and the primitive medical practices of the time allowed for the disease to spread through the continent in devastating time. The Black Plague Queen Elizabeth herself, then 29, was attacked by the virus that causes high fever, vomiting, excessive bleeding, and pus-filled scabs that leave deep pitted scars. The above picture is of an Elizabethan Physician. Only the very wealthy would receive the ministrations of an Elizabethan Physician who would have received an education at one of the Universities. There was no known cure at the time, and the bacteria spread very quickly and would kill an infected person within two days, which led to structural public policies, religious, and medical changes in Europe. Plague victims were locked in their houses for 40. The third plague pandemic occurred later, in the middle of the 19th century and originated in Eastern Asia. Still others had the infected person sit near a fire or in the sewer in an attempt to drive out the fever with heat. Merchant ships and rodents were the two main ways this disease spread and infected humans (The Black Death 1348). The summers and winters were harsh not helping with the crop harvesting. It was one of the worst epidemics in history; the Black Plague hit some villages while skipping over others, but sources report it wiped out a third of Europe's population in a matter of a few years. This time was a period of unprecedented prosperity and advances in poetry, music, theater and literature. Disease and plagues killed major parts of the population, the bubonic plague, for example, claimed the lives of perhaps a third of Europes population in five years. Sir William Davenant ( possible an illegitimate son of William Shakespeare ) his associates and his career and life in Elizabethan England. Originating in Asia, it spread west along the trade routes across Europe and arrived on the British Isles from the English province of Gascony. The Black Death occurred during the Hundred Years War. Innumerable cows, sheep, pigs, goats, and chickens perished along with people. 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars. The plague had an enormous social effect, killing much of the population and encouraging new health reforms, it also had religious effects by attracting the attention of the Catholic Church, and lastly, it affected the trade around Europe, limiting the transportation of goods. Black Death reigned terror till the mid 14th century. Like every other aspect, the black death had a significant impact on the economy of Europe in medieval times. The Black Death entered south-western England in Summer 1348 and by all accounts struck Bristol with shocking force. In England the rodent affected was the black rat, Rattus rattus. Queen Elizabeth was terrified of the disease and implemented quarantine measures to try to ensure the safety of herself and her courtiers. These pits were approximately 20 feet deep - the width of the pit would continue to be extended as the outbreak of the Bubonic plague (Black Death)spread. The impact of closure must have been extremely frightening, not to mention the threat of the Black Death ( Bubonic Plague ) itself. Click here for more information on Elizabethan England, World and Medieval History of the Black Death and Bubonic Plague - How the disease spread and Nationalities affected, Black Death and Bubonic Plague - Modern day symptoms, cure and medical treatment. Crime and Punishment in Elizabethan England A contemporary description of crime and punishment in Shakespeare's . Statistics show that 1000 people died weekly in mid August, 1600 per week in September, and 1800 per week in October. First arriving in Europe through sick merchants on Genoese trading ships that docked in Sicily, the plague caused boils, fever, diarrhea, horrible pain, and shortly, death. There were Elizabethan surgeons, but these had a similar reputation to the barbers and the usual route that most people took was to visit the apothecary, or dispenser of drugs. The fear that people felt just to survive resulted in some of the darkest times in the history of . Survivors of the Black Death felt that they were special, chosen specifically by God to be saved (Trueman), and after this the lower class began to demand more economic and social equality. The principal ideas underpinning most Elizabethan medical thinking come from Galen, who lived in the second century A.D. Physicians will cite him as an unquestionable authority when they explain to you that your health depends on a balance of the four humors: yellow bile or choler, black bile, phlegm, and blood. Plague disease struck and killed people in no time, leaving behind decaying bodies and terrible fear in the minds of the healthy ones. Inadequate hygiene standards added to the problem and spread of the disease. Medieval towns had no system of drains, sewers or trash collections. Britain's first black community in Elizabethan London. They had to pay for rents and taxes. Workers were in high demand and the peasants knew it. The reality, as it usually is, was somewhat messier. Information about the Spread of the Black Death / Bubonic Plague in Elizabethan LondonIn 1563, in London alone, over 20,000 people died of the disease. One of the worst outbreaks of smallpox occurred two years before Shakespeare's birth, in 1562. Mary Stuart was the queen in Scotland. A ship had arrived in Europe with many people that had the Black Death. At this time, most pandemics were deadly since there was no medicine or technology. The rats then spread it to fleas that lived on their . One of the reasons the Plague was so deadly is that it had such a short incubation period -- and was extremely contagious. It was an act 'agaynst Conjuracions Inchauntmentes and Witchecraftes'. It was a terrible spectacle and death followed suit.the Black death. Threats of imprisonment were made as encouragement to undertake these tasks and this consequence was suffered by anyone who refused the role. The plague attacked and kill around 25% and 45% of the societies it touch and/or encountered.The plague was made of three bacterial strains which created the three plagues called bubonic, pneumonic, and septimic. Inadequate hygiene standards added to the problem and spread of the disease. The first occurred during the Byzantine Empire in the 6th century and killed an estimated 25 million people. As per their analysis, Giant Gerbils (rodents) and their explosive population in Asia along with plague bacteria-infected fleas was the primary source of the airborne disease. Soon, black spots began appearing in the skin and huge boils started developing in the groins or armpits. Victims also suffered a very high fever, delirium, the victim begins to vomit, muscular pains, bleeding in the lungs and mental disorientation. The Black Death was a devastating global epidemic of bubonic plague that struck Europe and Asia in the mid-1300s. Trade connections got weakened. The Elizabethan era was truly a dangerous time. The country area and villages were not exempt from the disease either - there was no hiding place. Some also suffered "great dolor of head with heaviness,. Vinegar was widely used as a cleansing agent as it was believed that it would kill disease. Listen Now 1. The diet was mostly made of beer, milk, cheese and bread. Elizabethan Physicians adopted protective costumes against the disease in the 16th century. The black Death originated in Italy and rapidly spread throughout Europe due to poor city sanitization and overcrowding in major cities. The plague reached Europe through the sea in October 1348. Abandoning the affected ones was the real ecstasy them. The plague arrived in Europe in. Some historians however claim that the plague wiped out nearly 2/3rd of the entire European population. While it is true that the living conditions in Europe at this time were not ideal, this was not the real reason for the spread of the disease. One of the names for the plague was "The Pestilence." There were high mortality rates amongst Elizabethan children and this was true of the brothers and sisters of Shakespeare some of whom were struck down by the Bubonic plague (Black Death). A group transporting the spoils of a Spanish carrack from Dartmouth couldn't get further than Greenwich due to the . Amulets of dried blood and ground-up toads were worn at the waists of the Elizabethan Physicians. Yes, this talks about death and epidemics that used to kill hundreds and thousands in the medieval ages that had no specific cure and hence, was really terrifying. The black plague, also known as the black death, was an epidemic that swept through Europe, starting in 1347. Animals and human beings contract dangerous disease from flea or rodent bites. 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