he plague struck hard and fast. A person could go from complete health to death within a few days. People must have felt terrified and powerless. But what caused the plague and how did it spread so quickly?
The plague was caused by a small flea which lived on black rats. The disease came from China, where it had started in the 1330 ´s, and was spread by the trade routes to the Black Sea. The town of Kaffa on the Crimea was stricken during a war in 1346. Bodies of the soldiers who had died from the plague were left in the town. Many of the citizens were Italian merchants. They brought the disease with them to Europe. By way of the great towns of Genoa, Florence, Paris and London, the Black Death was spread to the Nordic countries with an English merchant ship in 1349.
The plague spread easily in the towns, as they were so crowded. People lived very close to one another, and it was not always very clean.
What did people believe to be the cause of the plague in the 14th century? They did not know about the flea. Some thought it was God’s punishment for the sins that people had committed. Others thought that the aspects of the planets were unfavourable. Astrology was considered a science at this time. Some thought that certain people were to blame. In Europe, many blamed the Jews. A lot of Jews were killed and persecuted. Others thought that dogs spread the plague, and so the dogs were killed. Most people, however, had no idea. They were completely powerless. Seeing one dead body after another made them wonder if anybody at all would survive. Was the end of the world near?
The bubonic plague, pneumonic plague and septemic plagueCures