1. Key Terms – The Bubonic Plague
The Little Ice Age
Bubonic Plague/Black Death
Epidemic
Flagellants
Babylonian Captivity of the Church
Avignon Papacy
Great Schism
Heretics

2. The Little Ice Age
Massive inflation struck during the early 14th Century.
A series of harsh winters diminished the yields of harvests for many years.
This period of successive harsh winters was known as the Little Ice Age.
The undernourishment of the citizens made contraction of disease far more likely

3. The Arrival of the Plague
In 1347, ships returning from Asia had docked in Italy and Sicily.
Many of the crew members had symptoms of an unknown disease including boils, horrible coughs and fever and within days they died.
This disease is known historically as the Bubonic Plague or the Black Death.

4. What is Bubonic Plague?
The Bubonic Plague, known today as Yersinia Pestis, managed to kill more than 25 million people in Europe alone.
Its symptoms included:
Chills
Fever
Gangrene of the extremities
Respiratory Edema in many cases
Buboes on the skin → pockets of rotted blood.
Seizures, delirium

5. Bubonic Plague

6. Bubonic Plague

7. Spread of the Plague
Europeans did not believe that they could be infected by an Asian disease (Europeans had no knowledge of how disease is transmitted) and therefore did not close their ports.
The port city of Messina finally turned ships away but not before many black rats on board went into the city and spread the plague.
The disease would then make its way into the interior of Europe and become an epidemic → widespread disease.

8. Reactions - Social
People had little to no idea as to how to react to the plague, hence many different methods to prevent it and also decipher its origin were taken.
Some beliefs to its origin include:
Miasmas or bad air
Poisoning by the Jewish peoples
Punishment by God

9. Attempts to Cure
Considering the lack of medical knowledge during the time, many different attempts at a cure were taken.
Some included:
Flagellation → whipping oneself to punish
Bloodletting → releasing all of one's blood in hopes of removing the disease.
Magic and potions → mixtures and spells
Quarantine → complete separation from society.

10. Economic Impact
Many children were orphaned during this period which led to groups of homeless children and adults raiding farms and estates for any food.
Monks and priests died attempting to administer last rites to the infected → led to a growth of illiteracy and decline of faith in the church.
Inflation became rampant.
Labor shortages → benefited the lower classes, especially serfs since they could now leave and pick and choose which places to work.
Many masters began to tax heavily, limit freedoms and in other cases do without labor and sheep herd.
Nonetheless, the power relationships changed because the labor could now control the owner.

11. Changes in the Church
Conflicts grew out before the plague in which rulers began to try to control the growth of the church by charging taxes.
Phillip IV of France would attempt to tax Pope Boniface VIII which would fail and lead to the kidnapping of the pope as a result.
The imprisonment of the pope was known as the Babylonian Captivity of the Church since it was now under the control of the French kings.
The papacy would be moved to Avignon in and would remain there until 1377.

12. Further Changes in the Church
In 1378, two popes were elected, one for Rome and one for Avignon.
Some countries wanted to keep the French pope while others respected the Roman pope, this conflict would be known as the Great Schism which would end in 1417.

13. Results The plague had lasting effects on society at large:
People lost faith in the church because they felt abandoned during the plague and also believed many profited from the sickness of others.
Many who stood up against the corruption and failure of the church were viewed as heretics → those who go against canon or church law
Serfs gained more power and owners lost power due to the change in economic relations.