Black Plague By: Alex Diep, Jessica Smith, And Kathryn Smith

Table Of Contents  What is it?  Where did it spread?  How did it spread?  Symptoms  Eyam And The Black Death  Bibliography

What is it?  Disease that began in rodents  Caused by a bacterium called Yesinia pestis  Three forms: bubonic plague, pneumonic plague, septicemic plague

What is it? (cont.)  The deadly disease has been with man and part of world and medieval history for a very long time. It has claimed nearly 200 MILLION lives. The first recorded epidemic of the Black Death / Bubonic Plague was in Europe during the 6th Century. The disease truly became pandemic in the medieval period of the history of the world. During this period a third of the world population died. We tend to associate the history of this terrible disease with Europe however it originated in the Gobi Desert.

Where did it spread?  Started from Central Asia  Spread though all trade routes to all countries

How did it spread?  It spread from fleas to rodents  Where ever rodents went, fleas followed. Since rodents went everywhere, that’s where the plague went.  People left their garbage in the streets the perfect breeding ground for the rodents

How did it spread? (cont.)  The disease spread throughout the Western world and reached pandemic proportions due to changes in lifestyle - people were moving from the country villages to highly populated towns. The formation of major cities and increased travel by various world civilizations, the disease rapidly spread throughout Asia. The Black Death (Bubonic Plague) followed the Trade Routes. The Trade routes provided access to all corners of the known world. The increased use of the trade routes ensured that the disease spread throughout the World. We should also remember that it was not just Europe and Africa that were devastated by the deadly disease. Countries such as China suffered horrendously from the 1328 outbreak with their population dropping from 125 million to 90 million during just the middle half of 14th century.

Symptoms  Bubonic plague: headaches, chills, fever, red rashes, stomach cramps and vomiting, tarry diarrhea, shortness of breath and low blood pressure, trouble sleeping and violent thrashing, and swollen lymph nodes (buboes).  Pneumonic plague: coughing up blood, fever, headache, weakness, shortness of breath, chest pain, and respiratory failure  Septicemic plague: abdominal pain, blood clotting, diarrhea, fever, low blood pressure, nausea, organ failure, vomiting. Most likely to die before having any symptoms.

Symptoms Continued

Eyam And The Black Death  Black Plague took the lives of million of Europeans from the 14 th until the 17 th century. In England, its destruction stayed mainly in the south of England concentrating around the poor quarters of London. But for one small village in England’s rural north, the plague would be devastating and historic. The case of the small village of Eyam in Derbyshire is famed throughout England and serves in the modern age of an example of the importance of self quarantine in the face of deadly disease.  The Plague in Eyam raged for 14 months and claimed the lives of at least 260 villagers. By 1st November 1666 it had run its course and claimed its last victim. Eyam's selfless villagers, with their strong Christian convictions, had shown immense personal courage and self sacrifice. They had prevented the plague from spreading to other parishes, but many paid the ultimate price for their commitment.

Bibliography  When Plague Strikes: The Black Death, Smallpox, AIDS by James Cross Giblin (New York 1995)  help/87579-how-did-the-black-plague-spread/ help/87579-how-did-the-black-plague-spread/  at_plague_of_166.htm at_plague_of_166.htm  plague-world-history.htm plague-world-history.htm  in-eyam-a-case-of-ill-fate/ in-eyam-a-case-of-ill-fate/