The worst disease to affect Europe in the Middle Ages was the bubonic plague, also known as ‘the Black Death’. This peaked between 1347 and 1350 and is estimated to have killed at least a third of Europe’s population. The plague was carried by fleas, which are thought to have first arrived via ships’ rats from the Black Sea area and to have spread with the trade network throughout Europe.
The symptoms included oozing swellings all over the body, darkly discoloured skin and the filling of the lungs with phlegm. It was extremely contagious and could be contracted by sneezing, spitting or touching dead bodies. It spread quickly in towns and as it worsened, bodies were simply left in the street to be collected. This only spread it even faster. Once infected, people had a 70–80% chance of dying within a week.
DID YOU KNOW?
People at the time had no idea what caused the plague or how to avoid catching it. Many believed it was a result of God’s anger at human sin and sought to cure it through prayer, fasting or even beating themselves with whips. Others blamed groups who were outsiders – especially Jews, who were accused of deliberately infecting towns with the plague.
This alarming costume was worn by doctors trying to fight the plague! Every inch of skin was covered by boots, breeches, gloves, a mask with glass eyes, their doctor’s hat and a long overcoat smeared in fat or wax, all in the hope of repelling infection. The beak of the mask was filled with dried flowers and herbs, vinegar or scented oils to mask the stench of the dead and dying.
Art showing the dead dancing or inviting the living to dance, called a danse macabre or Totentanz, was common at this time
