Elizabethan Era Sanitation Essay

SANITATION: The sanitation in England in the Elizabethan era was terrible and greatly contributed to the influx of many diseases at the time. This was due partly to the fact that the citizens of England had no concern or motive to improve their polluted living environment. The people of England weren’t aware that their eco-destructive habits were ultimately affecting their health and exposing themselves to diseases.

This was also the main reason the public health of England was in such a poor condition. For example, England’s streets and towns were a breeding ground for disease and germs.

overcrowded due to the overpopulation

horse and human excretion on the ground

corpses were left to rot on the gallows

heads of the executed decaying on

poles
polluted water and rivers
rats and mice roaming around (spread disease)

WASTE: The method of waste and rubbish disposal in the 16th century was for the convenience of the Elizabethans and was not environmentally friendly as people weren’t aware of the consequences back then.

The most common way of getting rid of rubbish was to empty their latines and garbage into cesspits, which were then emptied into middens which is the equivalent of a landfill. Waste was also emptied into streams or rivers, like the River Thames which contaminated the water and lead to epidemics in England.

This contributed to why water was a significant problem in England. There was no running water in houses so citizens would have to obtain water from the public fountain or from water carries. Both of these water sources were pumped in from the rivers, which were highly polluted from the town’s constant disposal of sewage and waste into it. Unlike today, there was no sewage system to organise waste and maintain the quality of water.

TOILETS: Chamber Pots were portable clay bowls that were used by Elizabethans to go to the bathroom in. They were very common during the 1500s because toilets were usually located outside the house. Citizens would empty their chamber pots full of toilet waste, out into the street with people walking by. When people did this they would shout ‘Gardyloo’, derived from the french expression which means ‘mind the water’. Their toilet waste would remain in the streets due to the lack of underground pipes and drainage throughout the towns and allow disease

to spread and grow.

MEDICAL:
In the 16th century in England, the knowledge of medicine or the human anatomy was very little. Doctors in the Elizabethan era were becoming desperate because masses of people were dying of infectious diseases. Even the common cold could kill someone as a cure had not yet been created. Elizabethan doctors experimented and applied any cures or treatments that might work.

Unfortunately, in the Elizabethan times, receiving medical treatment was a luxury only the wealthy.

The average fee for a Doctor would be 10 shillings, which was more than most Elizabethans could afford. The poor had to resort to depending on the assistance of the church for comfort.

TREATMENTS:

Broken bones, fractures and wounds were treated in unhygienic conditions which ultimately caused the injury to become worse

There was no such thing as ‘clean’ surgical instruments, so it was likely the patient’s wound would get infected

The treatment for broken bones would be the doctor physically setting the bones back in place - with their hands

The cure for a toothache was getting the tooth pulled out

There were no forms of anaesthetics for surgeries or bone-setting, which made the procedures excruciatingly painful

During the Black Death, plague doctors would wear a leather mask with a bird-like beak on the nose of it. This was to prevent the doctors from breathing the infected air

Urine and vinegar were used as antiseptics

The most common and attainable medicine for poor and wealthy Elizabethans was mixtures of

herbs

PLAGUE CURES: Plague doctors had a few tactics in attempt to cure people of the disease:
Having the patient carry flowers or wear strong odours
Wear lucky charms, for example a rabbit's foot
Blood-letting, which was a method of draining blood from veins in hope of balancing the patient’s bodily fluids
Using leeches on the patient to get rid of the ‘infected blood’
Covering the patient in mercury and placing them in the oven. The combination of mercury and heat were believed to kill the plague
These cures for the plague were all ineffective and some were even deathly. Blood-letting could cause the patient to lose a dangerous amount of blood or face cardiac arrest. Using the tactic of mercury and ovens could increase the risk of death as mercury is poisonous and the heat of the oven could cause severe burns.

To achieve a paper-white pale complexion, women in the higher-class, even Queen Elizabeth I used to apply ceruse lead powder on their faces as a foundation. This would have been beneficial for beauty purposes although, lead is highly toxic and the use of it as a cosmetic could lead to lead poisoning, damage of the skin, loss of hair or even death. The usage of lead powder most likely caused Queen Elizabeth I’s hair to fall out and shortened her lifespan.