The Black Death: Devastation and Consequences in 14th Century Europe

The Black Death killed millions of people during the fourteenth century and changed the course of Europe's destiny? What would have happened if the Black Death never occurred? It simply did not exist. But what is the black death? And how did this affect the world?

The Black Death, also know as “bubonic plague” is a disease caused by bacterium Yersinia pestis that spread out to most of Asia, the middle east, and Europe (Benedictow). This outbreak wiped out one-third of the European population placing it under one of the most devastating times in human history. With death tolls adding up and with Europe’s population clustered, the cities growing and sanitation almost nonexistent leads to why Europe was hit the hardest with the plague. Symptoms of the plague caused raging fevers, vomiting and dark painful swellings called “buboes” which caused spots on the skin to turn black and later resulted in death (Book) Villages and cities, rich and poor is wiped out in a matter of days. People panicked and many fled their homes and moved into other cities to keep away from the disease but learned that later spread the disease to their neighbor’s villages and continuing the spread.

Where did this plague come from? The true origin of the disease is not clear but historians believe areas in central Eurasia such as China where rodents roam free are

Before the outbreak of the illness, Europe’s population was already collapsing because it had grown too large to support itself and by the time the plague had hit. Europe was lacking resources to sustain itself and famine were on the rise which means more mouths to feed and not enough food to support. Peasants would be hit the hardest since they could not afford much, resulting in an increase of criminal activities such as stealing and killing for money or food. The Black Death in a way brought enough time for Europe to recover and is an excuse for getting rid of most of its