The Black Death of the 14th Century

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The Black Death of the 14th Century
The Black Death began in 1348 creating one of the most horrifying pandemics to ever happen in human history. After devastating millions of people, the Black Death finally came to an end in 1350. It is believed that it originated in Central Asia, and then spread throughout the Mediterranean and Europe area. Symptoms of the bubonic plague spread quickly across Europe killing almost one-third of its population, causing a dramatic change in the peasant's religious, social, and economic life.
What is the Black Death? The Black Death was a bubonic plague pandemic that struck England in the Fourteenth Century. The bubonic plague is a disease that occurs mainly in fleas and other small rodents, like rats. The Black Death was caused by fleas carried by rats, rats in which were very common in towns and cities (“The Black Death of 1348 to 1350”). The fleas would then bite into their victims, releasing the disease inside them. The disease, known as the Black Death, is caused by the bacterium, Yersinia pestis (“The Plague”). Once the disease got inside of the victim, symptoms such as the formation of buboes, which is swollen lymph nodes, start to appear under the arm, on the neck, or in the groin area. Normally followed by fever, chills, and muscle aches (“The Plague”). Other symptoms include, extremely foul odor of all body fluids, and gangrene of the finger, toes, and the nose. In the later stages, internal bleeding occurs forming black spots under the skin. This is what gave it the name, Black Death (“The Black Death of 1348 to 1350”). Most of the victims would die three to four days after the infection starts. The reason why it spread so quickly in towns and cities was because of how close people live...

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