The+Plague

​THE PLAGUE The time period between 1550 and 1650 is often referred to as the Elizabethan Era. During this time period, general hygiene was rare (Lee 179) and disease was prevalent. One example that struck Elizabethan England quite hard was the plague. Just in the 1500s, there were five epidemics that hit England. There were also three times in the 1600s where the plague was prevalent. The plague was an epidemic far worse than a cold or the flu. The most important aspects of the plague are the different forms of it along with how it is spread, how it affected England during this time period, and the treatments and cures that were available at the time.

There are three different forms of the plague. The two primary forms are the Bubonic plague and the Pneumonic plague. The Bubonic form was the most common and was frequently referred to as the "Black Plague" because in some instances the victim's extremities turned black. Bubonic plague was also characterized by swollen, purple blotches under the skin called buboes and the fact that it killed more than half of its victims. It begins as nausea and pain in the limbs or back, progresses to high fever and buboes with swelling in the groin or armpit, and often ends with death. This form usually took place over a period of 5-7 days and was about 60% fatal to those who fell victim to it. The Pneumonic form infected the lungs. It comes about from the settling of bacteria in the lungs. This form was nearly 100% fatal. (Andrews 97, Olsen 543) The third form of the plague, which was the least common but not unheard of, is called the Septicemic plague. It often appeared as a complication of untreated Bubonic or Pneumonic plague. This disease was rarely spread from person. In this case, the victim gets the disease in the boodstream (usually through a cut or wound) as opposed to the lungs or lymph nodes. This causes substantial damage to blood and circulation system, and as a result the extremities of the body lose blood supply, become infected, and turn black. (william-shakespeare.info) The plague is transmitted by a microscopic virus, //Yersinia pestis//, carried by fleas that bit both rats and humans. It was spread by fleas that picked up the infection from diseased rats. Fleas can jump alarmingly high, easily moving from person to person. The plague spread rapidly in the overcrowded cities, especially London, wiping our entire communties at a time. (Elgin 14) In London, the homeowners were required to keep the street in front of their houses clean. So, the people piled their wastes and food scraps at the end of street for "cityrakers" to collect. This was a perfect place for rats to reside. Another misconception, as experts came closer to finding the the cause the plague, was that it was spread directly by the rodents that infested Elizabethan London. An outbreak of the bubonic plague was likely when a large population of infected rats and warm, dry weather came together. Both rats and fleas were so common that no one thought to blame them for the disease. Instead the blame was put on the foreigners and the air quality. (Olsen 543) Even the doctors and most educated of the town, had no idea where the disease was coming from. At this time, fleas were normal, and everyone itched and scratched from them. One of the educated, Dr. Hodges, blamed the plague on "poisonous streams". Another London physician, Dr. William Boghurst, said the plague became and epidemic when it was helped by standing and stagnant waters. (Shields 17-18)
 * THE DIFFERENT FORMS OF IT & HOW IT IS SPREAD**

**TREATMENTS & CURES** During the Elizabethan time period, there wasn't much difference between advice from doctors and "old wives' tales". Both were taken to with great participation. Some of the "old wives' tales" included herbal teas and beers, chopped onions and cloves, or smoking charcoal. (Lee 181) Other victims and residents of Elizabethan England carried sweet herbs and scented handkerchiefs due to their fear of the disease being spread through the air. (Elgin 14) Another common, but shaky cure was the use of amulets. These were small objects used as a magic charm to ward off the evil that some believed was the cause of their illness and punishment for their sins. Some doctors thought that bleeding the victim to drain the "pestilence" from their blood was the only logical treatment. One way they did this was cutting into their patients, but another was by way of leeches. Physicians used the bloodsucking worms as a further way to bleed their patients. (Andrews 97) Yet another treatment was rubbing the swellings with salt and burning them with hot irons. (Elgin 15)

**THE EFFECT ON ENGLAND & IT'S PEOPLE** Because the plague was so greatly widespread, it had largely devastating effects for Elizabethan England. It got to the point that a list of deaths was posted every week and theaters were closed during major outbreaks to prevent the spread of the disease among the audience. (Elgin 14, Andrews 47) Just in the 1500s, there were 5 serious epidemics of the plague, but the early 1600s were worse. (Andrews 97) There were 3 times in the early 17th century where the outbreaks were extremely devastating, killing over 151,000 people in London. (Shields 18) By 1603, the population of England had on recovered to about 4 million from the outbreaks during the late 16th century when there was another outbreak. The epidemic of 1603 killed 37, 294 people. The epidemic of 1625 killed 35,417 people, and another 10,400 perished in 1636. (18-19) In less than a year, more than 1 in every 7 people or 68,000 had fallen victim to the Bubonic plague. During the devastation of the 1630s, many people attempted to flee the city, only to be turned away by neighboring cities in case they were a potential carrier of the plague. (19)

Killing tens of thousands at a time, the plague devastated England, especially London, and the people who lived there during the Elizabethan Era. The plague spread by fleas, and indirectly by rats, was anything but rare. With dire and dreadful symptoms and the likelihood of death at the end, it was the most feared thing of the time period. No one knew of the best cures for the disease, but there were many different practices that people believed would treat the plague. It is most important for people to know how the plague is spread, the different forms of it, the treatments and cures people thought worked, and it's effect on Elizabethan England in order to prevent epidemics like those from the Elizabethan Era.





Cheyenne Kelso P6 Honors English