Black Death of 1347

The Great Pestilence

Rooted in Asia, The Black Death or Bubonic Plague first arrived in Europe in October 1347, when 12 ships from the Black Sea docked at the Sicilian port of Messina.

People gathered at the docks to welcome the new arrivals, only to discover that most of the mariners were dead, while others were covered in black boils that oozed blood and pus.

Authorities immediately forced the ships to sail from port, but the great pestilence was injected into Europe despite the Sicilian’s containment efforts.

Bubonic Plague Symptoms and Definition

The symptoms of Bubonic plague include fever and chills, severe headaches and malaise, nausea, vomiting, seizures, delirium and death. The term bubonic derives from the ancient Greek word Bubo, meaning swollen gland, or in the case of bubonic plague, swollen lymphatic glands. Buboes generally appear in the armpits and groin of their victim.

According to chroniclers during the Black Death, other symptoms included petechiae (pateake i), or bruised, purplish skin splotches on the chest, back and neck. During the Great Pestilence, this condition became known as God’s tokens, since petechiae (pateake i) always meant that the victim had a fatal case of the disease.

Diarists also reported that victims who appeared to be on death’s door from plague smelled like they were as well. Black Death was caused by the transmission of the Yersinia pestis bacteria from rats to humans, borne by the Xenopsylla cheopis (zenopsila key ops) flea.

Prior to the outbreak of plague, Europe experienced a period of torrential rains, which reduced crop yields and forced overcrowding of fleas to hitch rides on rats, who in turn descended upon cities in search of dwindling food supply.

The Bubonic Plague’s Death Toll

This tandem migration of a different sort of pestilence spelled disaster for the spread of the bubonic plague. How many people died in the Great Pestilence can only be speculated, but for Europe, the most widely accepted mortality stands at a third of her population, or 25 million lives.

In parts of Italy, England and France the death toll was much higher; upward of 50 to 60%. Losses in the Mid East and North Africa also struck down a third of her people, while China lost nearly half. If plague were to erupt today under the same conditions as medieval Europe, Black Death would cost the lives of well over 2 billion innocent lives.