Dark Ages with the Bubonic Plague

The Bubonic Plague, otherwise known as the Black Death was a raging disease. A virus that
affected rats and other rodents and was transmitted to humans through parasites that lived on
those animals such as fleas. When the virus passed into the blood, it produced black spots on the
body due to hemorrhages, hence the name “black plague”. Most people thought of it as the
physical Grim Reaper of their town or community. The disease lasted about six years, 1347 to
1352.
The disease spread through a bacteria called Yersinia Pestis. The bacteria itself can clog small
blood vessels, causing them to burst. The waiting period for the plague is about one to three days,
just to show symptoms, soon dead within forty-eight hours. The disease was a major depopulator.
The disease flared and raged so quickly there wasn’t enough time to bury all the dead, so they
mainly waited until the end and held a large memorial service. The disease itself was ripping apart
the very fabric of society.
The virus attacks the lymph nodes and lungs. The buboes formed from the virus are usually formed
in the groin or armpit depending on the closest lymph node. The plague is highly contagious,
spread by speaking, coughing, and sneezing. There were about fifteen million in Southwest Asia.
Even more about thirty-five million dead in China. Finally, there were about twenty-five million
dead in Western Europe. The Middle Ages became so depopulated that the economy changed. In
the economy laborers demanded more pay, meanwhile changing their work status.
The only measure that managed to be useful at that time was the burning of clothes, skins and
carpets of the sick, because it killed fleas.
The bubonic plague was an unexpected, unknown and fatal host, whose origin and therapy were
unknown; on the other hand, it affected everyone, hardly distinguishing between rich and poor.