What is black death and what does black death mean?

Answer 1

Answer:

The Black Death was very dangerous and contagious and destroyed 2/3's of Europe's population and it killed people in a strange manner. People who weren't affected went crazy in fear of catching it and the people who caught it usually died within 7 days. In those times doctors were not very advanced and they mostly believed in superstition, so 70% of people who caught it died. It was slow and painful.

This was very dangerous as it spread all over the world and many people were at risk of catching it. The people who didn't catch it were very few and were very lucky. The Black Death was so dangerous that even kings and the people of the highest positions were in danger of catching it. Nothing could stop it and nothing could stop it spreading.

People in those times were very superstitious and believed it was a punishment from God. So flagellates stood in the streets and whipped themselves and said it was cleaning them of their sins. The Kings also believed this and sent out their men to whip the people in the streets to clean them of the sins to so the Black Death would come to a halt. Overall, the Black Death was a very painful disease once caught. It wiped out 2/3's of the Europe's population, destroyed the feudal system, killed people in a painful way and was driving the people crazy.

And it was REALLY bad, also, the song, "Ring a Round a Rosie" was named after it Answer:

The Black Death, also known as the Bubonic Plague, was a pandemic that swept through Europe between 1346 and sporadically until the late 1700's; peaking between 1347-1351. As it ravaged Europe the Black Death killed anywhere from 25-50 million Europeans and severely damaged Europe socially and economically. The drop in population also had the effect of reducing the available supply of labour; increasing wages and decreasing the ability to impose feudalism and serfdom on peasants.

The plague was transmitted by infected fleas carried by the very common Black Rat. The flea would bite the infected rat, and the deadly bacteria would grow in its system. When the flea bit a human, the flea's saliva and the bacteria would enter the bloodstream. Or, in the case of the Pneumonic form of the plague, drops of bacteria- infected saliva were inhaled.

In Medieval Europe, sanitation was virtually nonexistent, cities were crowded and filthy, and hunger was prevalent- the perfect environment for disease to spread. With no idea what the cause of the plague was, people turned to religious beliefs, and sometimes folk superstition. Many believed that the Black Death was God's judgment on Europe's sin.

The plague manifested itself in three basic forms, with varying degrees of fatality. The most common was the swelling of the lymph nodes (tissue around the throat, armpits, and groin). The skin around the site of the swelling would first redden and then darken, and the victim would suffer nausea and very high fever. 30-80% of victims died, most of which within a week.

The second most common manifestation of the plague was the Pneumonic form, which attacked the lungs. People hit by this would cough up blood with phlegm, which would eventually thin to liquid consistency and become bright red. High fever also accompanied this. The mortality rate was extremely high: 90-95%.

The third and rarest form was the septicemic plague, which was also the most deadly at almost 100% mortality rate. In its worst form, the skin would swell and blacken due to blood clots blocking veins and arteries. Victims often died the same day symptoms appeared.

It was 229 years after the Great Plague dealt London such a terrible blow that the probable cause of the disease was discovered. In 1894, during an epidemic in Hong Kong, two rival research teams - one led by the Japanese scientist Shibasaburo Kitasato and the other by the Frenchman Alexandre Yersin, a former pupil of Louis Pasteur - isolated the bacillus Pasteurella pestis (now called Yersinia pestis) that is responsible for plague.

Further research showed that this was a disease of black rats and other rodents, spread by their fleas. When all the rats died, the fleas would frantically look for new hosts: human beings. The plague bacillus is extremely virulent. Laboratory mice die after being infected with just three bacilli - and fleas can disgorge up to 24,000 in one bite.