Tuesday, May 17, 2011

What Ever Caused the Happening of the Black Death?

In the 1300's Europe enjoyed trade that reached from China to Black Sea. In October 1347 an Italian merchant fleet docked in Micina, Sicily with jewels, silks and spices. The towns people were just appalled at the state of the sick sailors that arrived with the goods.Terrified, the people shipped the vessels right back out to sea at once. In such a hurry the citizrens forgot to untie all the ropes that connected the ships to docks and some rats that were aboard ship skattered down the ship and got onto the dock. This is how the whole situation started.
  Within weeks people all over Sicily were infected and dying. Of course this was the start of the plaugue so alot of commoners didn't know what this sickness was and how to take action. Three months later the bubonic plague had spread to mainland Italy. Some say the reason was because the Jews poisoned the water supply. Becasue of this many jews were exicuted and killed. Others said ridiculious conclusions such as the plague spread through lust ith old women. The most said reason was God was sending punishment to those who had sinned. Since the reason was looked at a religious view people did religious acts to cure and stop the happening. The plauge was spread from flea to people and the fleas were spread by rats. So the whole beggining was when the rats came onto the land from the dock.

What were the Symptoms of Black Death?

WOW, the symptoms were the WORST part of it all.The people who had the Black Death developed mumps under the arm and on the groin. The most common symptom was the BLACK bruises. This is how the Black Death got its name. Along with the bruises your tongue would turn black. Also, aches, chills, hemorrhaging under the skin and collapse of the nervous system weer also common. Hemorrhaging means excessive bleeding with out a case usually on eyes. The failure of the  nervous system caused bizarre dance like twitching movements.
     A lot of victims developed painful swelling of the lympnodes. Fever, exhaustion and a horrible smell were the last symptoms before death arrived. Decaying of the body also occurred, but the worst part was that you weren't even dead when this occurred. So it was like you were dying alive. Imagine suffering for a week with all of these horrible things happening to you. No matter what you tried to do to lessen the  pain you just couldn't stop it. Lympnodes grew to the size of eggs and mumps grew to the size of oranges.
  

How Long Did you Have to Live Once you had Black Death?

It really doesn't make since to most at all.You could be perfectly fine and the next day be dead as a doorknob. The time you had to live was just random.Some lived up to two weeks with the horrific symptoms and others lived for one night with it. The average time you had to live once infected was two to seven days. The people had a strange way of thinking back then, but it made sense. The quicker you died the luckier you were and the slower you died the worse. This was said because if you lived for a week then you had to endure all of the sypmtoms.As for if you lived for three days you'd only have to put up with a few minor symptoms.Those who waited for loved ones to die were in no despair because death was exspected and knew  that they were not in pain anymore.

Monday, May 16, 2011

Did the Black Death Ever Return Again?

The first bubonic plauge to enter Europe appeared in 1347 and subsided in 1351. Sadly, this peace of time ended in 1361 when the epidemic returned to kill AGAIN!!If that wasn't enough the plauge happened once again in 1369 and every decade for the rest of that century. Now, nobody knows what caused the Black Death to appear and reappear over and over again.The plauge most offen happened in the country because of the reasoning on how to avoid getting it. Many people died within this time frame from witch the Black Death came and left. You should now know all about the Black Death, the cause of many deaths and fall of civilizations, and what measures some people took to surrvive at this desperate time of need.

Was there ANY Possible Cure to the Black Death?

The doctors attempt nor the power of medicine did any good use to the victims of the Black Death. There was NO cure for the plague. So the ONLY option was to die!!!!! Many medical helpers didn't have the chance to find the cure from the fear of catching the plague themselves. I mean really, would you take care of somebody with taking the chance of dying yourself? Although there are no cures, this doesn't mean the people didn't at least try. Some attempts were herbs and a book of spells and charms. Many of the towns people believed that the magicians and gods were punishing them so they did many spiritual offerings. These people called apothecaries made medicine from natural ingredients and were a huge part in the role of caring for the sick. Most could never have the bravery to do that. The reason why the sick weren't usually cared for was because death was expected and because the plague was bubonic. Bubonic means that it can be spread from person to persons through air, interaction, and body fluids.
    Some citizens took the matter into their own hands which you can tell didn't work very well. People burned the clothes of the dead. This didn't work because in order to get the clothes of the dead you'd have to touch them and then you'd be infected. Whiles others burned clothes others took it to a whole other level. A group of men called "Flagellant Brothers," tried to stop the disease by whipping their bodies to punish themselves so that the gods could stop punishing them by the plague and they'd punish them selves. The most common cure for not trying to get the Black Death was to put on leather masks with beaks on them that resemble birds and would fill the nose with burning herbs.