The Black Death

A Children’s song with a DARK meaning

Ring-a-ring o' roses,
A pocket full of posies
A-tishoo! A-tishoo!
We all fall down
Who died?
● ⅓ Of Europe Died
● 33%-50% of the British Isles population died
1. Bubonic plague was spread by fleas which was carried on the
backs of rats
2. Pneumonic plague affected the lungs and breathing-mostly
children some historians suggest other diseases are also
involved- possibly anthrax
3. Many people were already weakened due to famine- poor
summer weather led to poor harvests
Plague Timeline
Summer 1348 Bubonic plague travels across the south of England
September 1348 Plague hits London
January 1349 Parliament decides to stop meeting
Spring 1349 Plague now spreads into East Anglia, Wales, and the Midlands
Summer 1349 Plague hits the North and Ireland
1350 The plague hits Scotland but eases off London
1361-64, 1368, 1371, 1373-75, 1390 The plague reappears
How do you stop a plague without scientific knowledge?
People at the time didn’t realise how the plague was caused or spread. Some
people thought it could be caught from the smell of diseased people, which is why
these people are covering their nose

They also covered their

windows with blankets to
prevent the smell from
getting in and spreading the
disease
They tried…
Medieval people tried all sorts of different tricks to stop themselves from getting
the plague. Some people carried herbs around with them, others carried flowers.
Some people burnt sweet-smelling wood in their houses, and other people just
prayed to God

● They also killed thousands of cats and dogs, thinking they were spreading the
plague. This backfired…
People had Different Explanation for the Black Death
People in the medieval times had no idea what germs were- they created their
own explanations
1) Some people thought it was an act of God, and that they were being punished
for their sins. People thought their very way of life was being punished
2) Some people were very superstitious, and thought it was the result of a curse
or an evil spirit
3) Some people thought they were being poisoned. Minorities and vulnerable
groups and individuals were blamed, especially poor people and Jews.
The Black Death had Social and Economic Benefits for Survivors

1) Initially some people blamed the poor for the Black Death. It took awhile for the King and the
nobility to realise that it would affect them too.
2) Killing off so much of the population did actually make life better for the poor people who
survived because it made them more valuable to society.
3) Before the plague struck, poor people had been forced to work on their Lord’s land, but now
they could ask for extra wages and better treatment because the Lords really needed the
peasants they had left.
4) Survivors were also able to buy or rent the spare land when other villagers died.
5) Workers now knew they could demand higher wages because so many people died from the
plague that there were fewer people to work the land.
6) It speeded up the breakdown and end of the feudal system, and meant that the ordinary
peasants had more freedom.
What Cultural and Social Factors Impacted how people were affected by the Black Death?