The Effects of the Black Death

Posted by Rachel Bellerby Jun 16, 2008

However, it is clear that the plague wiped out around forty percent of the population of Europe, with higher death rates in many areas.

What made the Black Death so frightening for medieval people is the fact that there was no cure and no one fully understood how the disease spread. A sense of helplessness must have been acute. News travelled fast, even in the Middle Ages and most communities were very aware of what was heading their way.

Travellers who visited areas affected by the plague were questioned by people hoping to find some clue as to how the disease might be avoided. Once the plague was close, visitors were not welcome. Some settlements banned strangers , others went through cleansing rituals, shunning anything which an outsider might have handled.

As usual in any disaster, there were those who were quick to profit from the misfortunes of others. Pedlars of ‘cures’ and religious relics were able to feed off the fears of the population and sell their wares at high prices. Even some clergy members demanded higher prices for hearing confessions and giving Masses during a time of desperation.

The disease usually left an area in a matter of months, but its effect on those who survived could be dramatic. Although most people who caught the plague died of it, some did survive, but often in a weakened state. There were also the mental effects on those who had seen dozens of their friends and family perish in a matter of days. They might have inherited huge tracts of land but would struggle to farm their estate with few left to work for them. Ordinary people gained more property and better working conditions, but at a huge physical and mental cost. The Black Death left the landscape changed forever.