This lesson introduces the disease known as the Black Death, the range of plague infections, and the ways historians investigate its origins and spread.
The Black Death was the devastating fourteenth-century pandemic caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. Its most common form, bubonic plague, caused egg-shaped swellings called buboes near lymph nodes, especially in the groin, underarms, and upper neck. Other symptoms included fever, nausea, vomiting, aching joints, and general weakness. In the Middle Ages, death often followed within three days, and estimated mortality ranged from 30 to 80 percent.
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What was the Black Death?
The Black Death was the devastating fourteenth-century plague pandemic caused by *Yersinia pestis*, which affected communities across Afro-Eurasia.
What are buboes?
Buboes are egg-shaped swellings near lymph nodes, often found in the groin, underarms, or upper neck, that are characteristic of bubonic plague.
How did rat fleas contribute to plague transmission?
Fleas carried plague bacteria among animal hosts. When infected rodents died, fleas could seek blood meals from nearby humans.
How did pneumonic plague differ from bubonic plague?
Pneumonic plague infected the lungs and could pass directly between people through coughing. Bubonic plague was associated with buboes and was commonly spread through infected fleas.
How do Ziegler and Green explain the origins of the plague?
Ziegler points to high plague mortality near Lake Issyk-Kul in 1338–1339. Green uses documentary and genetic evidence to argue for a complex history that may include multiple waves before the pandemic of the 1340s.
Quiz questions
Which bacterium caused the plague known as the Black Death?Answer: *Yersinia pestis*
What are the characteristic swellings associated with bubonic plague called?Answer: Buboes
How could pneumonic plague spread from one person to another?Answer: Through infectious particles produced by coughing
What most likely carried plague from Caffa toward Mediterranean ports?Answer: Ships carrying rats and their infected fleas across the Black Sea
How did Philip Ziegler's interpretation differ from Monica H. Green's research on plague origins?Answer: Ziegler emphasizes Issyk-Kul mortality; Green combines documentary and genetic evidence to argue for a complex history.
Based on World History Volume 1, to 1500 by Ann Kordas, Ryan J. Lynch, Brooke Nelson, Julie Tatlock (OpenStax), licensed CC BY 4.0. Adapted into a summary, flashcards and quizzes.