Medieval Times The Greatest Catastrophe Ever Essay

Medieval times saw an age of countless wars and bloodshed. From Persian conquests and Viking massacres, to Crusades and The Hundred Years War, Europe was no stranger to tragedy. Unfortunately, in the mid 1300s, there was an attack they never saw coming; a bloodthirsty raid unlike anything they had ever encountered. This invader had no mercy, killing all who came in his path and no one was prepared to fight back. He had no preference in victims; men, women, and children; Jews, Christians, and Muslims; even animals all fell prey. This ruthless intruder was the bubonic plague known as The Black Death. Historian, Ole J. Benedictow refers to the epidemic as â€Å"The Greatest Catastrophe Ever,† but just how devastating was it and what was the lasting impact? The plague was caused by bacteria known as Yersinia pestis and was common in rodent populations (â€Å"Ecology and Transmission†). When rodents, such as rats, became infected and began to die off, the fleas who were once feeding off of them needed to find a new host. During Medieval times rats lived in close quarters with humans, even infesting their ships. This neighboring proximity made it easy for fleas to carry the disease to humans (Benedictow). Not only could the plague be transmitted through a flea bite, but exposure to contaminated body fluids and tissues, such as feces and blood, could cause infection. Once a human was infected, they could transmit it through coughs and sneezing, although more rare (â€Å"Ecology andShow MoreRelatedThe Black Death Of Europe1231 Words   |  5 Pages(Wilson, 2001). We must take into account that the Black Death occurred during a period of â€Å"rebirth† (Guisepi), a time in which much of European civilization were going throug h vast discoveries in things such as learning values, art, and most importantly, exploration (Guisepi). 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