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The Black Death: Fourteenth Century

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The Black Death, a disease that stemmed from a combination of bubonic, pneumonic, and septicemic strains, was the most significant historical development of the fourteenth century . The black plague started in Europe after the Mongols attacked the Genoese trading post of Caffa on the Black Sea. The merchants of the Genoses trading outpost and soldiers retreated to safety. Well, what they thought was safety. Twelve ships left the Genoese trading post and set sail to Messina, Italy. By the time they reached the dock half the people on board were dead and the rest was dying. The Sicilian authorities hastily ordered the fleet of “death ships” out of the harbor, but it was too late: Over the next five years, the mysterious Black Death would kill …show more content…
By the thirteen hundred resources were stretched thin and the hunger stricken population was vulnerable to the plague. By thirteen fifty, most of Chinas large cities had been affected by the plague. The last Yuan Mongol ruler’s power was becoming weak because of bandits and rebel religious sects. The red turban movement which was a blend of Buddhism, Daoism and other faiths warned off awaiting doom. Chinas leaders believed the world was coming to an end. They emphasized strict dietary restrictions, penance and ceremonial rituals to warn off the …show more content…
All levels of society were affected, though many of the clergy hid in the countryside away from the infection. The heavier populated cities were usually hit first because of unsanitary ways of living. Fifty million people were taken by the plague in Europe. Once infected many people dealt with it in different ways. They joined in debauchery, founds god’s grace or believed they were feelings gods wrath for their sins. But the survivors witnessed many of the clergy flee to save themselves. And many of the starving peasants resented the clergy for leaving them in their time of

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