Discuss the Black Death and its impact on medieval Europe.

The Black Death was a substantial factor in the collapse
of Medieval Society in Europe. Scholars of the time called it in Latin astra
mors, meaning "dreadful death." It was caused by a bacillus known as
yersenia pestis which was carried by fleas which only lived on
Asian Black Rats. The disease is thought to have entered Europe via ships from Asia
carrying the rats which are not native to Europe.

The
effect of the plague was a slow, lingering death which wiped out as much as one third of
Europe's population. Agnolo di Tura, who survived an outbreak, described its
effect:

…the
victims died almost immediately. They would swell beneath their armpits to their groins,
and fall over while talking. Father abandoned child, wife husband, one brother
another…And none could be found to bury the dead for money of friendship…And in many
places great pits were dug and piled deep with the multitude of the dead. I, Agnolo di
Tura buried my five children with my own
hands.

A French scientist
offered a more dispassionate, even cold description:

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All the matter which exuded from their bodies
let off an unbearable stench; sweat, excrement, spittle, breath, so fetid as to be
overpowering; urine turbid, thick, black, or
red.

The plague did not fall
as a blanket over Europe; but was more of a cascading wave, passing through a given area
over a period of about three to five weeks, then moving on. This actually heightened the
panic caused by the plague, as many people could see its movement toward their town or
village and could not stop it. Irrational panic resulted from fear of the coming plague;
neighbors would not allow others in their homes for fear of transmission; roads entering
towns were blocked allowing in only travelling merchants (whose wares probably contained
the rats carrying the disease.) Some believed the plague was God's punishment for
Europe's sins and went through the streets beating themselves as repentance for the
area. These flagellants often quickly determined that the plague
was caused by Jews poisoning wells, and slaughtered European Jews
wholesale.

Strange remedies were offered, none of which was
effective. Among the more bizarre was to breathe the vapors of latrines, as the smell
would presumably destroy the miasma which carried the disease. The
only true solution to the plague was to move out of town until it passed. Giovanni
Boccacio's Decameron is the story of ten young people who left town
for ten days for the plague to pass and entertained themselves during that time by
telling stories.

Socially, the population of Europe was
devastated. Town administrations were wiped out, and there were few artisans or
tradesmen. On farms and small villages, peasants and serfs lost prized livestock to the
plague and faced starvation. The loss of tradesmen led those left to demand higher
wages, and those on farms to leave for work in cities. Both were frustrated. Landlords
tied serfs to the land; and wages for tradesmen were frozen. The end result was unrest
and in many cases riots and revolts. Peasants had no real weapons, and revolts were put
down harshly.