The Black Death

        

A familiar nursery rhyme, that many of you have recited may seem  like a harmless play song, yet it ironically refers to Europe's most devastating disasters-The Plague, also know as...THE BLACK DEATH

“Ring around the Rosie” which refers to the infected fleabites, that form rings.

“A pocket full of posies”  Those who weren’t affected with the plague, wore posies to ward off the  odour  from those  who were.

“Ashes,  Ashes” a child's imitation of the sneezing made by those who were infected, it was also believed that most corpse were cremated because of the revolting stench.

Hence the words ashes.

“We all fall down” By now, this one should need little explanation.

The Black Death is a pandemic which, as I said before, occurred a long time ago. Rodents and fleas had a significant role in this disease, causing all of it. The fleas would bite the infected rodents,  and travel on the boats with the rodents, to other countries, once they (the fleas) had bitten someone, the person would be instantly infected, and will die, slowly. Those who are infected, are very contagious.

The first recorded case of the plague was in China, in 224.b.c.e.

But the most enormous outbreak was in the mid fourteenth century . Over a five year period between 1347-1352, 25 million people died. One third to one half of the Europe population was wiped out. The Black Death lingered on for centuries, particularly in cities. Outbreaks included the Great Plague of London (1665-66), in which one in five residents died. In total of the whole world-75mill-200million people had died because of the black plague.

Some plague doctors wore a special costumes, although graphic sources show that plague doctors wore a variety of clothes. The costumes were invented by Charles de L’Orme in 1619; they were first used in Paris, but later spread to be used throughout Europe. The  suit had a heavy fabric overcoat that was waxed, a mask of glassed eye openings and a  beak to hold scented substances because back then it was believed that the plague was cause by “bad air” in which doctors perfumed there  coats and masks.

Some of the scented materials were amber, balm-mint leaves, camphor, cloves, laudanum , myrrh, rose petals and storax..A wooden cane was also used to help examine the patient without touching.

I think the question all of you have been dying to ask is, is it still around.

Unfortunately, it is, there are very random reports of The Plague, commonly reported in America.

Luckily, we have the facilities, the antidotes and the resources to manage the disease.

Again, if there are any enquires, do ask.

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