The Great Plague (AQA GCSE History)

How similar was the Great Plague to the Black Death? - Summary

The Great Plague of 1665 and the Black Death were similar in many ways, particularly in how people understood the causes of the disease. In both outbreaks, people believed in supernatural and natural causes. Many thought the plague was a punishment from God for sin, while others blamed miasma or astrological events like the alignment of planets. Without Germ Theory, no one knew that the plague was caused by bacteria spread through fleas on rats.

The treatments during both the Great Plague and the Black Death were also quite similar and largely ineffective. People still used humoural treatments, such as bleeding or purging, which didn’t cure the disease and often made patients worse. Herbal remedies and charms were commonly used. During the Great Plague, there was a slight improvement in treatments, as doctors began experimenting with new ideas. Transference inspired the creation of plague doctors. Despite being based on incorrect theories, the use of masks and gloves when treating patients is used today.

Methods of prevention also showed similarities but with some notable differences. In both periods, people tried to avoid infected areas or isolate the sick. In the Great Plague, the government took more of a role in preventing the epidemic. Quarantine laws were stricter, and the King published a decree, banning certain activities. Despite these differences, neither outbreak had effective measures to stop the spread of the plague. The disease continued to kill large numbers of people.

Ideas about causes of the Great Plague

Astrology

• People continued to look at astrology for signs of future events

• In late 1664:

  • an unusual alignment between the planets occurred

  • people observed a comet in the sky

    • People believed that the combination of both these events was unlucky

Punishment from God

• Many people believed that the Great Plague was a punishment from God due to people's wickedness

• From the reign of Henry VIII to 1665, England’s official religion had changed many times from Catholic to Protestant 

  • People believed that God was angry at them for this and the plague was a punishment

Miasma

• Most people believed that miasma was the main reason for the Great Plague

• The people thought that:

  • Bad air vapours gathered in the soil when it was cold, and then when the weather got warmer, miasma was released from the soil into the air

    • This belief fitted the pattern that plague outbreaks appeared when the weather turned warmer

    • In reality, the warmer weather attracted more rats

• The filth on the streets and warm weather were perfect conditions for bacteria to grow

Transference

• Some people correctly believed that the disease spread from person to person

  • Plague victims were quarantined to stop them from spreading the disease to someone else

• During the Renaissance, there was no proof that diseases spread through human contact

  • This limited the popularity of this explanation

  • It took until the 19th century to prove that diseases transmitted in this way

Approaches to treatment in the Great Plague

New ideas

• It was popular to use the idea of transference to treat the plague:

  • Strapping a live chicken on a bubo to draw out the plague and pass it onto the chicken was a common treatment

• Physicians recommended wrapping patients in woollen cloths and laying them by the fire

  •  This was to allow the patient to sweat the plague out of their body

Herbal remedies

• These continued to be as popular in the Renaissance as they had been in the medieval period

• People purchased remedies from:

  • apothecaries

  • quack doctors

• Herbal remedies could be in one of the following forms:

  • medicine - drunk or swallowed

  • poultices - placed on a wound

  • rubs - placed on the skin

• Most remedies were ineffective because apothecaries did not understand the true causes of the Great Plague

Approaches to prevention in the Great Plague

Advice from physicians

• Physicians advised the following actions to remain healthy during the plague:

  • prayer

  • quarantine

  • carrying a pomander

  • fasting

  • eating sage and garlic

• Some physicians became plague doctors

  • Birds were considered to attract disease so it was believed that the plague would move from the victim to the doctor's mask

  • Plague doctors wore distinctive outfits with each element designed to protect themselves from catching the plague

Plague doctors

Advice from other healers

• Apothecaries recommended ‘plague water' as a herbal remedy

• Many apothecaries also advised people of methods to ward off miasma including:

  • herbs like mint for its strong smell

  • smoking tobacco to fill the air with that smell

• A few healers recognised that syphilis and the plague both had buboes as symptoms

• Some suggested catching syphilis as a way to avoid catching the plague

Government action

• Charles II released a royal decree

• The decree listed rules as well as the actions people should take to avoid catching the plague

• Local officials and the mayor enforced the rules and took actions including:

  • a 28-day forced quarantine for those people who had the plague

  • a red cross marking plague-infested houses

  • a ban on theatres, public meetings, fairs and large funerals

  • lighting fires in the street to ward off miasma

  • killing cats, dogs and pigeons due to their role in spreading disease

• The mayor hired:

  • searchers - people who found plague victims and removed bodies for burial

  • watchmen - people who monitored those in quarantine to ensure they stayed

• Many people simply moved away from the cities to avoid catching the plague, as they did in 1348