The Plagues Place in History essays

The Plague's Place in History essays The Plagues Place in History The pestilence deeply affected individual and family behavior and consciousness. It put severe strains on the social, political and economic systems...Nothing like this had happened before or since in the recorded history of mankind and the men and women of the fourteenth century would never be the same (Norman F. Cantor). General scientific opinion is that, among other very deadly diseases like H.I.V. and the West Nile virus, the bubonic plague came to the world from the southern region of Africa and swept up through the Nile Valley in to Europe and the rest of the world. Though it had occurred numerous times before and would occur numerous times later, the most significant attack of the bubonic plague on the world would be in 1348 and 1349. In these times it would come to be known as The Black Death, The Pestilence, and quite simply The Plague. During these years it devastated the Western world especially England. Many believe that in fact that the Black Death ushered out the old world and allowed for the new world that we see today to be born. Though the plague was in fact a harsh blow to European society, it had deep-seated consequences with families and individuals. One of these families affected was the royal Plantagenets. They were a royal family whose influence was spreading all over Europe. One of the members of this family, fifteen-year-old Princess Joan was set to marry the heir to the throne of Castille, and thusly further the Plantagenets influence. But she was killed by the plague in Bordeaux, taking away an important diplomatic and influential opportunity for Plantagenets who may have someday dominated all of Europe with their influence. But the plague was not picky about those that it killed or those that it whipped about in its path. As the plague killed more and more people, there were fewer peop...