Introduction to the Medieval World: Class 25
Class 25: Catastrophe? The Black Death and its Results
Assigned Reading:
-
Hollister, 326-28, 352-58, 359-75
-
Map: Europe
in 1360
-
Johannes
of Trowkelowe: Annales - on Famine of 1315
-
Giovanni
Boccaccio: Decameron - Introduction, on Black Death, There is
another
version available.
-
Anonimalle
Chronicle: Peasant Uprising of 1381
-
WWW Extra: Pistoia,
"Ordinance for Sanitation in a Time of Mortality "
-
WWW Extra: Marchione
di Coppo Stefani, The Florentine Chronicle - Stefani, Marchione
di Coppo. Cronaca fiorentina. Rerum Italicarum Scriptores,
Vol. 30. , ed. Niccolo Rodolico. (Citta di Castello: 1903-13)
-
Council
of Constance: Decree Sacrosancta 1415
I. Introduction
The Late Middle Ages: Periodization and Concept
In Italy - Renaissance
II. Overview
A. Economy
Population
Disease
B. Culture
Emotionalism
Particularism
C. Politics
Near Collapse of several states
France
England
Total Collapse of Germany and Italy
Emergence of New Stronger states in 16th century
building on older traditions
England
France
Spain
Nation (?. states replace religion
III. The Late Medieval Economic Crisis before the Black Death
Population growth and resources
Malthus - population grows geometrically, supplies
arithmetically
Famines in early 14th century - 1315-17
Population peaks - evidence of town walls
This may be evidence of an already weakened population
IV. The Black Death
A. Epidemics, Endemics and Pandemics
Disease in general
Problems of definition of ancient disease
Diseases can change - e.g. Syphilis
-weaker strains are more successful
Continuous other diseases - measles, TB,
Never mind cancer and heart disease.
endemics - local low level levels of disease. Equilibrium
epidemics - Collapse of equilibrium
raging disease. Kills off many people
Pandemics - repeated epidemics
B. The Disease
Yersina Pestis - as bacillus
an enzootic disease of rodents
Spreads after and epizootic
Bubonic - buboes - recovery possible
Pneumonic - affects lungs - kills up to 90%
Septicemic - illness develops and kills within 2 hours
Enteric - not present in MA
Ecology: Rats - Fleas - bacillus lives in fleas stomach
Rats = rattus rattus, Flea + Xenopsylla Cheopis
Bubonic: Bacillus blocks flea. flea vomits into rat, Rat gets
infected and dies. Fleas jump to other rats
and humans.
Pneumonic: humans sneeze.
Depends on certain temperature levels for type of plague.
Fleas only active at certain temps - 68-70 degs.
Disputes on coexistence.
C. Why in 14th century.
Some climatic effects in central Asia?
D. Global Biological Unification
In general - populations not resistant to new diseases
e.g. small pox in America
Plague - Ethiopian origin in 6th century
Late medieval epidemic - Chinese origin
Mongol unification of Asia
E. Course 1347-50
-China in 1333
-[1346- in Mesopotamia and Syria]
-Crimea - story of bodies being catapulted over walls
of Caffa [but its spread by Rats]
-Spread is a result of trade.
-1347 Fall - Byzantium
Read John Cantacuzenus description
Explain his use of Thucydides
-1347 Sept - Sicily - Messina
-1348 Jan - France Marseilles
-1348 - England, Spain
-1349 - Eastern Europe, Iceland,
-1350 - Wipes out Greenland
F. The Pandemic
-Repetitions up until 1720s
-Spread by same trade routes
-1361-62, 1369, 74-75, 79,90, 1407
-Pesta secunda - the children's plague
V. Effects of Black Death
Not every effect is due to the plague.
Some trends happening earlier.
A. Population Effects
Death rates in each epidemic
Up to 50% in some towns - less with bubonic plague
-Bohemia 10% of pop - got off lightly
-Siena 40-50%
-Orvieto 50%
-Florence - 45-70%
-England 40-50% (e.g. clerical mortality - 40-50%.
Effects of repeated epidemics - on women and children.
1361- 25% of pop dies.
Population declines for 150 years.
B. Economic Effects
-No shortage of supply
-shortage of Labor
-Price of Labor rises - peasant revolts when control
attempted.
Statute of Laborers 1351 England
Revolt 1381 (plus other causes.
-Golden age of the Laborer?
-Increased prominence of cities over the countryside.
-Commerce revived after 1460.
C. Cultural Effects
-Denial, Acceptance, Lack of restraint
1. Art
Images of Death
Realism
Flamboyant architecture
2. Flagellants - Before the plague hit
3. Dance of Death
4. Chivalry - Medieval Burgundy
VI. Late Medieval Religion
A. Official Religion
High Middle ages from Gregory VII, through Innocent III,
to Boniface VIII saw the zenith of the Medieval papacy.
Ideal of a respublica christiana under the pope.
But real problems for Papacy in the later middle ages.
Due to its own problems and the rising power of states.
1. The Great Schism
Avignon 1306-1376 (Babylonian Captivity to the
Italians.
In fact a series of effective good popes.
In administrative if not spiritual terms,
e.g. John XXII 1316-34
1376 - Gregory XI moved papacy back to Rome
at urgings of a woman - Catharine of Siena.
1378 - Cardinals forced by mob to elect an Italian
Urban VI
But they left city and elected another French Pope
Clement who went to live in Avignon
37 years of schism
Weakened the Papacy - and made in seem ridiculous.
2. Conciliarism
1409 - both popes deposed. 3rd elected (Benedict.
Now three popes
Sigismund, HRE arranged a new Council
-Constance 1415-18
-Martin V (1417-31. elected
Theory of Conciliarism - Nicholas of Cusa
Councils every five-ten years
1423, 1431
Martin V worked against this
1431-49 - Council of Basle - drifted into open
schism with the papacy.
Papacy then got involved in turbulent politics of
Renaissance Italy
E.g. Alexander VI 1492-1503, promoted Cesare Borgia!
3. Government Control of Church
Philip IV in France - able to overcome Boniface VIII
In England - Statute of Mortmain
- Cases to Rome
Ecclesia Gallicana/Anglicana
B. Popular Religion
As official church struggled, popular religion in no way
weakened.
1. Lay Piety - outside church control
-Devotio Moderna - Thomas A Kempis - d. 1471
-More impressive is female mysticism - Beguines
Jesus as Mother .- Julian of Norwich
-Use of food to control body
2. Indulgences - Growth and Spread
3. Elaboration - Rosaries of 150 decades
Detail - see work of Jan van Eyck
4. Images of Death - Change after the Black death
C. New Heresies[?]
1. Wycliffe and Lollards
-John Wycliffe d. 1384
-Rejection of Church authority
-Emphasis on the Bible
-Rejections of sacramentalism
-Idea of English Bible
-Built on Devotio Moderna emphasis on
individual approach to God
Lollardy (in areas of later reformation spread ?).
Popular outgrowth of intellectual heresy.
1401 - Statute of Burning of Heretics.
2. Jan Hus d. 1415 (At Stake in Constance.
Anti Clericalism
Czech nationalism
Both kinds in the Eucharist
Morning Star of the Reformation?
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