The Black Plague In 14th Century Europe

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Caroline Sullivan English, History 10 4/29/11 The Black Plague and Social Mobility The Black Plague caused cataclysmic change to European history. Wiping out more than half of Europe, it devastated all levels of society. The early 14th century in Europe was a new age of rebirth and discovery; and disaster. The increase in exchange of people and ideas throughout the world caused more and more people to come in contact with each other, and so did their diseases. All it took was a few plague-infected fleas from Central Asia to start the chain reaction of death and terror. There was no cure, and everyone was at risk. The changes that followed after the plague had passed were drastic; there were changes in the economy, in society and in job…show more content…
At the top of the society there was a Monarch, and there were Nobles and Landowners, who controlled the land. There were peasants and farmers, as well as a very large population of serfs, who were commonly born into serfdom and had no way of escaping. (Cantor, pg 70) Since 90% of the wealth of Europe lay in the land at the time, it was common for Landowners to control peasants. Since they had all control of all raw materials and tools of production, it was becoming increasingly easier for the land owners to lower wages, creating a sharp division between the rich and poor; in wealth as well as power. (Tuchman, 38) The middle or working class was very small, so they did not have much influence on society. (Gottfreid, pg.17) As the wealth of the Nobles and Landowners grew, so did improvements in trade. More routes were opening, and ships from all around the world with lots of cargo were being swapped in Europe. With this increase in trade came the boost in the exchange of people, goods, ideas; and disease. (Zahler, pg.…show more content…
The population was estimated to have dropped 50-60%, so the prices of goods rapidly dropped, since there were so few people still alive to buy it. The lower levels of the social chain, like the peasants, serfs, farmers, and factory workers were struck the hardest. (Pollama) Since their living and work conditions were not very sanitary, and their living spaces were often cramped and dirty, they were the easiest targets for the plague. All of the jobs that these people had were now open, and available for people to take. Since the serf population had gotten ridiculously low, plantation owners were forced to start paying workers to tend the farms. (Gottfreid, pg. 55) The same effect was applied to factories, and the wages rose in attempt to get more workers. The poor were moving into deserted houses, and many began to live better. On farms that had become vacant, peasants took ownership and started making more money. In many cities, the wages were rising so rapidly that the government tried putting laws on the amount that wages were to rise since the amounts in which they were going up was so ridiculous. (Zahler, pg. 34) Since people were making so much more money, and since serfdom had been reduced to such a miniscule amount, a new class was created, the working class. It enabled people to work for the money they needed, rather than resting soley on the decisions of landlords. The
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