Beliefs About the Causes of the Black Death in Britain Flashcards

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What did most people in Britain think was the main cause of the Black Death?

They thought it was a punishment sent by God for people’s sins.

They believed bad behaviour made God angry. They thought he sent the plague to punish people.

Miasma meant bad air or poisonous smells from rotting things. People thought this bad air carried the disease.

Some astrologers said a rare line-up of Saturn, Jupiter and Mars in 1345 sent bad fumes to Earth. They said this caused the plague.

They believed strange movements of the stars and planets disturbed the air and caused disease on Earth.

It was the belief that the body was made of four liquids, and illness was caused when these humours became unbalanced.

They said the plague was caused by the humours being badly out of balance. They often blamed too much blood or bad black bile.

They did not know about germs or bacteria. Instead, they used religious ideas and old medical books to explain the disease.

Some people blamed outsiders or foreign traders. They said these people had poisoned wells or spread poison in the air.

Towns were very dirty and had strong smells. People thought this filth and bad air must be causing the disease.

They believed in religious causes, such as God’s anger. They also believed in natural causes, like bad air and movements of the planets.