Would you agree that in the short term the Black Death had little effect upon English society?
             When the Black Death reached Europe in 1347 no one was spared by the burden of death and pestilence. The population prior to the plague in England had already shrunk. This was due to famine as a result of poor harvests. The prosperous years by this time had already come to an end and the economies of Europe where in recession at the onset of the Black Death.
             Most people think the Black Death was a phenomenon of the Middle Ages. A few cases of the plague had been known in Asia long before it reached Europe during the middle of the 14th century. The plague today can be divided into three major outbreaks. The first pandemic is known as the plague of Justinian. It happened in Egypt between 558 A.D. and 590 A.D. The second pandemic occurred in Europe in the 14th century and the final pandemic took place in Asia in the late 19th century. It was the second outbreak that had the most effect on English society and economy.
             The European Black Death originated in the Far East in the Gobi desert. During the rampage of the bubonic plague in the 1320s in Asia the population was decimated by up to a third. Later in 1347 Kipchak Mongols who were infected with the disease besieged a Genovese trading centre on the Crimean coast. The Genovese merchants fled the site by ship and carried the disease back to Europe via the ports of Sicily. It then spread further North by major trade routes to reach England through its ports. Once it had reached England it proceeded to spread rapidly and with devastating consequences throughout the whole land. There were many theories that existed at the time about the cause and the reasons behind the Black Death. These included for example a punishment from God and Jews poisoning the water supplies. Others believed that the end of the world had come. The truth was that the disease was caused by the bacteria Yersinia pes
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