Page 27 - 100 Events That Made History

No cure
Medieval medicine wasn’t cutting edge.
Bacteria had not yet been discovered.
People thought diseases were caused
by “bad air.” The only treatments doctors
could offer—such as herbal brews and
bloodletting—had ZERO
EFFECT on the relentless
plague. People said God
had sent the Black Death
to punish them for their
sinfulness. They prayed
for forgiveness, but the
horror continued.
Plague doctors wore
masks with beaks How it changed
stuffed with herbs
that were meant to the world
The Black Death tore
give protection from the social structures
the plague. of Europe and Asia

apart, destroying
whole families and
decimating cities.

Did you know?
Victims had a high fever
A few cases of plague
and coughed up blood. Their
still occur every year.
skin was blotched purple.
Today, the disease can
be cured quickly
What came after…
with antibiotics.
When a huge fire In 1918, A STRAIN OF
destroyed much of INFLUENZA, known as
LONDON IN 1666, it Spanish flu, is thought
wasn’t all bad. The to have killed up to
flames put an end to 50 million people—
the recent plague that 3 percent of the
had killed 100,000 world’s population.
English people.
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