 starter activity The pictures above suggest ways in which people tried to cure the Black Death (1348). Can you remember what they refer to?  Do you think people in the C17th were any better / worse prepared?

How effectively did the authorities deal with the plague? TBAT explain & evaluate the reactions of the authorities to the Great Plague of London (1665)  LOs  Key words: epidemic broadsheet quicklime

 Your task Go around the class in a clockwise direction. Complete your chart as shown. Go around the class in a clockwise direction. Complete your chart as shown. Try to reach a judgement on how well the authorities responded to the Plague. Try to reach a judgement on how well the authorities responded to the Plague.  Look out for the extension questions on the sources and try to answer these  Look out for the extension questions on the sources and try to answer these

Source A “To draw the poison from the plague sore, take the feathers from the tail of a chicken and apply to the sore. The chick will gasp and fight for its life…when the poison is drawn out by the chicken the patient will recover.. wrap in woollen cloth, make the person sweat, which if he do, keep him warm until the sores begin to rise. Then apply to the sores live pigeons cut in half or else a plaster made of yolk of an egg, honey, herbs and wheat flour” A seventeenth century treatment for the plague  Are there any similarities with treatments you have studied elsewhere in our course?

Source B In 1665, mortality bills were published each week, detailing the causes and numbers of deaths of citizens across London.  Can you spot any other attempts to improve the health of Londoners on this document?

Source C In 1666, Sir Christopher Wren put forward proposals for new designs for the city of London with large, open roads, radiating out across the city and wooden buildings being replaced by brick and stone. Many of the homeless resisted the plans, because it would have been too costly and time- consuming to rebuild their homes in this way.  Who else opposed Wren’s plans?

Source D “When anyone bought a joint of meat in the market, they would not take it from the butcher’s hand, but took it off the hooks themselves. On the other hand, the butcher would not touch the money, but had it put in a pot full of vinegar. The buyer always carried small money, so that they might take no change.” Extract from Daniel Defoe’s (author of Robinson Crusoe) ‘Journal of the Plague Year’  Why do you think people used vinegar as a defence against the plague?

Source E Any house containing a plague sufferer has to be sealed up for 40 days until the person is dead or better The door of the house has to be marked with a red cross and the words ‘Lord have mercy upon us’ Searchers are to be appointed to examine each corpse for 1p per body to find out the cause of death Public entertainments are to be stopped All dogs and cats are to be caught and killed; the dog catcher is to be paid about 1p for each animal Fires are to be lit in the streets Bodies are to be buried after dark The Lord Mayor of London, Sir William Lawrence, issued special orders, drawing on experiences of previous epidemics. They were first published on 1 st July Before the orders were issued 267 Londoners died a week, the week afterwards 1843 died.  Why were they seemingly ineffective?

Source F A plague broadsheet showing bodies being piled into mass graves or plague pits. The pits were 6 feet deep and the bodies covered with quick lime. It’s estimated that 70,000 people died in London (population 400,000). To avoid spreading the plague, burials were often at night or dawn and only family members were allowed to attend.  Do you think sights like the above made people more or less religious?

No change Regular outbreaks of plague continued – 1604, 30% of York died from plague Regular outbreaks of plague continued – 1604, 30% of York died from plague Over-crowding Over-crowding Poor sanitation Poor sanitation Limited law enforcement – expensive to employ officers; no police force Limited law enforcement – expensive to employ officers; no police force Superstition – Samuel Pepys noted red crosses & ‘Lord have mercy’; prayers; public fasting; charms Superstition – Samuel Pepys noted red crosses & ‘Lord have mercy’; prayers; public fasting; charms Planetary movements - comets in the heavens; conjunctions of the planets Planetary movements - comets in the heavens; conjunctions of the planets Poisonous air – miasmas Poisonous air – miasmas Quack remedies – use of dried toads Quack remedies – use of dried toads

New ideas Observation – bills of mortality helped link dirt with disease Observation – bills of mortality helped link dirt with disease Certificates of health Certificates of health Quarantine – victims enclosed 40 days with red cross & guards at door; constables enforced regulations Quarantine – victims enclosed 40 days with red cross & guards at door; constables enforced regulations Examiners – investigated types of sicknesses in each parish Examiners – investigated types of sicknesses in each parish Women searchers – identified causes of death Women searchers – identified causes of death Rakers – to clear away rubbish from streets Rakers – to clear away rubbish from streets Fumigation – smoke used to clean bedding Fumigation – smoke used to clean bedding Regulations – ale & coffee shops houses closed; plays & public entertainments banned; animals slaughtered or sent outside city; beggars executed Regulations – ale & coffee shops houses closed; plays & public entertainments banned; animals slaughtered or sent outside city; beggars executed Burials – mass graves called plague pits, 6ft deep; quicklime; no mourners Burials – mass graves called plague pits, 6ft deep; quicklime; no mourners

This house believes that there was no significant improvement in the way British people responded to the Great Plague of London of 1665 compared to the Black Death of 1348.

 Homework Imagine you are a Londoner living through the plague. Use the information from your table and the film you saw to write your own plague diary. You need to include the following as separate diary entries Imagine you are a Londoner living through the plague. Use the information from your table and the film you saw to write your own plague diary. You need to include the following as separate diary entries Seventeenth century explanations for the plague Seventeenth century explanations for the plague References to the treatments References to the treatments Explanations of the different people employed by the city to protect the survivors Explanations of the different people employed by the city to protect the survivors  Refer to the return of Londoners and the Great Fire by conducting your own research  Refer to the return of Londoners and the Great Fire by conducting your own research

Room for improvementGetting betterOutstanding Limited use of technical vocabulary or factual detail Doesn’t cover all three bullet points Some use of technical vocabulary and factual detail but could use more Covers all three bullet points but there is room for development Detailed and accurate use of technical vocabulary and factual information All three bullet points are explore in separate diary entries There is evidence from additional research from textbook or the weblinks

 Extension Conduct some research into Daniel Dafoe and Samuel Pepys and find out about their experiences of the plague. Produce brief factoids on both men. Conduct some research into Daniel Dafoe and Samuel Pepys and find out about their experiences of the plague. Produce brief factoids on both men. Daniel Dafoe, author of Robinson CrusoeSamuel Pepys, famous diarist