Kushi Week #16 – The Village of Eyam
During this era, the Church reigned supreme, and for small villages such as Eyam, local reverends were the pillars of the community. Thomas Stanley and William Mompesson were the two local reverends of Eyam, and it was their plan that contained the plague outbreak to Eyam. Eyam was quarantined—for over a year, nobody went in or out.
As a result, they saved the lives of thousands. While their death toll was high—260 villagers died of 800 in the 14 months of quarantine—their quarantine had a significant impact on medical understanding and neighboring towns. By quarantining, they prevented the spread of the plague to much larger nearby cities, such as Sheffield, and by extent, saved thousands of peoples’ lives.
But Eyam’s death rate was not as high as it should have been—the black plague was known to have a death rate of 90%, but Eyam’s death rate was 32.5%. Because Eyam’s population makeup had experienced so little change since these years, researchers were able to determine, through genetic testing, that many of the current residents descended from plague survivors had a gene that protected them against the plague. With further research, they discovered that this gene has the same effect on AIDS, and for this reason, this research was instrumental in finding effective medication for HIV and AIDS in the 21st century, almost 500 years since the plague decimated Europe.
Hi Kushi,
ReplyDeleteYour blog served as an informative article regarding the resilience and sacrifice of the villagers of Eyam during the plague years. Your detailed account of how the community's quarantine measures not only saved lives but also contributed to medical understanding deepened my understanding of Europe’s rich and diverse history. I particularly appreciated how you highlighted the roles of reverends Thomas Stanley and William Mompesson, showcasing their leadership and the collective effort of the villagers. Your blog led me to reflect on the incredible strength and solidarity that small communities can display in times of crisis. It also made me think about the long-term impacts of such historical events on modern science and medicine, which is a connection I hadn’t thought about before. Overall, your post effectively bridges the gap between historical events and their modern-day implications.
Hi Kushi! Your blog reminds me of seventh grade World History, when the bubonic plague was first introduced to us. “Fleas on rats” being the reason for the bubonic plague, despite people thinking it was the work of the Jewish population poisoning the wells, is one of the only things I remember learning in middle school. The Black Plague was devastating since it wiped out more than thirty percent of the population in certain parts of Europe, and despite this, it’s not a topic that is often discussed in history classes. In AP European History, for instance, the bubonic plague was briefly mentioned before we moved on to the Renaissance. Your blog was especially interesting because although I am familiar with the bubonic plague, I have never heard of the village of Eyam. The way people in Eyam were able to slow down the spread of the plague was interesting to learn about, since it shows a somewhat modern understanding of medicine and how germs and diseases spread. It’s also surprising to learn that Eyam was able to stay quarantined for a year, since a lot of people’s livelihoods in the 1600s was dependent on traveling in order to sell and distribute goods. Eyam’s death rate of about 32% may seem high, but it is far lower than the death rates of other cities affected by the bubonic plague. During the bubonic plague, people thought the plague was also caused by witches because women who lived in isolation and lived with cats did not seem to be afflicted by the plague. Although people may have thought it was the work of witches, it was actually because cats would catch and kill rats, and thus eradicate their fleas before they came into human contact. Instances such as the bubonic plague can be related heavily to modern history, especially because of the recent COVID-19 pandemic.
ReplyDeleteHi Kushi! That's really interesting that there were communities in the bubonic plague that practiced quarantining on a wide scale. I feel like stories of sick individuals quarantining are much more common than those depicting entire villages going on lockdown to prevent the spread of the plague, and maybe that's just simply an accurate depiction of how the events of the plague went down. I also find it interesting that they figured out vinegar was a solid antidote for the plague, despite both their access to medical equipment (given that they were a small village) and the overall absence of modern medical knowledge that we have today. I wonder what the story is behind how they figured out those types of things. I still find it shocking that potentially 50% of Europe's population was wiped out by the plague. That's a statistic that will never fail to astonish me.
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