This was the worst outbreak of plague inEngland since the black death of 1348.London lost roughly 15% of its population. While 68,596 deaths were recorded in thecity, the true number was probably over 100,000. Other parts of the country alsosuffered.The earliest cases of disease occurred in the spring of 1665 in a parish outside the citywalls called St Giles-in-the-Fields. The deathrate began to rise during the hot summermonths and peaked in September when7,165 Londoners died in one week.Rats carried the fleas that caused the plague.They were attracted by city streets filledwith rubbish and waste, especially in the poorest areas.Those who could, including most doctors, lawyers and merchants, fled the city. CharlesII and his courtiers left inJuly for Hampton Court and then Oxford. Parliament waspostponed and had to sit in October at Oxford, the increase ofthe plague being sodreadful. Court cases were also moved from Westminster to Oxford.The Lord Mayor and aldermen (town councillors) remained to enforce the kings ordersto try and stop the spread ofthe disease. The poorest people remained in London withthe rats and those people who had got theplague. Watchmen locked and kept guardover infected houses. Parish officials provided food. Searchers looked for dead bodiesand took them at night to plague pits for burial.All trade with London and other plague towns was stopped. The Council of Scotlanddeclared that the border withEngland would be closed. There were to be no fairs ortrade with other countries. This meant many people lost their jobs -from servants toshoemakers to those who worked on the River Thames. How did Londoners react tothis plague that devastated their lives?

Additional Tags

black death, great plague, the plague, black death (bubonic plague)

Show More Show Less

Classroom Considerations

• This resource is only available on an unencrypted HTTP website.It should be fine for general use, but don’t use it to share any personally identifiable information