
The bubonic plague epidemic which struck England in 1665-6 was responsible for the deaths of almost a third of London's population. Its sheer scale was overwhelming & it was well-recorded featuring in the works of Pepys & Defoe & described in terrible detail in the contemporary Bills of Mortality. Often remembered because of its devastating impact on London the plague struck other urban communities as well carrying off half the population of Colchester & causing high mortality in cities such as Norwich & Cambridge. Nor were country villages spared with Eyam in Derbyshire
- where the inhabitants sealed themselves off to prevent the spread of the disease & a third of the inhabitants died
- being the most famous. Stephen Porter describes the disease & how people at the time thought it was caused. He gives details of the treatments available (such as they were) & evokes its impact on the country. We will probably never know the reasons for the disappearance of the bubonic plague from England after 1665. What is clear is the fascination the subject still holds.
Includes:: 61 illustrations