In the Wake of the Plague: The Black Death and the World It Made
Author:
Genres: History, Medicine, Medical Books
Book Type: Paperback
Author:
Genres: History, Medicine, Medical Books
Book Type: Paperback
As an entomologist, I use to write and lecture on how insects affected history. Mostly, this was due to insect-vectored diseases. Mosquitoes alone have vectored diseases which killed hundreds of millions of humans over thousands of years. And that subject still fascinates me.
Of course, insect also had an effect on history due to crop damage, damage to stored products, clothing, buildings, etc. In Florida alone, the cost of termite control and damage is over one billion dollars annually.
I bought this book to add to my collection of books on the Plague. One way bubonic plague is spread is by fleas. Unfortunately, I was disappointed as there was very little about the plague itself, and the book is mostly about life in Europe, with some mention of other areas, during the period 1100-1500 AD.
Let me also state that the book is not perfect. Just as an example, another reviewer here (Kari) mentions the book incorrectly states the rhyme song "Ring around the rosie" is often identified as arising from the Plague, but actually pre-dated it. I made this same mistake early on in my research and only corrected it after discussing it with a graduate student doing his thesis on medieval children's tales.
Yet in another way, the book has value, as it covered some aspects of life during that period I was unaware of. While I really didn't need to know all the people who traveled with Princess Joan of England, on her way to marry a prince of Spain---alas, she died from the Plague on the way---it was a somewhat interesting lead-in to the many political and economic marriages common during the period and how that affected the wealth of powerful families.
The book covers how rich many of the important nobility were, and why. I was astounded to learn that---based on today's value of the money back then---England alone had 13-15 families with over annual billion dollar incomes, which they mostly spent foolishly. Of course, this helped local economies and contributed to the rise of the "middle class," as well as offering vast employment in other areas.
Land controlled by the Church also made it wealthy. In fact, some monasteries had contracts with monks to provide large meals of excellent food and all the ale they could drink. If I lived back then, I too might consider a religious life. Of course, not all the monasteries had this wealth, but slightly over half did.
About the wealth now... Many of us read historic mysteries of that period and think everyone was poor. Yet, 20 English schillings is the equivalent of $1,000 dollars today, or in 2002 when the book was published. So, if John Crowner, the hero of Bernard Knight's "Crowner" series, can only be the coroner of his county if he has an annual income of ten English pounds per year, then that meant he had an income of over $10,000. When you consider his meals, including ale, at taverns often cost less than one penny, then you realize how much money he had.
The book mentions 85 English pounds back then was the equivalent of over $300,000 today. The book also explains how land was owned, divided, leased, who had rights to what, etc. This forms the basis of much of the motive for crime in the historical mysteries we read, and which those historical mysteries often don't adequately explain.
So, if you read Bernard Knight's books, or those of Ellis Peters ("Brother Cadfeal" series), Paul Doherty ("Athelstan" series"), or Fiona Buckley's ("Ursula Blanchard" series)---as well as many others---then this book might enlighten you to the what and the why of some of the intrigues.
While not in Large Print, the text on the 220 pages is much larger than usually found in historical mysteries, so it doesn't take long to read the book
Of course, insect also had an effect on history due to crop damage, damage to stored products, clothing, buildings, etc. In Florida alone, the cost of termite control and damage is over one billion dollars annually.
I bought this book to add to my collection of books on the Plague. One way bubonic plague is spread is by fleas. Unfortunately, I was disappointed as there was very little about the plague itself, and the book is mostly about life in Europe, with some mention of other areas, during the period 1100-1500 AD.
Let me also state that the book is not perfect. Just as an example, another reviewer here (Kari) mentions the book incorrectly states the rhyme song "Ring around the rosie" is often identified as arising from the Plague, but actually pre-dated it. I made this same mistake early on in my research and only corrected it after discussing it with a graduate student doing his thesis on medieval children's tales.
Yet in another way, the book has value, as it covered some aspects of life during that period I was unaware of. While I really didn't need to know all the people who traveled with Princess Joan of England, on her way to marry a prince of Spain---alas, she died from the Plague on the way---it was a somewhat interesting lead-in to the many political and economic marriages common during the period and how that affected the wealth of powerful families.
The book covers how rich many of the important nobility were, and why. I was astounded to learn that---based on today's value of the money back then---England alone had 13-15 families with over annual billion dollar incomes, which they mostly spent foolishly. Of course, this helped local economies and contributed to the rise of the "middle class," as well as offering vast employment in other areas.
Land controlled by the Church also made it wealthy. In fact, some monasteries had contracts with monks to provide large meals of excellent food and all the ale they could drink. If I lived back then, I too might consider a religious life. Of course, not all the monasteries had this wealth, but slightly over half did.
About the wealth now... Many of us read historic mysteries of that period and think everyone was poor. Yet, 20 English schillings is the equivalent of $1,000 dollars today, or in 2002 when the book was published. So, if John Crowner, the hero of Bernard Knight's "Crowner" series, can only be the coroner of his county if he has an annual income of ten English pounds per year, then that meant he had an income of over $10,000. When you consider his meals, including ale, at taverns often cost less than one penny, then you realize how much money he had.
The book mentions 85 English pounds back then was the equivalent of over $300,000 today. The book also explains how land was owned, divided, leased, who had rights to what, etc. This forms the basis of much of the motive for crime in the historical mysteries we read, and which those historical mysteries often don't adequately explain.
So, if you read Bernard Knight's books, or those of Ellis Peters ("Brother Cadfeal" series), Paul Doherty ("Athelstan" series"), or Fiona Buckley's ("Ursula Blanchard" series)---as well as many others---then this book might enlighten you to the what and the why of some of the intrigues.
While not in Large Print, the text on the 220 pages is much larger than usually found in historical mysteries, so it doesn't take long to read the book
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