Overview

The bubonic plague epidemic which struck England in 1665-6 was responsible for the deaths of 20 per cent of London's population. Its sheer scale was overwhelming and it was well-recorded, featuring in the works of Pepys and Defoe and described in terrible detail in the contemporary Bills of Mortality. This book paints a portrait of a society threatened by a killer disease which it was powerless to control. Often remembered because of its devastating impact on London, the plague struck other urban communities as well, carrying off half the population of Colchester and causing high mortality in cities such as Norwich and Cambridge. Nor were country villages spared, with Eyam in Derbyshire - where the inhabitants sealed themselves off to prevent the spread of the disease and a third of the inhabitants died - being the most famous. This work describes the disease and how people at the time thought it was caused. It gives details of the treatments available (such as they were) and 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.

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Whether known as the Black Death, the Contagion, the Pestilence, the Sickness or the Great Plague, an epidemic of bubonic plague has the power to devastate populations and Western Europe suffered repeated outbreaks from the 1340s until the 1720s. During this time the plague made an enormous impact on Europe and not only on its economy and society. Its beliefs, literature and art were all influenced by the fact and fiction of the disease. Populations could be dramatically reduced over incredibly short timeframes, social contacts broke down and trade was interrupted as fear of contamination outweighed economic needs. One of the most infamous epidemics of the plague in England occurred between 1665 and 1666, when over 20 per cent of London's population succumbed and whole villages were destroyed by the onslaught. This was the Great Plague as described by Pepys and Defoe, where superstitious practices vied with medical knowledge and neither could find the cause or offer a cure. The plague remains a topic of enduring fascination for historians, both amateur and professional, and Stephen Porter's book manages to cater to both categories. His work is thoroughly researched, well documented and paints a disturbing picture of the havoc an incurable killer disease can wreak, even on a well-ordered society. Porter examines, in detail, the effect that the disease had on 17th-century England, first concentrating on London and other urban populations before turning his attention towards rural communities. He ends by putting the plague into perspective, assessing its long-term effects on society and discussing why the 1660s outbreak was the last of its kind. In an era when the threat of biological weapons hangs over our heads and when fear of smallpox or anthrax can, on its own, bring disruption and panic this book is especially topical and stimulating. (Kirkus UK)

Author Information

Stephen Porter is a leading urban historian. He works as Assistant Editor with the Survey of London section of English Heritage. He is the author of The Great Fire of London (Sutton) and Destruction in the English Civil Wars (Sutton). He lives in London.

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