In 1348, a terrible enemy came to Europe, and his name was - plague. The people called the disease "black death" because of the spots that appeared on the faces of patients. But the plague not only disfigured human faces - it changed the face of Europe.
As a result of the plague, the population of Europe has decreased by a third, and in some regions by 50%. Entire counties died out in England. A huge epidemic to the limit exacerbated social contradictions, Jacquerie in France and the uprising of Wat Tyler - its indirect results.
Plague in Russia
It cannot be said that the epidemic did not affect Russia at all. She came there a little later than in Europe - in 1352. The first victim was Pskov, where the plague was brought from the territory of Lithuania. The picture of the disaster was not much different from what happened in Western Europe: both men and women of all ages and classes died, 3 or even 5 corpses were put into one coffin - and still they did not have time to bury the dead.
At the request of the Pskovites, a bishop came to the city from Novgorod and conducted a procession. On the way back, he also fell ill with the plague and died. Many Novgorodians came to the Cathedral of St. Sophia to say goodbye to the deceased bishop - and an epidemic broke out in this city too.
Subsequently, the plague struck several more cities, including Moscow. Her victim was the Prince of Moscow and the Grand Duke of Vladimir Simeon the Proud, as well as his two young sons, Ivan and Simeon.
And yet, comparing the scale of the catastrophe in Russia and in Europe, one cannot fail to notice that Russia suffered to a lesser extent. Someone may see this as a blessing of God for Holy Russia, but there were also more material reasons.
Obstacles to the spread of the plague
The natural reservoir of the plague pathogen is fleas that parasitize rats. It was the massive migration of these rodents that brought the plague to Europe. The climate of Russia is colder than the European one, it was more difficult for rats to survive in such conditions. A certain role was played by the lower population density, again associated with more severe natural conditions: it was more difficult for rats to overcome long distances between cities.
Russian cities were not as dirty as European ones - for example, in Russia there were already cesspools, and in the West all sewage was poured onto the streets. European cities were a rat's paradise.
The attitude towards cats - natural enemies of rodents - was tolerant in Russia, and in Western Europe these animals were exterminated, considering them "accomplices of witches and sorcerers." This attitude towards cats made Europeans defenseless against the rat invasion.
Finally, the famous Russian bath played a significant role in containing the epidemic. Baths also existed in European cities, but they were visited either for medical purposes or for entertainment - the heroine of the Provencal novel "Flamenca" even made appointments to her lover in a city bath. Visiting such establishments was an expensive pleasure and such an exceptional event that the German knight Ulrich von Lichtenstein did not want to give it up for the sake of meeting friends. Such untidiness made people easy prey for fleas - carriers of the plague.
In Russia, even the poorest peasant had a bathhouse, and visiting it on a weekly basis was common. For this reason, the inhabitants of Russia were less likely to acquire fleas and contract the plague.
