Environment, Society and the Black Death

by Desconhecido

  As for the common people and a large proportion of the bourgeoisie, they presented a much more pathetic spectacle, … they fell ill daily in their thousands, and since they had no one to assist them or attend to their needs, they inevitably perished almost without exceptions. Many dropped dead in the open streets, both by day and by night, …

  Whenever people died, their neighbours nearly always followed a single, set routine, … Either on their own, or with the assistance of bearers whenever these were to be had, they extracted the bodies of the dead from their houses and left them lying outside their front doors, where anyone going about the streets, especially in the early morning, could have observed countless numbers of them. Funeral biers would then be sent for, upon which the dead were taken away, though there were some who, for lack of biers, were carried off on plain boards. It was by no means rare for more than one of these biers to be seen with two or three bodies upon it at a time; on the contrary, many were seen to contain a husband and wife, two or three brothers and sisters, a father and son, or some other pair of close relatives. And times without number it happened that two priests would be on their way to bury someone, holding a cross before them, only to find that bearers carrying three or four additional biers would fall in behind them; so that whereas the priests had thought they had only one burial to attend to, they in fact had six or seven, and sometimes more …

  Such was the multitude of corpses (of which further consignments were arriving every day and almost by the hour at each of the churches), that there was not sufficient consecrated ground for them to be buried in, especially if each was to have its own plot in accordance with long-established custom. So when all the graves were full, huge trenches were excavated in the churchyards, into which new arrivals were placed in their hundreds, stowed tier upon tier like ships’ cargo, each layer of corpses being covered over with a thin layer of soil till the trench was filled to the top.

  Boccaccio was upset by the unchristian and unworthy dissolution of traditions and moral values, and his colourful testimony brings us the horror and despair. But looking at it in hindsight, the degree to which funeral practices actually prevailed during these hard times is perhaps even more stunning. In spite of the high mortality, people were still buried in coffins, and funeral processions lead by priests were held whenever possible. The dead were buried on cemeteries, although not always the particular graveyard wished by the diseased.21

  When looking for the physical remains of the plague victims, it may be concluded that some may be lost forever, for instance if thrown in the river or the sea, whereas others may be found on cemeteries. Although surprisingly few, in the light of the disaster, some Black Death cemeteries have been identified and archaeologically investigated. The most well-published and thoroughly studied is the plague cemetery of East Smithfield in London.22 It has been estimated that a total of 2400 plague victims were buried in the cemetery, of which the skeletons of 759 individuals have been archaeologically documented. In the cemetery there were both single graves and mass burials. The latter were obviously necessitated by the high mortality and by the need to bury many dead in a short time. However, the phrase ‘mass grave’ may give a false impression. The bodies at East Smithfield were not carelessly just thrown into a pit. The mass graves constituted long trenches in which the dead bodies were placed side by side in an orderly manner. Even though they were densely packed, they were carefully placed beside each other, oriented in east–west direction as was customary (Fig. 33). There were up to five layers of bodies buried in the trenches and small children were put between the adults. Of the bodies in the trenches, 13% had coffins. Apart from the long trenches, there were also smaller multiple graves that contained only a few bodies buried together.23

  The long trenches with orderly placed bodies documented at East Smithfield fit well with the description from Florence by Boccaccio. Similar mass graves have also been documented elsewhere, for instance at St Bartholomew’s Hospital,24 Charterhouse Square,25 Blackfriars and Guildford Friary in London,26 and at Hereford, England.27 Other examples are from Lübeck, Germany,28 Grossmünster in Zurich, Switzerland,29 and Barcelona, Spain.30 In Scandinavia there is one possible Black Death mass grave reported from the Church of Our Lady (Vor Frue Kirke) in Randers, Denmark.31 The grave is from the Middle Ages (c. 1100–1550), but it lacks a more precise dating and it has not been osteologically analysed. From Sweden there is one possible example from outside the St Nicolaus cemetery in Lund.32 It was a partly excavated trench with twenty individuals that appeared to have been buried more or less at the same time. However, the skeletons are not available anymore, and similar to the Danish grave it was only broadly dated to the Middle Ages.

  Hence, identified mass graves from the Black Death are still few but they seem to give a rather unanimous picture. In spite of the many dead that had to be buried in a short time, plague victims from the Black Death were taken care of in a relatively dignified manner, given the circumstances. When mass graves were necessary, these were well-ordered trenches with east–west oriented bodies. This picture stands in contrast to some plague pits from later outbreaks, which show no signs of dignity or of any attempts to follow traditional, religious customs. One example is the plague pit belonging to Lazzaretto Vecchio on Quarantine Island in Venice, from a plague outbreak in 1485 (Fig. 34). The pit contained 1500 individuals buried out of order and some of them placed in prone position. Similar plague pits have been found in Martigues, north of Marseille, France, dated to 1720–21.33 These mass graves from later plague epidemics give a completely different impression than for instance the Black Death cemetery at East Smithfield.

  Extraordinary measures were sometimes also taken in connection with the Black Death, for instance those of Pope Clement VI mentioned above, but these may have been spectacular exceptions that caught the attention of chroniclers. The well-ordered mass graves at East Smithfield, where there were also single and small multiple graves, together with the description from Florence by Boccaccio, give another impression and indicate that Black Death burials may not necessarily be very different from ordinary burials. Could this be a reason why identified Black Death graves are still surprisingly few? Have we overlooked the most obvious place to search for them – in the ordinary medieval cemeteries?

  People at the time of the Black Death seems to have stuck to traditional burial customs as far as possible, and mass graves were dug only when necessary. The need for mass graves would have depended on the number of dead in a given time and the number of people left to bury them. In Sweden there are no detailed records from the Black Death of the number of dead in any particular area, which otherwise could have indicated the possible need for mass burials. However, on a national level, the average population drop in Sweden during the late fourteenth century has been tentatively estimated to about 40–50%.34 This population drop was probably due not only to the Black Death in 1350, but also to the two severe outbreaks that followed in 1359–60 and 1368–69.35

  The area covered by present-day Sweden had a population of approximately 1.1 million before the Black Death.36 If two assumptions are made that (1) the total population drop from the first three plague outbreaks was 50% and (2) that the first outbreak was the most devastating, a simple estimate suggests a 40% drop in 1350 (from 1,100,000 to 660,000), a 10% drop in 1359–60 (from 660,000 to 594,000), and then another 10% drop in 1368–69 (594,000 to 534,600). The increased mortality during each of these three different outbreaks may then be divided by the number of cemeteries in Sweden, which has been estimated to approximately 2350.37 It gives us an average estimate of the number of extra burials per cemetery during the plague years. During the first wave, i.e. the Black Death, there were on average 187 more burials per cemetery than in a normal year, in the second wave there were 28, and in the third 25 more than normal. Whether the cemeteries could accommodate this amount of additional bodies depends on how large the cemeteries were and how many died at the same time – 187 more dead than normal in a
year or in a month would be very different.

  Fig. 33. Part of a burial trench investigated at the Black Death cemetery East Smithfield in London (photo courtesy of Museum of London Archaeology Service)

  Fig. 34. Mass grave with plague victims from 1485 on the Island of Lazaretto Vecchio, the Venetian Lagoon, Italy (photo used under the licence of Italian Republic, Ministry for Culture, Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici del Veneto, Copyright reserved)

  Fig. 35. Map of Lund in 1536 with churches. The hatched area marks Trinitatis parish (original drawing by Ragnar Blomqvist 1962, with some later additions)

  From these hypothetical numbers on a national level we may now look closer at the most thoroughly studied medieval cemetery in present-day Sweden, the Trinitatis Cemetery in Lund (Fig. 35). The cemetery spans the period 990–1536 and 2953 graves have been osteologically investigated.38 The total number of graves at Trinitatis, which was the largest cemetery in medieval Lund, has been estimated to approximately 5700 graves. Based on stratigraphy, dendrochronology and radiocarbon dates in combination with time-characteristic arm positions of the buried individuals, the graves have been divided into chronological groups.39 The group tentatively dated to the late fourteenth century is characterised by increased burial activity in general (Fig. 36a, b), and also by the occurrence of several double and triple graves (Fig. 36c). This concentration of graves is interpreted here as reflecting victims of the Black Death together with the two subsequent outbreaks. Layers with increased numbers of graves containing two, three, four and occasionally five individuals have been identified also at other medieval cemeteries in Sweden, for instance in Åhus,40 Skänninge,41 Linköping,42 Stockholm43 and Westerhus (Fig. 37).44 They may represent plague victims, but in the absence of detailed chronological studies this remains a hypothesis. Although Lund has particularly good dating and preservation conditions, our study indicates that it may be fruitful for future studies to return also to several of these other excavated materials to try to make refined chronological distinctions.

  Based on the chronological grouping at Trinitatis, the average number of burials per year in the excavated part of the cemetery has been estimated at 4–5 individuals in the centuries before the Black Death. The accumulation of burials in the late fourteenth century consists of 270 individuals. If they represent the three epidemics 1350, 1359–60 and 1368–69, then 90 normal burials may be expected during this 20-year period (4–5 per year), which leaves us with 180 burials that may be plague victims. Divided by three, it equals 60 extra burials per plague epidemic on this cemetery.

  Lund at the time had 26 cemeteries.45 They were of different size and some of them, in particular those of the monasteries and convents, where mainly for the higher social strata. Still a rough extrapolation from Trinitatis can be made based on the different sizes of the cemeteries. The number of 180 extra burials at Trinitatis would then represent approximately 1500 extra burials in Lund. The population of Lund during the High and Late Middle Ages has been estimated to 3000–4500 people.46 Even though this figure has not been specified, 1500 extra burials would represent a population drop of 30–50%, provided that the moving of people in or out of the town is negligible. This figure is of course very tentative, given all the uncertain parameters of the calculation. However, the most important conclusion is that a population drop of this size would not necessary call for mass graves. The increased mortality could be handled with single burials in combination with smaller multiple burials in the ordinary cemeteries.

  Lund was a small town in an international perspective and much higher numbers of dead have been suggested for several larger European towns. For instance, in Parma, 40,000 victims of the Black Death were buried in 6 months, on average more than 220 per day, and in Avignon the death toll reached an incredible 150,000, of whom 1800 died during the first 3 days.47 Also, London was a large town, estimated to have had 45,000–80,000 inhabitants.48 From this population, 30–50% (15,000–40,000 people) died from the Black Death. London at the time had more than 100 cemeteries,49 but still there was need to establish at least two emergency plague cemeteries – the East Smithfield, discussed above, and the neighbouring West Smithfield/Charterhouse Square.50 These two cemeteries had mass graves but also single burials and small multiple burials similar to the ones at Trinitatis.

  It may be concluded that the need for mass graves differed greatly between towns and between regions, and that the lack of safely identified mass graves from the Black Death in Scandinavia indicates that the plague victims could probably be handled in ordinary cemeteries. This is true also for later plague epidemics from which we have written records. For instance, in the small village Sørby-Magle Kirkerup in Denmark, the church book from 1656 describes the burial of plague victims in the cemetery. Sometimes the burials could not be paid for, since also the relatives had died, and in some cases siblings were buried together in the same coffin. In one occasion it is mentioned that one person was buried just as he was, without a coffin. Obviously all customs could not be followed but they were still buried at the cemetery.51

  Fig. 36. Archaoelogical documentataion of the Trinitatis Cemetery in Lund; a. plan of the Trinitatis church with cemetery, 1300–1536. Blue grid indicates the 5 × 7 m squares used for archaeological documentation (drawing by Maria Cinthio); b. the dating and chronological grouping of graves from Trinitatis were made using relationship diagrams and grave levels for each of the 5 × 7 m squares. The picture shows the documentation from one such square (light blue in a), with the number of buried individuals at each level. Vertical axis represents height above sea level (the graves here range 34.10–35.25 m a.s.l.). In the period c. 990–1536 the ground level was gradually raised due to the accumulation of building layers from the construction and renovation of the stone church together with the numerous buried. Burial customs (arms position, type of coffin) is listed with symbols at each grave number. Grave levels were based on the measured levels of the skulls. The relationship diagram provides a picture of the changes in funeral customs and grave digging intensity at different levels; c. original drawing of one of the triple graves from Trinitatis

  In Sweden, there are good records on the last plague of 1710–13. During this epidemic approximately 200,000 died, which represent almost 15% of the population. In November 1710, royal authorities proclaimed that plague victims should be buried in other places than in the ordinary cemeteries.52 One example of a town where the new regulation was followed is Linköping, which lost about one-third of its population. In the initial phase of the epidemic, plague victims were buried in the Cathedral Cemetery, in a part of the cemetery normally used for the poor.53 Following the regulation, a specific plague cemetery was established at a nearby military training camp.

  The only plague cemetery in Sweden that has been archaeologically documented was also the result of the new regulation of November 1710. It was situated in the village of Holje, Blekinge, in southeastern Sweden. From this cemetery 90 graves containing 115 individuals were excavated (Fig. 38), whereas the total number of graves was estimated to 300–350.54 All the burials had coffins and the majority of them were single graves. There were some double graves and a few graves with three individuals (Fig. 39), but no mass graves. There was also one grave where two children were put in the same coffin. All the graves were put neatly in line with no intercutting or disturbance.55 The burials seem to have followed the authorities’ regulation that the plague victims should not to be washed and wrapped. They were apparently buried in the clothes they wore when they died, as indicated by preserved buttons, hooks and eyes from the cloths, and by the absence of the needles normally used when wrapping the diseased. They also had necklaces, scissors, knives, metal toothpicks and ear-spoons, the latter usually carried in a leather strap or thin chain around the neck. The body of young girl still had a thimble on its finger. Another sign of hurry is that the graves were shallow dug. According to the regulations, graves should be at least 1.8 m deep, but the ones in Holje reached a dept
h of only 0.8–1.2 m. Apart from this, the establishment of a special plague cemetery and the burial procedures in Holje seem to have followed the regulations. However, this went not without protests. According to the priest’s diary he was threaten by his parishioners and at some occasions even violently forced to bury plague victims in the ordinary cemetery.56 The deeply rooted customs of cemetery burials were not easily thrown overboard.

  Fig. 37. Photos from medieval cemeteries in Sweden: a. three children buried close together in the cemetery of the Black Friar convent in Skänninge, Östergötland, c. 1237–1536 (photo: Swedish National Heritage Board, UV Öst); b. Triple grave with two adults and one child from the cemetery of the cathedral of Linköping, Östergötland, dated to the Late Middle Ages (photo: Swedish National Heritage Board, UV Öst); c. Several adult individuals buried very close together at the cemetery of the Sanctuary at Helgeandsholmen, Stockholm, dated to c. 1320–1531 (photo Stefan Kriig); d. Several adult individuals buried in a long row, like in a ditch, at the cemetery of the Sanctuary at Helgeandsholmen, Stockholm, c. 1320–1531 (photo Annika Olson)