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Table of Contents
In 1665 to 1666, the Great Plague of London was the last major outbreak of the bubonic plague that struck England. It was said that about 15 to 20 percent of the city’s population were killed due to this plague.
See the fact file below for more information on the Great Plague of London or alternatively, you can download our 27-page Great Plague of London worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.
Key Facts & Information
London
- The growth of population in London ever since the mid-16th century had already brought problems to the city.
- Besides overcrowding, problems with poor housing also emerged.
- Buildings were continuously divided that even the gardens and yards were wiped out.
- The only way for garbage wastes to be disposed of was by throwing them on the streets.
- Due to this, London became very unclean and hygiene became hard to maintain that the city became a breeding place for rats that carried the plague.
The Outbreak
- The dock areas outside London and the St. Giles parish were believed to be the first areas struck with the plague.
- The first case recorded was two French merchants in St. Giles who died in the month of December.
- However, the infection did not easily spread during this time because of the weather conditions and temperature.
- The next case recorded was in February 1665 and from here, death cases already began rising.
- In order to prevent it from spreading, household quarantine was implemented.
- Around four to six days quarantine was imposed once the plague had infected a household.
- During the incubation, the house is sealed and the doors were painted with a red cross with the words “Lord have mercy on us!”.
- The streets remained empty and silent where only the searchers’ cry of “Bring out the dead bodies!” could only be heard.
- Searchers hunting for the dead bodies or the possible people infected by the plague.
- Corpses were brought out at night, put in a cart, and sent to the plague pits.
- Two pits where they put the dead bodies were located at Aldgate, London, and Finsbury Fields.
- As summer began arriving, the infected cases rapidly increased.
- As measures, they set up a Privy Council committee that focused on investigating how to prevent the spread of the disease.
- Persons living in a household were limited and were asked to responsibly clean the streets outside of their properties.
- Those who failed to comply with their duties were punished.
- Cases in St. Giles were continuously rising so policies became stricter and everyone who wished to travel was thoroughly inspected.
- At around September 1665, the number of deaths reached its peak with 7,165 people dying each week.
- The rich people ran away from London and King Charles II of England, together with his family and court, were no exception to this.
- They moved to Salisbury and then Oxford.
- Other city officials and authorities chose to stay.
- Businesses began closing and only a few medical professionals could keep up with the increasing number of cases.
- Other people also opted to leave the city but it was not that easy for them for they have to leave their homes and livelihoods to settle with uncertainty elsewhere.
- As protocols became stricter, a certificate of good health signed by the Lord Mayor which was difficult to get must also be obtained before leaving the city.
- Places outside London began regretting accepting the refugees as they were no longer prepared to accept more.
- With this, the refugees had a hard time traveling as they could not pass along towns.
- They were forced to steal or scavenge just to live and several had also died suffering from either starvation or dehydration.
- The diary of Samuel Pepys recorded a vivid account of what happened during the plague.
- His diary became a source of primary data for the Great Plague of London.
- In his diary, he wrote on April 30:
“Great fears of the sickness here in the City it being said that two or three houses are already shut up. God preserve us all!”
Symptoms
- Prior to the Great Plague of London, there were already other plague outbreaks that occurred.
- The bacterium from the Great Plague of London was said to be associated with the prior outbreaks.
- According to research, the Great Plague of London came from infection with “Pasteurella pestis” or “Yersinia pestis”.
- It is said to be transmitted through human flea or louse bites with an incubation period of two to four days.
- Symptoms included fever, delirium, vomiting, muscle cramps, coughing with the presence of blood, painful buboes, or masses of tender and enlarged lymph nodes usually in the neck, axilla, or groin.
The End of the Great Plague
- By around February 1666, it was reported that it was already safe to return to the city.
- With the return of King Charles II and his company, other people who had run away began returning as well.
- There were still infected cases around mid-1666.
- In September, the Great Fire of London had occurred and destroyed a large portion of the city of London.
- Through this incident, some people believed that it caused the end of the epidemic.
Impact
- The Great Plague of London had greatly affected the poor.
- Followed by the Great Fire of London, many businessmen in the city and property owners suffered great damages.
- With these events, London was rebuilt and the Parliament implemented the Rebuilding of London Act 1666.
- Aside from building improvements, it was also ensured that their environment became a better place to live in.
- People developed a strong camaraderie after experiencing both the plague and fire.
- It took over ten years for the city to be rebuilt.
Great Plague of London Worksheets
This is a fantastic bundle that includes everything you need to know about the Great Plague of London across 27 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use worksheets that are perfect for teaching about the Great Plague of London which was the last major outbreak of the bubonic plague that struck England.
Complete List Of Included Worksheets
- Great Plague of London Facts
- Identification
- Odd One Out
- Take a Look
- True or False
- Draw and Tell
- Dear Diary
- Hot News
- Infographics
- The Solution
- Dejavu
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Link will appear as Great Plague of London Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, October 28, 2021
Use With Any Curriculum
These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.