A Time of Despair and Calamity: Plague, War, and Famine Devastates Society

The End of One Era and the Beginning of Another: the Fourteenth Century

Michael Streich, first published in December 12, 2008. Copyright held by Michael Streich

 Three Fourteenth Century principal events legitimize the appellation of a “Calamitous Age.” The Famine of 1315, the outbreak of the Hundred Years’ Way in 1337, and the rapid spread of Bubonic Plague in the mid century contributed to mass destruction and death. When the century finally ended, early modern nation states would emerge out of the calamity and the Catholic Church, long a strong force in the medieval period, would experience a waning of power.

 

The Coming of the Little Ice Age

 

The famine of 1315 is attributed to significant climate changes that dramatically affected European agricultural production. One writer of the period describing conditions in England relates that, “hunger grew in the land…Meat and eggs began to run out…” and the overall price of food staples such as beans or peas were four times the cost in 1313. Grain failed to ripen and “bread did not have its usual nourishing power…” [1]

 

The famine was widespread and in areas where poor harvests occurred with greater frequency such as Southern France, conditions were particularly egregious. The English chronicler states that food was so hard to find, that “according to many reports, men and women in many places secretly ate their own children…” Scholars studying the origins of fairy tales conclude that stories of peasant cannibalism may find roots in this period. [2]

 

The Black Death in 14^th Century Europe

 

Writing on the plague in Florence, Giovanni Boccaccio comments that “Many died daily or nightly in the public streets…and what with their corpses and the corpses of others who died on every hand the whole place was a sepulcher.”  [3] The plague arrived in Europe from the Middle East, carried onboard merchant ships bound for Italian ports. By 1400, the plague had reduced European populations by a third to a half.

 

The “Dance of Death,” depicted today in many European churches and town halls, was the most vivid reminder that plague was no respecter of social status. There was no cure and the causes were unknown.

 

The Hundred Years’ War

 

Tied to Edward III’s claim to the French throne and continued confrontation between England and France, the Hundred Years’ War would ravage Europe from 1337 to 1453. A military “revolution” that took medieval Europe from chivalry and mounted knights to gunpowder and the first artillery, the war caused widespread destruction and interrupted agricultural production, creating wider famine.

 

An Emerging New Order

 

The new order coming out of 14^th century calamities would point toward the defining of early modern nation states and the consolidation of central state power. England no longer controlled continental provinces, the French kings would begin a long process of power consolidation, and Spain embarked on its Reconquista, ending in 1492 with the defeat of the last Muslim stronghold in Spain.

 

The once powerful medieval Church was particularly devastated by the plague years, losing many spiritual caregivers. Conflict with the growing power of kings weakened papal authority over secular issues. By 1400, the church would face multiple popes, several heretic movements, and a drive to supplant papal power with the authority of Church councils.

 

The calamitous 14^th century transitioned a medieval Europe to a century that would usher in exploration, early industrial endeavors, and a profound change in secular and religious relationships.

 

Sources:

 

[1] From Johannes de Trokelowe, Annales, H.T. Riley, ed., Rolls Series, No. 28,Vol.3 (London, 1866), pp. 92-95. Translated by Brian Tierney in The Middle Ages, Volume I:Sources of Medieval History, 5^th Ed. (New York: McGraw Hill, 1992), pp.351-352.

[2] See Robert Darnton, The Great Cat Massacre and Other Episodes in French Cultural History (London: Allen Lane, 1984) chapter 1; Sheldon Cashdan, The Witch Must Die: How Fairy Tales Shape Our Lives (New York: Basic Books, 1999) chapter 4.

[3] Boccaccio, The Decameron, J.M. Rigg, trans. (London: David Campbell, 1921) Vol. I, pp. 5-11.

*Any republishing of this article in any form required written permission by Michael Streich