They were trying to prevent germs from getting into a body without damaging leucocytes
The infamous plague doctors of the Middle Ages were a fearsome sight
by JACKIE ROSENHEK • October 2011
Being born in Medieval Europe was like losing the historical lottery — superstition reigned, feudalism flourished and misery was the rule, not the exception, among the long-suffering serfs. Yes, to live in the Dark Ages was to know disease and hunger intimately, to fear the wrath of a vengeful God (courtesy of His almighty Church), and to die young or on the battlefield. And yet, among those countless cold winters and violent wars fought for cruel lords, few could argue that 1348 was probably the single worst year be alive in pre 20th-century Europe.
When the rats and fleas carrying Yersinia pestis surreptitiously hitched a ride down the Silk Road with merchants and soldiers, no one could have predicted the toll this taste for spices and the latest in luxury goods would have on the population of Europe. After decimating tens of millions starting in China, it raced though central Asia and northern India. The bubonic plague made official landfall in Sicily in 1347. Within five years, it had spread to virtually all of Europe, Russia and the Middle East.
THE PERFECT PLAGUE
The first wave was the worst, killing some 25 million in Europe alone. By 1400 — a mere 50 years after the pandemic began — various epidemics and resurgence had reduced the world’s population from about 450 million to between 350 and 300 million, maybe less. Roughly 150 million individuals succumbed to the nightmarish symptoms of the Black Plague.
First, swollen lymph nodes would signal infection. Within days, these painful buboes would blacken and then burst, spewing forth pus and blood. Dark purplish patches all over the body were par for the course. The lucky ones would recover, while others would soon go on to suffer high fever and agonizing episodes of spasmodic pain, vomiting and retching while blood sometimes filled their lungs. For the fortunate, death would come quickly; others lingered in a state of delirium for days.
Panic, desperation and grief reigned supreme, from the humblest burgs to the most vibrant cities throughout Europe. All manner of prayers and bargains and cures were attempted, but to no avail. With no antibiotics available to fight the dreaded bacteria, the plague would simply have to run its course. The plague did not entirely disappear from European soil until the 19th century as smaller but still deadly outbreaks occurred continuously in the decades that followed.
Once the plague’s full force was felt, it didn’t take long for most reputable and well-trained doctors to recognize its vicious and virulent nature. Moreover, any physician with even a lick of sense soon realized that the "cures" being employed were anything but, and sometimes even accelerated the death spiral. And so, most of them ran away. It was really the only sensible thing to do.