Italian Plague of 1629-1631
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The Italian Plague of 1629-1631 was a series of outbreaks of bubonic plague from 1629 through 1631 in northern Italy. This epidemic, often referred to as Great Plague of Milan, claimed the lives of approximately 280,000 people, with the cities of Lombardy experiencing particularly high death rates. This episode is considered one of the last outbreaks of the centuries long pandemic of bubonic plague which began with the Black Death.
German and French troops carried the plague to the city of Mantua in 1629, as a result of troop movements associated with the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). Venetian troops, infected with the disease, retreated into northern and central Italy, spreading the infection.
In October 1629, the plague reached Milan, Lombardy's major commercial center. Although the city initiated effective public health measures, including quarantine and limiting the access of German soldiers and trade goods, the plague smoldered. A major outbreak in March 1630 was due to relaxed health measures during the carnival season. This was followed by a second wave in the spring and summer of 1631. Overall, Milan suffered approximately 60,000 fatalities out of a total population of 130,000.
East of Lombardy, the Republic of Venice was infected in 1630-31. The city of Venice was severely hit, with recorded casualties of 46,000 people out of a population of 140,000. Some historians believe the drastic loss of life, and its impact on commerce, ultimately resulted in the downfall of Venice as a major commercial and political power. The papal city of Bologna lost an estimated 15,000 citizens to the plague, with neighboring smaller cities of Modena and Parma also being heavily affected. This outbreak of plague also spread north into Tyrol, an alpine region of western Austria and northern Italy.
Later outbreaks of bubonic plague in Italy include the city of Florence in 1630-1633 and the areas surrounding Naples, Rome and Genoa in 1656-1657.
Literature
The 1630 plague in Milan is the backdrop for several chapters of Alessandro Manzoni's novel The Betrothed (Italian: I promessi sposi). Although a work of fiction, Manzoni's description of the conditions and events in plague-ravaged Milan are completely historical and extensively documented from primary sources researched by Manzoni.
An expunged section of the book, describing the historical trial and execution of three alleged "plague-spreaders," was later published in a booklet entitled Storia della colonna infame (History of the infamous pillar).
See also
References
- Cipolla, Carlo M. Fighting the Plague in Seventeenth Century Italy. Madison: University of Wisconsin Press, 1981.
- Prinzing, Freidrich. Epidemics Resulting from Wars. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1916.simple:Italian Plague of 1629-1631
Acknowledgement and Attribution Regarding Sources of Content
Some of the initial content on this page may be incorporated in part from copyleft sources in the public domain including wikis such as Wikipedia and AskDrWiki. Drug information for patients came from the The National Library of Medicine. Infectious disease information may have come from the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Differential Diagnoses are drawn from clinicians as well as an amalgamation of 3 sources: 1.The Disease Database; 2. Kahan, Scott, Smith, Ellen G. In A Page: Signs and Symptoms. Malden, Massachusetts: Blackwell Publishing, 2004:3; 3. Sailer, Christian, Wasner, Susanne. Differential Diagnosis Pocket. Hermosa Beach, CA: Borm Bruckmeir Publishing LLC, 2002:7 .
