Medicine Through TimeDeep Dive

Medieval Treatments for Plague

Part of The Black Death · GCSE GCSE History revision

This deep dive covers Medieval Treatments for Plague within The Black Death for GCSE History. Revise The Black Death in Medicine Through Time for GCSE History with 8 exam-style questions and 15 flashcards. This topic appears regularly enough that it should still be part of a steady revision cycle. It is section 3 of 14 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.

Topic position

Section 3 of 14

Practice

8 questions

Recall

15 flashcards

🧠 Medieval Treatments for Plague

Bleeding & Purging (purging: using laxatives to expel "excess" humours from the body) — Based on Four Humours. Leeches or lancets used to remove "bad blood." Laxatives to purge the body. Often made patients weaker.

Theriac — A mixture of up to 70 ingredients including opium, viper flesh, herbs. Expensive, useless, but popular among the wealthy.

Prayer & Penance — Flagellants whipped themselves in public. Churches held special plague masses. People carried holy relics.

Isolation — Some towns quarantined the sick. Milan walled up infected houses (including healthy family members). This actually helped!

Keep building this topic

Read this section alongside the surrounding pages in The Black Death. That gives you the full topic sequence instead of a single isolated revision point.

What Did People Believe Caused It?Key Statistics Setting the Scene Exam Technique: The Black Death as a Turning Point?

Practice Questions for The Black Death

In which year did the Black Death first arrive in England?

A. 1337
B. 1348
C. 1381
D. 1400

1 markfoundation

What were 'buboes', which gave the bubonic plague its name?

A. Painful swellings in the armpits and groin caused by infected lymph nodes
B. Black patches on the skin caused by internal bleeding under the surface
C. Blisters filled with fluid that appeared on the chest and back
D. Swollen and blackened fingertips caused by the blood turning bad

1 markfoundation

Quick Recall Flashcards

What were the symptoms of the Black Death?

Buboes (swellings in armpits/groin), black blotches on skin, fever, vomiting blood — most victims died within days

How did the Black Death spread to England?

From Central Asia via Italy and France through trade routes — arrived in ports like Weymouth in June 1348

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What Did People Believe Caused It?

Key Statistics