This deep dive covers Why Were the Poor Hit Hardest? within The Plague of 1665 for GCSE History. Revise The Plague of 1665 in Restoration England 1660-1685 for GCSE History with 10 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 6 of 16 in this topic. Use this deep dive to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.

🏚️ Why Were the Poor Hit Hardest?

The plague did not kill Londoners equally. Wealth determined survival in ways that reveal a great deal about social inequality in Restoration England — and which AQA examiners expect you to discuss.

Overcrowded housing in the poorest parishes: Areas like St Giles in the Fields, Stepney, and Whitechapel were the first and worst affected. Multiple families shared a single room, creating exactly the conditions in which rat fleas — the actual carriers of plague — thrived. Wealthier parishes had larger houses with courtyards and gardens, which reduced proximity to rats.

The rich fled — the poor could not: When the epidemic became serious in summer 1665, Charles II and his court moved to Oxford. Parliament, most lawyers, doctors, and wealthy merchants followed. Ordinary Londoners who depended on daily wages simply could not afford to stop working and leave. They stayed and died.

No access to any medical help: London's physicians left with the wealthy. Those who remained charged fees that the poor could not pay. The pest houses (isolation hospitals) were quickly overwhelmed — the poor died at home behind sealed red-cross doors, attended only by poorly paid "searchers of the dead" with no medical training.

Economic collapse trapped the poor further: With trade stopped, markets closed, and employers fled, thousands of Londoners faced starvation as well as plague. Even those who did not catch the disease risked dying of hunger during the months the epidemic was at its height.

Parish poor relief was inadequate: Each parish was supposed to provide relief to those shut up in infected houses. In practice, many parishes ran out of funds quickly. The poorest parishes — which had the most plague deaths — also had the least money to support survivors.

This social dimension is crucial for "explain why" questions: the plague was not just a medical failure but a social one. The wealthy had options; the poor had none.

Practice questions for The Plague of 1665

What bacterium caused the bubonic plague that devastated London in 1665?

A. Yersinia pestis
B. Streptococcus pyogenes
C. Bacillus anthracis
D. Clostridium perfringens

1 markfoundation

Approximately how many people died in London during the Great Plague of 1665?

A. Around 25,000 (about 5% of London's population)
B. Around 100,000 (about 25% of London's population)
C. Around 250,000 (about 60% of London's population)
D. Around 500,000 (over 100% of London's population)

1 markfoundation

Quick recall flashcards

What was miasma theory?

The dominant 17th-century belief that plague was caused by 'bad air' (miasma) from rotting matter. Led to useless responses: bonfires to purify air, posies of flowers, fumigation. The theory was completely wrong — plague was bacterial, spread by fleas on rats.

What were buboes?

Swollen, blackened lymph nodes (usually in groin, armpits, or neck) — the characteristic symptom of bubonic plague. The appearance of buboes triggered house quarantine. Death typically followed within 2-5 days; mortality without treatment was 60-70%.

Why Were the Poor Hit Hardest?