Homework Activities
The plague was not a pleasant experience! People in the 14th Century didn't know much about what caused sickness and how to treat it.
Look at the symptoms, the cures and preventative measures and answer exercises A, B and C.
A. Put the list of gruesome symptoms into the order that you think a sufferer would have experienced them.
1. internal bleeding
2. arms and legs become sore
3. headache, chills and fever
4. death
5. swellings split open, oozing blood and pus
6. swellings on neck and limbs
7. nausea and vomiting
B. Which four of the following do you think were used as 'cures' during the plague of 1348-1350?
1. putting the tail feathers of a live chicken onto the boils
2. rubbing antiseptic cream onto the boils
3. drinking lots of water
4. slicing the boils open, burning them with a red-hot poker
5. bathing in your own urine
6. eating plenty of fruit and vegetables
7. applying a live frog or toad to the buboes
C. Which three of the following do you think were used to 'prevent' the plague?
1. taking aspirine
2. sterilising everything in the house
3. eating a balanced diet
4. smoking tobacco
5. smelling sweet herbs or flowers
6. praying