1st Edition

An Urban History of The Plague Socio-Economic, Political and Medical Impacts in a Scottish Community, 1500–1650

By Karen Jillings Copyright 2018
    242 Pages
    by Routledge

    242 Pages 2 B/W Illustrations
    by Routledge

    As a medical, economic, spiritual and demographic crisis, plague affected practically every aspect of an early modern community whether on a local, regional or national scale. Its study therefore affords opportunities for the reassessment of many aspects of the pre-modern world.





    This book examines the incidence and effects of plague in an early modern Scottish community by analysing civic, medical and social responses to epidemics in the north-east port of Aberdeen, focusing on the period 1500–1650. While Aberdeen’s experience of plague was in many ways similar to that of other towns throughout Europe, certain idiosyncrasies in the city make it a particularly interesting case study, which challenges several assumptions about early modern mentalities.

    Chapter 1 Setting the scene: Aberdeen and the north-east, Chapter 2 Responses to plague in Scotland, Chapter 3 Plague in Aberdeen before 1550, Chapter 4 Plague in Aberdeen after 1550, Chapter 5 Aberdeen’s final plague: the outbreak of 1647–48, Chapter 6 Conclusion

    Biography

    Karen Jillings is Senior Lecturer in History at Massey University, New Zealand, where she has taught since 2004. She has published on aspects of medicine and society in pre-modern Scotland.