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Environment, Society and the Black Death
An interdisciplinary approach to the late-medieval crisis in Sweden
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Main description:

In the mid-fourteenth century the Black Death ravaged Europe, leading to dramatic population drop and social upheavals. Recurring plague outbreaks together with social factors pushed Europe into a deep crisis that lasted for more than a century. The plague and the crisis, and in particular their short-term and long-term consequences for society, have been the matter of continuous debate. Most of the research so far has been based on the study of written sources, and the dominating perspective has been the one of economic history. A different approach is presented here by using evidence and techniques from archaeology and the natural sciences. Special focus is on environmental and social changes in the wake of the Black Death. Pollen and tree-ring data are used to gain new insights into farm abandonment and agricultural change, and to point to the important environmental and ecological consequences of the crisis. The archaeological record shows that the crisis was not only characterised by abandonment and decline, but also how families and households survived by swiftly developing new strategies during these uncertain times. Finally, stature and isotope studies are applied to human skeletons from medieval churchyards to reveal changes in health and living conditions during the crisis. The conclusions are put in wider perspective that highlights the close relationship between society and the environment and the historical importance of past epidemics.


Contents:

Preface

Part I. Introduction

Per Lageras

1. An interdisciplinary approach

2. Current knowledge on the late-medieval crisis

3. Societal crisis and environmental change

Part II. Empirical studies

4. Abandonment, agricultural change and ecology

Per Lageras, Anna Brostroem, Daniel Fredh, Hans Linderson, Anna Berg, Leif Bjoerkman, Tove Hultberg, Sven Karlsson, Matts Lindbladh, Florence Mazier, Ulf Segerstroem & Eva Skoeld

5. Change, desertion and survival - an archaeology of the late-medieval crisis

Lars Ersgard

6. Living conditions in times of plague

Caroline Arcini, T. Douglas Price, Maria Cinthio, Leena Drenzel, Mats Andersson, Bodil Persson, Hanna Menander, Maria Vretemark, Anna Kjellstroem, Rickard Hedvall and Goeran Tagesson

Part III. Conclusions in a wider perspective

7. Environment-society interactions

Per Lageras

8. Studying the late-medieval crisis - reflections on research perspectives

Lars Ersgard

9. Epidemics in a social context

Caroline Arcini

10. Summary of conclusions

Per Lageras

References

Author presentations

Appendix 1. Pollen sites

Appendix 2. Osteological stature data

Appendix 3. Isotope data


PRODUCT DETAILS

ISBN-13: 9781785700545
Publisher: Oxbow Books
Publication date: November, 2015
Pages: 208
Weight: 652g
Availability: Available
Subcategories: Diseases and Disorders

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