Who’s Who and What’s What in a Medieval Plague Village?

THIS time last year, Covid-19 began its relentless journey across the planet, causing untold death and misery, and turning everyone’s lives upside down. Nobody had ever seen the like of this disease before. But that is not to say that the current pandemic is a unique and unprecedented event. Throughout history, invisible organisms have brought disease and pestilence to countless people across the globe and, lacking the scientific knowledge that we enjoy today, our predecessors suffered more than we are suffering now.

So how exactly were our ancestors’ lives affected by these unseen pathogens that cut them down in their millions? Let’s