10. Medical Logic To Help The Plague Wasn’t…Well…Logical.
During the Middle Ages, we’re still talking about the time doctors thought leeches cured diseases by sucking out the bad blood. Medieval doctors believed that there were several causes of the black plague and one of them was a punishment from God for the sins of the people. Religion was a bigger authority and institution then than it is today. In reality, doctors helped spread the plague. Bodies were piled up outside city walls and laid there until mass graves could be dug. This contributed to the bad air and infestation to help spread the disease.
Doctors also wore beaked masks to protect them. They thought the plague was airborne, which it was in a way, and the masks helped them to breathe “good air.” The beaks were stuffed with herbs they thought would combat the disease. Unfortunately for them, it didn’t work. Attempts to find a cure for the disease led to the development of the scientific method and changes of thinking which in turn led to the Renaissance. So if it wasn’t for the Black Death, the Renaissance may have been different, or not existed at all.