Poland Was Not Spared
One of the unique aspects of the spread of the Black Death was how it affected Poland. While many believe that Poland escaped the plague, this is not true. The small country did have outbreaks of the plague; however, it was far less affected than the rest of Europe. While true that Poland was not as badly affected, it is misleading to say that Poland was “spared.” In reality about a quarter of Poland’s population succumbed to the plague.
There are many theories about why Poland did not get the plague as badly as the rest of Europe. One theory is that the borders were closed almost immediately after the outbreak of plague. King Cashmir closed the boarders of the country and prevented movement of people who were infected. This did not mean that people were not allowed into the country. The Jews were blamed for the plague in many parts of Europe and King Cashmir allowed them to settle in Poland where they enjoyed peace and safety. Ironically despite being blamed for the plague, Jews carried the plague in fewer numbers and therefore they did not spread the plague as much as other Europeans who might have otherwise emigrated to Poland.
The idea that the borders closed is not precise because there were no distinct borders nor was there a wall with a gate that could be closed. People could still come and go throughout the country even if they were not allowed into individual cities. Another theory was that Poland was too spread out and too sparsely population that the plague could not spread as well as it did in the rest of the Europe. This is not necessarily true either. Poland wasn’t all that different from other parts of Europe in terms of spread and population as other areas that were devastated by the plague. In the end historians are not sure on why Poland was not hit as hard as it could have been and it may remain a mystery, but the country was hit and hit hard by the plague.