The Great Plague - Information, Featured Articles

The Great Plague

In the summer of 1665 London suffered an outbreak of the bubonic plague. It was brought to London by rats on board the ships that brought goods from overseas. The plague spread rapidly and once infected, the chances of survival were very slim. During the year-long outbreak 100,000 people died.

City regulations stated that all infected houses had to have a red cross painted on the door to warn passers-by. The house would then be boarded up for 40 days imprisoning the victims within.

Those who could, fled from the city, those left behind were faced with bodies piled in the filthy streets and looters robbing the empty houses.

The children's nursery rhyme 'Ring-O-Roses' stems from the plague.

'Ring a ring-o-roses,
a pocket full of posies,
ah-tishoo, ah-tishoo,
we all fall down.'

The ring-o-roses was the distinctive rash which victims displayed, and the pocket of posies refers to the common habit of carrying some flowers to mask the stench of the city.

Rats
Every hour in London 4000 rats are born! It is said that you are never more than twenty feet away from a rat in London but don't worry they are ever so good at keeping out of sight. I have lived here since 1959 and have never seen a rat outside of a zoo or pet shop.

For a ghostly tour of London which includes a visit to a plague pit click here.