Great Plague of Seville
Encyclopedia
The Great Plague of Seville (1647–1652) was a massive outbreak of disease in Spain
that killed up to a quarter of Seville
's population.
Unlike the plague of 1596–1602 which claimed 600,000 to 700,000 lives, or a little under 8% of the population, and initially struck northern and central Spain and Andalusía
in the south, the Great Plague, which may have arisen in Algeria, struck the Mediterranean side of Spain first. The coastal city of Valencia was the first city to be hit, losing an estimated 30,000 people. The disease chewed through Andalucía in addition to sweeping the north into Catalonia and Aragon. The coast of Málaga
lost upwards of 50,000 people. In Seville quarantine measures were evaded, ignored, unproposed and/or unenforced. Unsurprisingly the result was horrific. The city of Seville and its rural districts were thought to have lost 150,000 people—starting with a total population of 600,000. Sevilla, and indeed the economy of Andalucía, would never recover from so complete a devastation. Altogether Spain was thought to have lost 500,000 people, out of a population of slightly fewer than 10,000,000, or nearly 5% of its entire population. In perspective, it would be akin to a nation with a population of 300 million to losing upwards of 15 million men, women and children. This was the greatest, but not the only, plague of 17th century Spain.
Not quite twenty-five years later Spain found itself once again in the grips of a furious plague. For nine years (1676–1685), ebbing and flowing like a great wave, it ravaged all Spain. It struck with especial virulence in the areas of Andalucía and Valencia. The poor harvest of 1682-83 brought with it famine conditions which weakened the exhausted population still further. This last plague of the 17th century, plus the famine that followed in its wake, is estimated to have claimed an additional 250,000 lives.
Three great plagues ravaged Spain in the 17th century. They were:
Factoring in normal births, deaths, plus emigration, historians reckon the total cost in human lives due to these plagues throughout Spain, throughout the entire 17th century, to be a minimum of nearly 1.25 million. As a result, the population numbers of Spain scarcely budged between the years 1596 and 1696.
The disease is generally believed to have been bubonic plague
, an infection by the bacterium Yersinia pestis
, transmitted via a rat vector. Other symptom patterns of the bubonic plague, such as septicemic plague
and pneumonic plague
were also present.
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
that killed up to a quarter of Seville
Seville
Seville is the artistic, historic, cultural, and financial capital of southern Spain. It is the capital of the autonomous community of Andalusia and of the province of Seville. It is situated on the plain of the River Guadalquivir, with an average elevation of above sea level...
's population.
Unlike the plague of 1596–1602 which claimed 600,000 to 700,000 lives, or a little under 8% of the population, and initially struck northern and central Spain and Andalusía
Andalusia
Andalusia is the most populous and the second largest in area of the autonomous communities of Spain. The Andalusian autonomous community is officially recognised as a nationality of Spain. The territory is divided into eight provinces: Huelva, Seville, Cádiz, Córdoba, Málaga, Jaén, Granada and...
in the south, the Great Plague, which may have arisen in Algeria, struck the Mediterranean side of Spain first. The coastal city of Valencia was the first city to be hit, losing an estimated 30,000 people. The disease chewed through Andalucía in addition to sweeping the north into Catalonia and Aragon. The coast of Málaga
Málaga
Málaga is a city and a municipality in the Autonomous Community of Andalusia, Spain. With a population of 568,507 in 2010, it is the second most populous city of Andalusia and the sixth largest in Spain. This is the southernmost large city in Europe...
lost upwards of 50,000 people. In Seville quarantine measures were evaded, ignored, unproposed and/or unenforced. Unsurprisingly the result was horrific. The city of Seville and its rural districts were thought to have lost 150,000 people—starting with a total population of 600,000. Sevilla, and indeed the economy of Andalucía, would never recover from so complete a devastation. Altogether Spain was thought to have lost 500,000 people, out of a population of slightly fewer than 10,000,000, or nearly 5% of its entire population. In perspective, it would be akin to a nation with a population of 300 million to losing upwards of 15 million men, women and children. This was the greatest, but not the only, plague of 17th century Spain.
Not quite twenty-five years later Spain found itself once again in the grips of a furious plague. For nine years (1676–1685), ebbing and flowing like a great wave, it ravaged all Spain. It struck with especial virulence in the areas of Andalucía and Valencia. The poor harvest of 1682-83 brought with it famine conditions which weakened the exhausted population still further. This last plague of the 17th century, plus the famine that followed in its wake, is estimated to have claimed an additional 250,000 lives.
Three great plagues ravaged Spain in the 17th century. They were:
- The Plague of 1596-1602 (Arrived in Santander by ship from northern Europe, most likely the Netherlands, then spread south through the centre of Castile, reaching Madrid by 1599 and arriving in the southern city of Seville by 1600.)
- The Plague of 1646-1652 ("The Great Plague of Seville"; believed to have arrived by ship from Algeria, it was spread north by coastal shipping, afflicting towns and their hinterlands along the Mediterranean coast as far north as Barcelona.)
- The Plague of 1676-1685
Factoring in normal births, deaths, plus emigration, historians reckon the total cost in human lives due to these plagues throughout Spain, throughout the entire 17th century, to be a minimum of nearly 1.25 million. As a result, the population numbers of Spain scarcely budged between the years 1596 and 1696.
The disease is generally believed to have been bubonic plague
Bubonic plague
Plague is a deadly infectious disease that is caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis, named after the French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Yersin. Primarily carried by rodents and spread to humans via fleas, the disease is notorious throughout history, due to the unrivaled scale of death...
, an infection by the bacterium Yersinia pestis
Yersinia pestis
Yersinia pestis is a Gram-negative rod-shaped bacterium. It is a facultative anaerobe that can infect humans and other animals....
, transmitted via a rat vector. Other symptom patterns of the bubonic plague, such as septicemic plague
Septicemic plague
Septicemic plague is a deadly blood infection, one of the three main forms of plague. It is caused by Yersinia pestis, a gram-negative bacterium....
and pneumonic plague
Pneumonic plague
Pneumonic plague, a severe type of lung infection, is one of three main forms of plague, all of which are caused by the bacterium Yersinia pestis. It is more virulent and rare than bubonic plague...
were also present.