an introduction to

Year of Wonders

byGeraldine Brooks

Love and hate in the time of plague

1665 and all that …* Revolution

*Religious fanaticism* Witchcraft

Living in London (and England) … 1660’s

“The Black Death began in Europe in 1347 and carried off

an estimated 30 percent or more of the population of Europe. For centuries the

epidemic continued to strike every 10 years or so, its last

major outbreak being the Great Plague of London from 1665 to 1666. The disease is

spread by rats and transmitted to people by

fleas, or, in some cases,

directly by breathing.”

The reaction to the plague …

¼ of the population dead:a logistical nightmare

today, let alone in the 17th century

Eyam …

To London

• The Eyam Church• The well, on the outskirts

of the village, where food and coin were exchanged

• Eyam’s main street (now!)

• The Bradfords’ house

Witchcraft & Puritanism

Background – factors to help your understanding[ - make sure you are familiar with how each of these factors affected life in Eyam …]

• Life in 17th-century rural England:• Isolated• Surrounded by superstition• Brutal – extremes of weather & work.• Controlled – social hierarchies• “Primitive” living conditions• Limited medical knowledge

• Major “world” events –• English Revolution 1642-60• Puritanism• The London plague (1665)• The Great Fire (1666)• Witchcraft

“She’s a witch!”