A Journal of the Plague Year Read Online

League of Hanover: Britain, France, and Holland form alliance against Spain.

Title page of the first edition, 1722

IT was about the Beginning of September 1664, that I, among the Rest of my Neighbours, heard in ordinary Discourse, that the Plague was return’d again in Holland;* for it had been very violent there, and particularly at Amsterdam and Roterdam, in the Year 1663, whither they say, it was brought, some said from Italy, others from the Levant among some Goods, which were brought home by their Turkey Fleet; others said it was brought from Candia;* others from Cyprus. It matter’d not, from whence it come;* but all agreed, it was come into Holland again.

We had no such thing as printed News Papers* in those Days, to spread Rumours and Reports of Things; and to improve them by the Invention of Men, as I have liv’d to see practis’d since. But such things as these were gather’d from the Letters of Merchants, and others, who corresponded abroad, and from them was handed about by Word of Mouth only; so that things did not spread instantly over the whole Nation, as they do now. But it seems that the Government had a true Account of it, and several Counsels were held about Ways to prevent its coming over; but all was kept very private. Hence it was, that this Rumour died off again, and People began to forget it, as a thing we were very little concern’d in, and that we hoped was not true; till the latter End of November, or the Beginning of December 1664, when two Men, said to be French-men, died of the Plague in Long Acre, or rather at the upper End of Drury-Lane. The Family they were in, endeavour’d to conceal it as much as possible; but as it had gotten some Vent in the Discourse of the Neighbourhood, the Secretaries of State got Knowledge of it. And concerning themselves to inquire about it, in order to be certain of the Truth, two Physicians and a Surgeon were order’d to go to the House, and make Inspection. This they did; and finding evident Tokens* of the Sickness upon both the Bodies that were dead, they gave their Opinions publickly, that they died of the Plague: Whereupon it was given in to the Parish Clerk, and he also return’d them to the Hall;* and it was printed in the weekly Bill of Mortality* in the usual manner, thus,

Plague 2. Parishes infected 1

The People shew’d a great Concern at this, and began to be allarm’d all over the Town, and the more, because in the last Week in December 1664, another Man died in the same House, and of the same Distemper: And then we were easy again for about six Weeks, when none having died with any Marks of Infection, it was said, the Distemper was gone; but after that, I think it was about the 12th of February, another died in another House, but in the same Parish, and in the same manner.

This turn’d the Peoples Eyes pretty much towards that End of the Town; and the weekly Bills shewing an Encrease of Burials in St. Giles’s Parish more than usual, it began to be suspected, that the Plague was among the People at that End of the Town; and that many had died of it, tho’ they had taken Care to keep it as much from the Knowledge of the Publick, as possible: This possess’d the Heads of the People very much, and few car’d to go thro’ Drury-Lane, or the other Streets suspected, unless they had extraordinary Business, that obliged them to it.

This Encrease of the Bills stood thus; the usual Number of Burials in a Week, in the Parishes of St. Giles’s in the Fields, and St. Andrew’s Holborn were from 12 to 17 or 19 each few more or less; but from the Time that the Plague first began in St. Giles’s Parish, it was observ’d, that the ordinary Burials encreased in Number considerably. For Example,

The like Encrease of the Bills was observ’d in the Parishes of St. Brides, adjoining on one Side of Holborn Parish, and in the Parish of St. James Clarkenwell, adjoining on the other Side of Holborn; in both which Parishes the usual Numbers that died weekly, were from 4 to 6 or 8, whereas at that time they were increas’d, as follows.

Besides this, it was observ’d with great Uneasiness by the People, that the weekly Bills in general encreas’d very much during these Weeks, altho’ it was at a Time of the Year, when usually the Bills are very moderate.

The usual Number of Burials within the Bills of Mortality for a Week, was from about 240 or thereabouts, to 300. The last was esteem’d a pretty high Bill; but after this we found the Bills successively encreasing, as follows.

This last Bill was really frightful, being a higher Number than had been known to have been buried in one Week, since the preceeding Visitation of 1656.

However, all this went off again, and the Weather proving cold, and the Frost which began in December, still continuing very severe, even till near the End of February, attended with sharp tho’ moderate Winds, the Bills decreas’d again, and the City grew healthy, and every body began to look upon the Danger as good as over; only that still the Burials in St. Giles’s continu’d high: From the Beginning of April especially they stood at 25 each Week, till the Week from the 18th to the 25th, when there was buried in St. Giles’s Parish 30, whereof two of the Plague, and 8 of the Spotted-Feaver,* which was look’d upon as the same thing; likewise the Number that died of the Spotted-Feaver in the whole increased, being 8 the Week before, and 12 the Week above-named.

This alarm’d us all again, and terrible Apprehensions were among the People, especially the Weather being now chang’d and growing warm, and the Summer being at Hand:* However, the next Week there seem’d to be some Hopes again, the Bills were low, the Number of the Dead in all was but 388, there was none of the Plague, and but four of the Spotted-Feaver.

But the following Week it return’d again, and the Distemper was spread into two or three other Parishes (viz.) St. Andrew’s-Holborn, St. Clement’s-Danes, and to the great Affliction of the City, one died within the Walls, in the Parish of St. Mary-Wool-Church, that is to say, in Bearbinder-lane near the Stocks market; in all there was nine of the Plague, and six of the Spotted-Feaver. It was however upon Inquiry found, that this French-man who died in Bearbinder-lane, was one who having liv’d in Long-Acre, near the infected Houses, had removed for fear of the Distemper, not knowing that he was already infected.

This was the beginning of May, yet the Weather was temperate, variable and cool enough—and People had still some Hopes: That which encourag’d them was, that the City was healthy, the whole 97 Parishes buried but 54, and we began to hope, that as it was chiefly among the People at that End of the Town, it might go no farther; and the rather, because the next Week which was from the 9th of May to the 16th there died but three, of which not one within the whole City or Liberties,* and St. Andrew’s buried but 15, which was very low: ’Tis true, St. Giles’s buried two and thirty, but still as there was but one of the Plague, People began to be easy, the whole Bill also was very low, for the Week before, the Bill was but 347, and the Week above-mentioned but 343: We continued in these Hopes for a few Days, But it was but for a few; for the People were no more to be deceived thus; they searcht the Houses, and found that the Plague was really spread every way, and that many died of it every Day: So that now all our Extenuations abated, and it was no more to be concealed, nay it quickly appeared that the Infection had spread it self beyond all Hopes of Abatement; that in the Parish of St. Giles’s, it was gotten into several Streets, and several Families lay all sick together; And accordingly in the Weekly Bill for the next Week, the thing began to shew it self; there was indeed but 14 set down of the Plague, but this was all Knavery and Collusion, for in St. Giles’s Parish they buried 40 in all, whereof it was certain most of them died of the Plague, though they were set down of other Distempers; and though the Number of all the Burials were not increased above 32, and the whole Bill being but 385, yet there was 14 of the Spotted-Feaver, as well as 14 of the Plague; and we took it for granted upon the whole, that there was 50 died that Week of the Plague.

The next Bill was from the 23d of May to the 30th, when the Number of the Plague was 17: But the Burials in St.