# Black Death (1348)

URL: https://germany-history.com/timeline/1348-black-death
Location: Holy Roman Empire
Categories: main-event

From 1348 to 1350 the plague killed perhaps a third of the population in German lands. Jews were falsely accused of poisoning wells, and hundreds of Jewish communities were destroyed in massacres, including in Strasbourg, Erfurt and Mainz. Flagellant movements spread across the country.

## Why it matters
It was a demographic catastrophe and a devastating blow to German Jewry.

Ruler at the time: [Charles IV](https://germany-history.com/rulers/charles-iv)

## Sources
- [Wikipedia – Black Death](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Death)
- [Wikipedia – Persecution of Jews during the Black Death](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Persecution_of_Jews_during_the_Black_Death)
- [Encyclopaedia Britannica – Black Death](https://www.britannica.com/event/Black-Death)