History key words

What is a Bubo?

A symptom of the Black Death characterized by painful swelling in the armpit, groin, or neck.

What caused the Black Death?

It was a terrifying medieval disease spread by flea bites from the bacterium Yersinia pestis.

How is Cholera described?

A violent dehydrating disease that killed thousands during Victorian times.

What are Conduits?

Pipes that carried clean water into towns, both above and underground.

What is Diptheria?

A painful choking disease common in the 18th and 19th centuries, marked by swelling of the throat.

What defines an Epidemic?

A disease that spreads rapidly, killing millions in a short period of time.

What is Ergotism?

A painful medieval disease caused by a fungus growing on stored grain.

What does Famine mean?

A chronic food shortage causing widespread starvation, particularly in medieval times.

Who is a Gongfermer?

Somebody who was employed to empty cess pits in a medieval town.

What was the Great Plague?

The 1665 epidemic of what was formerly known as the Black Death that hit London.

What does it mean to Immunise?

To give an injection to prevent someone from catching a disease, such as MMR.

What is an Infirmary?

A basic hospital, most of which were found in monasteries during medieval times.

What is a Latrine?

A posh term for a toilet, which was quite rare in medieval times.

What is Miasma?

Bad air, believed in medieval times to cause disease to spread.

What is a Midden?

A medieval rubbish pit typically found at the end of the garden.

What is a Monastery?

A place where monks lived a godly life focused on praying, studying, and caring for the sick.

What is a Privy?

A basic outside toilet built over a hole in the ground, functioning as a cess pit.

What is Sanitation?

The supply of clean water to homes and the removal of foul water and sewage.

What is Sewage?

Human waste including urine and feces.

What was the Theory of 4 Humours?

An ancient Greek theory about the cause of disease that was used during medieval times.

What is Tuberculosis (TB)?

A killer disease of the lungs that causes victims to gasp and cough up blood.

What is Typhoid?

A disease characterized by a red rash, common in Victorian times, spread by dirty water.

What does Urbanisation refer to?

The growth of towns and cities during the Industrial Revolution (1750-1900).

What is the Victorian court?

Slum housing for workers, commonly seen in many Victorian cities.

What is the Welfare State?

A system where taxpayers fund state benefits like Universal Credit for those in need.

What is a Workhouse?

A place where the poor, sick, and unemployed were put to work during Victorian times.