1435 Herat Plague Outbreak and Its Course

Abstract

Epidemic diseases have caused the deaths of many people and social chaos from ancient times to the present day. The biggest outbreak recorded in human history is the epidemic in medieval Europe, known as the "Black Plague". In the Middle Ages, there was also a plague in Herat, the capital of the Timurians. According to the sources, the people of Herat were outraged as they had not encountered epidemic before. The outbreak in Herat in 1435 is reminiscent of the plague known in today's medical literature as the “Bubonic Plague”. During this period, the disease appeared in different parts of the body parts in people who contracted the plague and appeared in chickpea-sized acne. People who contracted the disease passed away two or three days later. Timurian sources provide information on the course of this plague. The plague continued in Herat for more than four months and some of the people abandoned the city after the plague was seen in the city. During the same period, the plague has not been remain limited to the city of Herat, but also occured in various parts of Europe, Anatolia, Egypt and Iran. In this study, the emergence and course of the 1435 Herat plague and some celebrities who died during the plague were mentioned, based on the Timurid chronicles.