Human history is filled with events such as natural disasters, epidemic diseases, and major wars that can be considered as disasters. These events have shaped or altered the destinies of societies, affecting their political, social, and economic lives. Especially when it comes to disasters, the events that have occurred have left deep marks in the conscience and soul of societies. The traces of these disasters are clearly seen in the literary traditions, both written and oral, of societies.
In mythological cultures, legends, and sacred books, we can find traces of disaster situations that have deeply affected all of humanity. These disasters, also known as “Little Apocalypses,” have changed the course of history. They have had tragic and painful consequences, such as the deaths of millions of people, including the cities and civilizations built by humanity. Throughout history, epidemic diseases have had long-lasting major effects, from the collapse of dynasties to the rise of colonialism, and even the formation of societies becoming poorer or richer due to climate changes.
Many tribes, cultures, and cities that have given a name to history have disappeared as a result of these disasters. Many known tribes and cultures from history have completely vanished in the present day. These “little apocalypses” have sometimes been believed to be the result of the wrath and curse of the divine creator, as expressed in sacred texts, and sometimes as a consequence of human actions and deeds.
Humanity has either emerged stronger or resigned to its fate in the face of these disaster situations. In seeking solutions, humanity has suffered significant material and spiritual losses, but has gained great experiences and changed the course of history. Societies in search of solutions have sometimes taken the first step towards a new era. Especially for finding solutions, humans have engaged in scientific activities, leading to technological leaps and advancements.
Throughout history, one of the most painful situations for humanity has been epidemic and infectious diseases. Epidemic diseases that result from infectious diseases are known as the worst-case scenario. When a disease situation that emerges in a specific region, area, or community spreads beyond the borders of a country, it officially becomes an epidemic.
Infectious and epidemic diseases existed even during humanity’s hunter-gatherer days, but when humanity transitioned to agricultural life 10,000 years ago, it created communities that made epidemics more possible. Especially living together in close proximity and large groups, humans facilitated the spread and growth of infectious epidemic diseases. Diseases like malaria, tuberculosis, leprosy, influenza, smallpox, and other known diseases first emerged during this period. As humans became civilized, built cities, and established trade routes to connect with other cities, they facilitated the spread of pandemic or epidemic diseases due to interactions with other cultures and societies, leading to social, political, and economic relationships.
Infectious epidemic diseases that have changed history, rewritten humanity’s fate, or disrupted it, will be chronicled in chronological order in this article, shedding light on human history.
430 BC Athens Plague
The earliest recorded epidemic disease in historical records is known to have occurred during the Peloponnesian War. The disease passed through Libya, Ethiopia, and Egypt before spreading among the Spartans besieging Athens. In this major outbreak, it is known that about two-thirds of Athens’ population died.
The symptoms of this major outbreak included fever, thirst, bloody throat and tongue, red skin, and lesions. The disease suspected to be typhoid fever at that time significantly weakened the Athenians and played a crucial role in their defeat by the Spartans.
165 AD Antonine Plague
The Antonine Plague, known in history, is probably an early form of smallpox epidemic that began with the Hun invasions. After the Hun invasion, the Antonine Plague infected the Germans. It spread to the Roman Empire through Roman legions interacting with the Germans. The symptoms of the Antonine Plague included fever, sore throat, diarrhea, and, if the patient survived long enough, pus-filled sores. This plague lasted until 180 AD and is even claimed to have been one of the victims of Emperor Marcus Aurelius.
250 AD Plague of Cyprian
The Cyprian Plague is recorded in history as a major pandemic that included symptoms like diarrhea, vomiting, throat ulcers, fever, and gangrene of the hands and feet. The city residents fled to Carthage to escape the infection, but this escape caused the disease to spread even further. The Plague of Cyprian spread from Ethiopia to Rome via North Africa, then to Egypt and northwards. After this outbreak, there were recurring similar pandemics for three centuries. In 444 AD, this disease struck Britain and hindered England’s defense efforts against the Scots, weakening the country. This outbreak led the English to seek help from the Saxons, who would soon take complete control of the island.
541 AD Justinian Plague
The Justinian Plague, first appearing in Egypt, spread to Palestine and the Byzantine Empire and then to the entire Mediterranean. The plague disrupted the course of the Roman Empire, thwarting Emperor Justinian’s plans to unite the empire and achieve significant economic progress. This outbreak also contributed to the spread of the apocalyptic myth that rapidly promoted Christianity. This plague recurred for two centuries and eventually killed about 50 million people, or 26% of the world’s population at that time.
Leprosy
Leprosy, a disease known throughout the ages, became a pandemic in medieval Europe, afflicting European peoples. As a slow-developing bacterial disease that caused wounds and deformities, leprosy was believed to be a hereditary disease from one’s own family and a punishment from God. This belief led to rigid moral judgments in society and consequently the exclusion of victims and patients. Due to the studies conducted by Hansen, who made the first serious work on this disease, it is also known as Hansen’s disease. This disease still affects tens of thousands of people every year and can be fatal if not treated with antibiotics.
1350 Black Death
The second major outbreak of the plague, responsible for the deaths of one-third of the world’s population, likely started in Asia and spread westward through trade routes. In 1347, plague patients arrived in the port of Messina in Sicily, spreading rapidly throughout Europe from there. The number of dead bodies was so high and widespread that most of them rotted in place, creating a constant stench in cities.
England and France were particularly helpless against the plague during this period and had to halt their ongoing wars with a truce. During these years, the English feudal system completely collapsed due to the plague’s impact on economic conditions and demographic information. The Vikings in Greenland, who lost their population, completely lost their power to fight against the native populations and had to stop their explorations of North America.
1492 Colonial Era Epidemics
After the arrival of the Spaniards in the Caribbean, diseases such as smallpox, measles, and bubonic plague were transmitted to the indigenous populations of the continent. Since the native populations had not been exposed to these epidemic diseases before, they were completely devastated due to lack of immunity. Indigenous people suffered major losses, accounting for 90% of their numbers across both the northern and southern continents.
When Christopher Columbus arrived on the island of Hispaniola, he encountered the Taino people with a population of 60,000. However, by the year 1548, this population had been reduced to less than 500. This population decline was repeated throughout the entire American continent. By 1520, the Aztec Empire was completely wiped out due to the smallpox brought by African slaves.
1665 Great Plague of London
The Great Plague of London in 1665 and 1666 is one of the most famous epidemics in history. This plague led to the death of 20% of London’s population. Due to the high number of deaths, people were buried in mass graves. Because cats and dogs were constantly digging up graves, corpses were exposed. As a result, many cats and dogs were killed during these years. The worst part of the outbreak began to decline in the fall of 1666, coinciding with another devastating event, the Great Fire of London. One disaster had passed, only to be followed by another catastrophe for the people of London.
1817 First Cholera Pandemic
The first of seven cholera pandemics that occurred over a span of 150 years emerged as a wave of intestinal infection in Russia, causing the deaths of one million people. The bacterium, which spread through contaminated water and food, was transmitted to India through British soldiers and resulted in the deaths of millions of Indians. This pandemic also spread to Spain, killing 150,000 people, and then to Africa, Indonesia, China, Japan, Italy, Germany, and America. Although a vaccine was developed in 1885, the pandemic continued.
1855 Third Plague Pandemic
Originating in China, this pandemic spread to India and Hong Kong, killing 15 million people. Initially transmitted by fleas during a mine explosion in Yunnan, China, the plague is considered one of the causes of the Panthay Rebellion and the Taiping Rebellion. India suffered the most serious losses during this period in Asia. This outbreak was exploited by the Indian people as a pretext for rebelling against the oppressive British rulers. The pandemic continued actively until around 1960, when cases fell to below a few hundred.
1875 Fiji Measles Outbreak
After Fiji surrendered to the British Empire, royal members visited Australia as a tourist gift from Queen Victoria. Royal members who arrived during a measles outbreak spread the epidemic disease they caught on the island to other places they visited. The rapidly spreading outbreak resulted in corpses torn apart by wild animals on the island. All villages were burned to get rid of the microbe, and some villagers could not escape the fire, burning alive. One-third of Fiji’s population, a total of 40,000 people, died in this outbreak.
1889 Russian Flu
Known as the first major flu pandemic, the Russian flu started in Siberia and Kazakhstan and then reached Moscow. Spreading to Finland and eventually the rest of Europe, the pandemic crossed the ocean to reach North America and Africa. By the end of 1890, 360,000 people had died from this pandemic.
1918 Spanish Flu
The Spanish Flu, the deadliest pandemic known in history due to its damages, resulted in 50 million deaths worldwide. Originating from China, this pandemic spread to Europe as Chinese workers traveled through Canada by railroad. In North America, the flu first appeared in Kansas in early 1918 and was seen in Europe in the spring. By the spring of 1918, when it reached Madrid, the outbreak was referred to as the “Spanish flu.”
By October, hundreds of thousands of Americans had died, causing a crisis worldwide. However, the threat of the flu diminished by the summer of 1919 as most infected individuals developed immunity over time. Nevertheless, this flu became the largest pandemic in world history with 50 million deaths.
1957 Asian Flu
Starting in Hong Kong in 1957 and spreading to all of China, the Asian flu reached the United Kingdom and caused 14,000 deaths within six months. A second wave of the outbreak occurred in early 1958, causing approximately 1.1 million deaths worldwide and 116,000 deaths in the United States alone. The disease was eradicated with the development of a vaccine.
1981 HIV/AIDS
Initially observed in American gay communities, AIDS is believed to have developed from a chimpanzee virus from West Africa in the 1920s. The disease, which spreads to some bodily fluids, reached Haiti in the 1960s and later New York and San Francisco in the 1970s.
First identified as an epidemic disease in 1981, AIDS destroyed the immune system of humans. Those infected with the HIV virus experienced symptoms such as fever, headaches, and enlarged lymph nodes upon infection. As the symptoms waned, carriers became highly contagious through blood and genital fluids. Although treatments were developed to slow down the progression of the disease, 35 million people worldwide died from AIDS, and a cure has not yet been found.
2003 SARS
First identified in 2003, Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome (SARS) is believed to have originated from bats, then spread to cats, and eventually to humans in China. After China, SARS spread to 26 more countries, resulting in 7,796 deaths. SARS is characterized by respiratory problems, dry cough, fever, and head and body aches, spreading through respiratory droplets from coughing and sneezing. Quarantine efforts proved effective, and the disease began to subside by the summer, not resurfacing. The Chinese government was criticized for suppressing information about the virus and not sharing it with the public.
2019 Coronavirus
The Coronavirus, known as COVID-19, emerged at an animal market in Wuhan, in the Hubei province of China. The World Health Organization declared it an epidemic after the COVID-19 virus spread to 114 countries, infecting over 118,000 people. The coronavirus stemmed from a new strain within the virus family that includes common flu and SARS. Symptoms of the disease include respiratory problems, fever, and cough, and it leads to pneumonia and death. Like SARS, it spreads through respiratory droplets from coughing and sneezing.
The first case in China appeared on November 17, 2019, in the Hubei Province, but it wasn’t diagnosed. Researchers pointed to an unknown virus. Eight more cases emerged in December. The Chinese government attempted to suppress news about the virus, delaying preventive action. The world learned about COVID-19 when Dr. Li Wenliang opposed government orders and shared safety information with other doctors. The next day, the Chinese government informed the World Health Organization. Although an uncured virus, COVID-19 spread beyond China’s borders and surfaced in 10 more countries, including the United States, France, Australia, and South Korea, by the end of January. The coronavirus pandemic became one of the greatest global outbreaks of the 21st century.
