{"product_id":"2026100012113-secondhand-the-black-death","title":"The Black Death","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eCondition remarks:\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eBook: Good\u003cbr\u003eJacket: No dust jacket\u003cbr\u003ePages: Yellowed\u003cbr\u003eMarkings: Previous owner\u003cbr\u003eCondition remarks: Condition as shown in image\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the mid-fourteenth century, a catastrophe of unimaginable proportions swept across the known world, killing between one-third and one-half of Europe's entire population — The Black Death stands as the definitive account of this devastating pandemic. Philip Ziegler chronicles the bubonic plague's relentless march from Central Asia through the Mediterranean and across the whole of Europe between 1347 and 1351, reconstructing with meticulous precision the human, social, and political upheaval it left in its wake. Drawing on contemporary chronicles, medical records, and ecclesiastical documents, Ziegler presents an unflinching portrait of medieval society on the brink of collapse, illustrating how entire villages were obliterated, trade routes abandoned, and the very fabric of feudal order torn asunder.\n\nBeyond the staggering death toll, Ziegler argues that the plague acted as a brutal but irresistible catalyst for profound and lasting change — reshaping religion, art, economic structures, and the relationship between lord and peasant in ways that would echo through the centuries. His prose is authoritative yet deeply humane, never allowing the enormity of the statistics to overshadow the individual suffering of ordinary men and women caught in the catastrophe. Widely regarded as the seminal popular history of the pandemic, this work remains as urgent and compelling as when it was first published — a stark reminder that civilisation is always far more fragile than it appears.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Secondhand Stock","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":51070623613147,"sku":"2026100012113-SECONDHAND","price":10.0,"currency_code":"AUD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0523\/7646\/9701\/files\/c12fab9f-02c6-4c4b-a6a3-f56d7e123fd4.png?v=1794188158","url":"https:\/\/bookgrocer.com\/products\/2026100012113-secondhand-the-black-death","provider":"Book Grocer","version":"1.0","type":"link"}